Can't get back on track :(

zfitgal
zfitgal Posts: 478 Member
edited January 2020 in Health and Weight Loss
Last year I went through a very bad custody battle (which I won) but took everything out of me. I ended up having adrenal fatigue and very cortisol levels for a long time which caused me to gain weight and not be able to lose it. At the same time I strained my chest muscle which didn't allow me to work out the way l like to. 4 months ago i statreted the gym again and began to lose weight again, and I have been rehabbing my shoulder. I have been making progress but this past week I broke down. I became so angry that I have to lose this weight and i dont look the way i should and not be able to workout the way I want to because of my chest strain. Exercise and fitness is my therapy and without I feel very blah. But this week I didnt want to workout or diet. I so badly want to get back on track but something is just keeping me down. I went to the gym today and I felt like crying. Im ususally positive and optomistic but im feeling really sad and lost. Please give me some advise on how to get back on track both mentally and physically. Because I know if mentally I'm back I will be physically. :(

Replies

  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
    Watch some kind of video that motivates you. Either someone who started from square one and has greatly improved, or something to scare you into moving like My 600 pound life. Nothing gets me to the gym faster than that does. Once you are in the gym either choose music that you really like or watch things on youtube that are amusing, listen to a podcast maybe. I know a good creepypasta story makes the time fly by where I'd otherwise be bored to death on machines.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
    no one can motivate you, other than you. i lost 130 several years ago. over the past year or so, gained back 20. i have a million excuses - leaving my husband, him passing away, me getting remarried, moving, job changes (and now stay at home dog mom), but that is all they are. EXCUSES. I had a gym membership the entire time. i just didnt go. i was too tired, or it was too cold. or too hot, or i just didnt feel like going.

    i decided a few weeks ago, enough was enough. stop making excuses. get my *kitten* in the car in the morning, and GO. a friend of mine joined last week, and that got my butt there a couple of days last week where i didnt feel like going. if i have someone waiting for me to pick them up, then i feel bad. last thursday it was the motivation i needed. getting her text asking what time i was picking her up.

    time will tell, but i am feeling better about going every day (i go 4-5 times a week), logging more (not overly concerned about logging right now, for ME i wanted to get back to being active, then move on to the logging like i USED to). some days are good with logging, some are not good. but thats okay.

    as i said. motivation comes from WITHIN. its not a race, its not a competition. it IS your health and well being, both physical and mental.
  • littlegreenparrot1
    littlegreenparrot1 Posts: 694 Member
    Be kind to yourself. I get this sometimes, just can't make myself.
    It is frustrating, I want to, know I should, and normally find it helpful. But if the thought of it makes me want to burst into tears it's counter productive.

    A few things that help me, I make myself cook something proper from scratch. It's an act of self care, a pot of stew or Apple crumble, or whatever, is good for the soul.

    A couple of days off from training. I would take time off if I had flu, my mental health requires the same.

    Then work my way back in gently, if I only manage 20 minutes that's better than nothing. I find it works much better to take that as a success, rather than beat myself up about it not being enough.

    If you find you don't feel better in a few weeks it's worth having a chat with the Dr. Depression can be the result of an imbalance of chemicals in the brain. It is not necessarily just about pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, and that's ok.

    Hope you find something that works for you.
  • AustinRuadhain
    AustinRuadhain Posts: 2,567 Member
    edited January 2020
    As @littlegreenparrot1 , consider a talk with your doctor if you stay stuck for a long time.

    As someone who has long regulated their mood with exercise, I so feel you. I stay much happier if I get in some working out. There's a solid scientific case for a connection between exercise and brain chemistry (see the book Spark by John Ratey, if you like reading about that kind of thing).

    Can you start by going for walks? especially outside walks? Even if you don't want to? Maybe make the day a win if you go out your front door and walk for just a minute, as a start? Getting to where you are just walking regularly may shift some of that mood for you. (It would for me. Your mileage will vary.)

    You may have done big gym workouts in the past, but your brain and body aren't there right now. If you can, find ways to start small. (James Clear has a great video on the power of starting small.)

    One more thought -- if company on the journey would help, I am in a great group here on MFP, the Fat2Fit Challenge Group. (I find company helpful, so throwing it out there. May not appeal to you at all.)
  • KevinWH87
    KevinWH87 Posts: 74 Member
    This advice is very general but I feel it applies. Take it one day at a time. If that feels too difficult, then take it just one hour at a time. If even that's too difficult? One minute at a time.

    Sometimes looking too far ahead... even if it isn't that far... makes the goal seem daunting or unreachable. So focus on what you can do now, and you'll get there.
  • fdlewenstein
    fdlewenstein Posts: 231 Member
    Focus on your mental health first and the rest will fall into place. Take care of yourself and don't worry about the other stuff. Many times talking with a professional or a support group can help. The main thing is to make "you" the number one priority.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    I agree with outside walks or hikes. The more nature-y the better. You won't aggravate your chest, you'll get some good fresh air and (hopefully) sunshine, and some exercise and the mental reset of being out in nature.
  • katsheare
    katsheare Posts: 1,025 Member
    First: epic hugs following your last year. That sounds like a toxic, painful, debilitating time, and those always take a bigger toll than we expect or even realise at the time. You are still recovering, and just as you would with any physical injury, you need to allow your mind to heal.

    Second: I'm a big believer in making goals as easy as possible to achieve, which sometimes means moving the goalposts closer than where they were when you were fitter or your time was spent differently (or, in the case of so many of us, when you were younger :wink: ) Just can't gym? I love @quiksylver296 's outdoors suggestion. Diet killing your soul? Consider a break for a month; at maintenance you won't lose, but you won't gain either. In any case, totally agree with @AustinRuadhain 's recommendation (if not that group, there are a lot of really supportive ones!!) Be as gentle and kind to yourself as you would be to a friend or child in a similar situation.

    Finally: You are doing amazing work. I don't know you, but you post speaks of your determination, your commitment and your thoughtfulness. You are already doing so very well. Everything more is just that: more.