Kind Eating- Week 3/4-ish

Little tweaks make a big difference!
I moved my vitamins from one corner of the sink
 so I'd remember to take themm.

This weekend I got caught up with Tough Mudder and didn't post my account of last week.  When I started this experiment, I said that I wanted to do everything with kindness and love.  To recap, my goals are to cook breakfast, take my vitamins, and pack lunch on the days I teach (Tuesday-Thursday)  I didn't meet those goals last week!  On Wednesday, I worked through lunch and grabbed a quick lunch of beef satay and spring rolls at a Thai place near school.  On Thursday, I had a lunchtime meeting, but rather than pack something, I stopped at a gas station and picked up a pack of mixed nuts, a string cheese, and some iced tea.  I also missed a day of vitamins, and I stopped taking my vitamins consistently on non-teaching days.

It was really interesting to see how good habits unravel, and in the past I wouldn't pay any attention to these baby steps away from my desired plan.  Usually I'd look up 4 weeks from now feeling completely dejected and confused about what happened.  Paying close attention and documenting this every week has been really helpful!  This is why I'm always telling Healthy Homies (the people I coach) to make and share clear goals.  So here's what I did differently!

Today is Tuesday, and I woke up at 5:30am.  I had to finish grading papers, prepare a worksheet and revised syllabus for my English class, reread today's story, attend 2 meetings, and make time to study for my AFAA exam.  I also wanted to make a blog post.  I ate breakfast (usual sausage, egg, cheese, and spinach on a tortilla) and got to work.  I had to leave the house at 10:15, and around 10:09 I looked at my watch and said, "oh I'll just grab something."  See how that works?  I made the choice to do the right thing and have an imperfect lunch.

I ripped a cold leg off of last night's rotisserie chicken and put some bagged Caesar salad in a bowl.  I grabbed a half-eaten container of blueberries and a pretty empty container of watermelon cubes.  I added a little bottle of apple cider.  The containers didn't fit in my lunch box, so I had to carry the chicken and salad.

I'm usually not a fan of eating at my desk, but I ate while I was on a phone meeting.

Guess what!  I STOPPED FOR LUNCH!!!  I also had the two meetings.  I finished the grading, the revised syllabi, and the worksheets, and I did it all in record time.  I am so proud of the fact that I stopped and ate.  I didn't touch the blueberries or finish the cider, but that was ok.  That bit of self-care and recommitment was just the boost I needed to get the rest of my work done.

That good choice led to more good choices.  I deposited cash into my bank account.  I renewed my library card, paid my library fine, and picked up some books/videos on minimalism and fitness for older folks.  I ate dinner at home and still have a little time to study before bed.  I listened to Tim Ferris on the latest edition of the Spartan Up! podcast.  I also signed up for my first half-marathon (though technically I did this before lunchtime.)

Now I'm ready to get on with rest of the week.

Here are last and this week's takeaways!

• I can always always always make a new choice.
• Paying attention to my process is way more important than catastrophizing about the outcome.
• Perfectionism is a surefire way to not get anything done.



These breakfasts are so good and fast!
I ate all my blueberry chicken sausage, so tomorrow it's back to bacon.

• When I make time to eat well and sleep, all my other responsibilities work themselves out.