My Journey With Health And Fitness – Checking Expectations

Ok, the weather really needs to start cooperating with me. Seriously I am getting tired of doing runs/walks in the freezing cold. Yesterday for my 2nd walk there was massive wind and walking westbound I was heading right into it. Then it shifted directions so that walking eastbound it was the same thing. Then this morning it was not just freezing cold but also pouring rain. Even though I had planned to do an 8 km run this morning I opted for the treadmill. Strangely enough I actually managed to do 9 km!

I’ve realized it is time for me to start checking my expectations to determine if they are realistic. Yesterday I was doing my 5th walk up Oxford Hill for the week (note my goal was to do it 5 times and today I did it for the 6th time this week) and I thought after doing this for 2 consecutive weeks that it should be getting easier but sadly it wasn’t. I thought maybe I am expecting too much out of working so hard. Then on a later walk I was heading home and was walking up Stayte Hill which is no where near as long or steep but is still a pretty good climb when I realized how easy it was. In fact, my pace had not changed from walking on the flat areas. Hmm, maybe the expectation shouldn’t be immediate results doing Oxford but rather the overall improvement which is already there.

The next big one is my weight. I had expected that after the past 2 weeks of super hard work that the pounds I had gained over the 7 weeks I was away would be gone, they are not. As a matter of fact my weight is higher than I anticipated though I know if I keep working as hard as I am right now I am bound to lose some pounds. However, I gave myself a reality check in that I don’t think I am going to get back to 120lbs. Don’t get me wrong, it will not be because of lack of trying but rather my body has so significantly changed. Now I am really buff meaning all of that fat has turned to muscle and I know that the same mass of muscle weighs more than the same mass of fat. I’ve adjusted my goal to be 125lbs which I am already close to but I know that I will still be at the clothing size I was before. I should note when I told my sister my current weight she refused to believe me saying I look far thinner than that.

It’s ok to adjust your expectations especially when you realize that the goals you set are not going to be achievable. Don’t set yourself up to fail, instead be realistic in how you can achieve success.