Share your challenges—they are what help you grow.

The "biggest challenge I face in staying consistent with my fitness or health goals while juggling a demanding 9-to-5 job"?

Um, not having a demanding 8-to-5 job? I'm joking around, I hope that's OK. I already didn't have a job when I lost weight starting around 9 years ago, but honestly I don't the challenges were super much different when I did have such a job, compared to then or now.

I mean, during my work life I traveled some for business, had business breakfast/lunches in restaurants sometimes, went to work happy hours and drank beer plus ate fried stuff, usually worked 50+ hours a week and sometimes more like 80+, had a high stress position, had days where one or more meals were candy bars from a vending machine, slept under my desk or in a conference room a few times, etc. I'm not claiming my job was the Most Demanding Job Ever, because I'm sure it wasn't, but it wasn't a total walk in the park, either.

But I don't think it made a lot of difference in my case. Except during some of those 80+ hour weeks, I got in fun workouts in the evenings and improved my fitness quite dramatically during the last few years pre-retirement, but stayed obese. When I retired, I kept eating the same most days, still eating out close to the same amount but socially rather than for business, kept about the same exercise activity level, etc. And my weight stayed about the same - right around the border above and below class 1 obese, mostly above. No surprise. Nothing changes unless I change something, right?

What made the difference for me was somehow flipping the switch in my head from "I really should lose some weight" to "I'm actually committed to lose weight for real". I don't really know how that happened. If I did, I'd bottle it, sell it, and make millions.

Sure, I could probably blame the high-stress, long-hours job, and claim I couldn't commit to weight management with that in the picture. I think I'd be lying to myself if I did, though.

When I was working, I was already severely hypothyroid (medicated), had some mild physical limitations (osteoarthritis, torn meniscus) in addition to the direct consequences of lugging dozens of extra pounds around all the time, was already menopausal, was age 50+, and probably some other supposedly "weight loss doom" things that stayed the same (or worsened with age) after retirement.

To lose, I changed my eating habits calorie-wise. I still ate the same range of foods, just different portion sizes, proportions, frequencies. I still did about the same amount of exercise. Most of those were the same in my last years on the job, too.

Nothing changes in my outcomes unless I change something in my behavior. Once I owned that, good consequences followed, just as bad consequences followed from earlier behavior.

I'm not saying everyone is like me, because they aren't. But for me, the job might've been an excuse, but it wasn't actually a reason. The reason was my mindset, pretty much entirely. YMMV.

hi, ann and springlering!

my biggest challenge... i can't decide between three...

previous injuries that left me with permanent issues that can be triggered by various exercises and trying to balance not reinjuring them vs getting the exercise i want and need...

family issues like my husband's recent stay in the hospital, our sudden requirement to pay our HOA an assessment that they could have avoided, my son's health issues, my health issues...

and the combination of the above plus work and how it affects my sleep - or lack thereof. if i'm not careful, i end up sleeping 4 hours per night or a bit less. i don't really exercise on 3 or 4 hours of sleep, but being awake that long means i eat more even if i keep my meals to my goal calories per meal.

ah, life sure can get in the way!

BTW - and I know I'm being cranky here so you don't have to tell me - I think it's hyper-Pollyanna-ish to say all challenges "help us grow".

I believe that mindset matters, and that framing things in a positive way (when that's reasonably possible) helps us build pathways ahead more than it creates roadblocks. That's good. Self-reflection can help, too.

I can accept that most significant challenges are going change us in some way, sure. But I don't think the outcome is always net positive growth.

Even in a privileged, relatively comfortable, first-world context, let alone for some people globally who are going through utmost horrors, positive growth isn't always going to happen.

I can frame my advanced cancer diagnosis and treatment as having some growth outcomes, especially now that the traumatic side is getting small in the rear-view mirror. Maybe even being widowed at 43 involved some growth, but it's hard to frame that as a net positive anyway. My current health situation, semi-minor-ish in the big picture (I hope) is to some extent an actual challenge. I suppose I'll feel good if I slog successfully through the aftermath and get back to something close to normal, but it's hard for me to see how there's meaningful growth there.

I've been through stuff before, and I've changed from some of it, even grown in positive ways from some of it. But "all challenges help us grow", net positive growth? Nah, I don't think so, even if we get through them pretty OK. There are limits. Realistically, sometimes there's trauma, PTSD, permanent limitations (physical or psychological), and more . . . not net positive growth.