Exercise Addiction

rhodes2b

Addiction:
•being abnormally tolerant to and dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming (especially alcohol or narcotic drugs)
•an abnormally strong craving

Addiction is a strong force within all of us. It can be considered bad and good dependent on the severity of the addiction. I was addicted to carbohydrates…. Simple carbohydrates…. Complex carbohydrates... processed sugars… Soda, candy, fruit, vegetables, honey, milk, rice, potatoes, bread, pasta. You name it- I loved it.

Now that I have cut out the majority of my carbohydrates out of my diet I have dropped 50 pounds in 12 weeks. It is obviously noticeable. I have so much energy and feel better overall.

But now my family is worried that my “addiction” has changing to exercise. Don’t get me wrong, I have always been an active person and exercised 5-6 days a week…I grew up playing soccer, basketball, baseball, and running track. I continued through the years with biking, sand volleyball, golf, weights, gym, etc. I don’t feel that my activity level, length, or activities have changed that much through this journey.

Activity levels:
Biking: weekends/holidays/days off – mostly trail riding for 1-3 hours based on how lost I get. Lol
Sand Volleyball: weekdays - 2 times a week at most – 3-4 player teams for 3 hours. “B” level effort
Golf: 2 times a month – 18 holes with cart
Gym: 5-6 days a week depending on the other activities which are weather based. Usually there 1-2 hours max.
Weights: 2-3 times a week incorporated into the gym activities
Cardio: 5-6 times a week (elliptical, bike, treadmill)

The only noticeable change is that I have replaced emotional eating with going to the gym. If I’m bored, I hit the gym. If I am sad, I hit the gym. If I am pissed, I really hit the gym. I like to sweat and always have. It makes me happy.
So what is the question I am really asking? Last week, I decided that I wanted to begin the P90X program to switch things up. Plus a few of my MFP buddies were starting the C25k program as well. When I told my family I was going to do both programs and alternate them day by day, they told me that I was doing too much.

The question that I am posting to all of you is more along the lines of when does it become a bad addiction?
Are any of you doing both programs?
Am I taking on too much?
Are my activity levels really considered out of control?

runningneo122

Speaking as a recovering addict(yes, really), when your life becomes unmanagable, your addiction is too much. You must weigh things out for yourself.

All the people in the world and especially those closest to me could tell me I had a problem and needed help and it didn't matter. It wasn't until I looked at it honestly and figured it out for myself that my life was unmanagable that I could do something about it.

Good luck on your self-discovery journey!