Have You Found The Quarantine 15?

Oh life, you sure know how to keep things uncomfortable at times. I honestly cannot believe that the 6th month of 2020 is here…seems like the quarantine has created a stall in our life but at the same time I feel like 2020 is buzzing right by. I had hopes that 2020 would be a year of rebuilding, refocus and discovery, after 2019 was super difficult but COVID had a different idea.

Quarantine 15 or COVID 19

In 2019, I lost 70 pounds by committing to Weight Watchers and Reformer Pilates. For 2020 I had a goal of losing another 30 pounds to reach my goal weight. I came into 2020 with motivation to reach that goal with no problems and then the lockdown happened. I remember when I went to college as a freshman, everyone talked about gaining the “Freshman 15”, I actually did the opposite but the Quarantine 15 sure found me!

I have been open and honest about this health journey and right now I am struggling. Without my weekly in person weigh ins at Weight Watchers and my Pilates classes I fell back into a lot of bad habits. Stress eating and snack searching because I am bored has always been something I have done. Add in more wine and White Claws and goodness….all of that Netflix binge fun started showing back up on my waistline.

Another truth…I didn’t step on the scale until a few weeks ago but I knew I had gained, my jeans were telling me this. So when I stepped on the scale finally, I wasn’t super surprised to see the gain…but I was surprised to see that it was 19 pounds! UGH!!!! It was hard not to throw my hands up and run to the pantry when I saw this but I knew I had to get back on track ASAP!! It is super embarrassing for me to even admit all of this but I do think that opening up and being honest about my struggles is important as well.

Things Are Getting Back To Normal

I am so thankful that my Pilates classes are now back in session with limited spaces, masks a must and extra cleaning. Pilates grounds me. I leave Pilates feeling stronger and healthier and I missed that for two months. Now that I am able to get a few classes in a week I feeling a lot more motivated to get back on track with the eating issues too.

I have stopped avoiding the scale and added some goals to get me back to the Weight Watchers program. I am not sure when I will be able to do my live weigh ins with them but once they open I will be there! That is a huge motivation for me as well. It really is crazy how easy it is to get off track…but through all of this I am trying to remember to give myself grace. This is such a trying time right now, being home and out of a routine it was easy to fall back into poor health choices.

Looking Back at 37 Things To Do In My 37th Year

Since we are nearly six months into my 37th year, I decided that I needed to go through my goals again and make sure that this COVID craziness didn’t knock me out of my goals too much! Yes, the weight gain needs to be a high priority focus but I do not want to forget about the other goals I set for the year either.

37 THINGS TO DO IN MY 37TH YEAR

Read 20 Books – Well I have read 5 books so far…got to get on track with that too!
Take A Class
See My First Concert At Red Rocks
Get My 7th Tattoo
Join A Book Club
Lose 30 Pounds
Go On Vacation Alone – Did an overnight at a new hotel…it was relaxing and perfect.
Start Working On Writing A Book
Re-decorate My Bedroom – DONE!! See my new room here!
Less Coffee More Water
Go Geocaching With The Kids
Spa Day
Reconnect with Old Friends
New Hair Style/Color
Have An Adults Only Backyard Party
Play Volleyball
Volunteer With My Kids
Toes In Ocean!
Try A New Restaurant – Went to a great local seafood restaurant for a friends birthday, cannot wait to take my seafood loving kiddo!
Photo Shoot With Professional Photographer – A photo session I will never forget!
Break My Nail Biting Habit – I haven’t gotten my nails done in almost 3 months and I haven’t bit them off!
Make 1 New Friend – DONE! I am blessed with an amazing group of girlfriends that seems to grow even through lockdown.
Put $1000 Into A Savings Account – DONE!! Even in a personal financial crisis I have been able to do this.
Go To The Water Park
Have A Will Drafted
Buy A House Plant (and keep it alive!)
Get My Nose Pierced (yes, mom)
Have Monthly Family Dates
Stick To A Budget! – Lockdown has actually helped me with this. I am feeling really good about it.
Buy Myself Flowers
Visit A Winery
Girls Trip!
Take A Nap – Thanks Lockdown! HA!
Complete Couch to 5k challenge
Attend A Drag Show
Teeth Whitening Treatments
Be Grateful Everyday!! – Working on this….

Why I Share This With You?

Seems like a weird post to write but I needed to get this out. The last 10 weeks have been such a challenge and while I am not where I thought I would be in terms of my 37 things to do in my 37th year, I do feel like I am on a great path and now that I have found my motivation for a healthier lifestyle again I am super excited to see what happens in the next few months!

I want to make sure that everyone knows that it isn’t rainbows and butterflies around here all the time. And during this crisis I have had days of complete meltdowns…it is okay to not be okay! A reminder that we all need! Oh and GRACE….for goodness sake, give yourself and everyone else around you GRACE!!