Balancing Act

Balancing is not easy for Type A - OCD people like me.  It is one of those things that I must continually work on.  My mom's favorite thing to say to me growing up was "you are gonna go, go, go until you collapse."  Turns out she was right.

About 5 or 6  years ago, I felt like I was at my fitness peak.  My bodyfat was down to 7% (not healthy by the way) and I was working out like a crazy woman.  I ran EVERY day without fail, I taught multiple fitness classes  and I was eating so clean you could hear me squeak when I walked by.  Eating clean was not bad, however; I was not taking in enough calories to support the insane exercise routine I was keeping.  In my mind, I was a fitness machine.  Then one day, my machine finally broke down. 

I remember sitting on my couch on a hot summer day under a thick blanket.  I was shivering and burning up at the same time.  I called my sister to come over because I literally could not support my own weight to move off that couch.  When she got there, she immediately took me to the ER.  At this point, I was not functioning well at all.  My temperature was 104 degrees and I could not stop shaking.  I was admitted and given an IV to put fluids back into my body.  I had let myself completely dehydrate.  My over-zealous fitness regimen had finally taken its toll on my body.  Too much of a good thing really can be bad.  There is such a thing as exercise addiction.  This is going above and beyond what is considered healthy.  This experience was the eye-opener I needed.  My husband (boyfriend at the time) had been warning me that this was coming but I wouldn't listen.  I have always had body issues and have always had to struggle with my weight.  At the time, I thought I was invincible. 

Today and every day I struggle to maintain balance in my fitness/eating routine.  There are days that I fail miserably.  I know how hard it is to get back up, dust off and try to hop on a moving train.  So, my number one fitness goal?  Lose 10 pounds?  Nah......Run a marathon?  No......
At the end of the day, I want balance.  I want to accept my failures, learn from them and move on.  I want to do my best to eat healthy and exercise, but not go completely overboard in either direction.