Why is self care so hard?

[scarlettina]

Yesterday was a tough day for me. I went to Weight Watchers and found myself up 2.4 pounds in the wake of a 2 pound loss last week. I came home to a short story rejection. I wanted to eat myself into oblivion and just be unhappy. And I did that for about an hour

Comments

[ironymaiden]

when you get an answer to this one, let me know. my commitment to exercise is incredibly fragile. it doesn't matter how much i like what i'm doing or the results, i seem to be incapable of forming an unbreakable habit. (um, yay for keeping me from overindulging in smoking/drugs/alcohol?) i am lucky that the dog needs to walk whether i feel like it or not.

i benefit the most from a firm schedule and someone else expecting me. so i suggest ponying up for regular sessions with a trainer.

[prettyshrub]

I also suck at the self-care stuff. I plan to do something just for me, and someone calls and says 'hey, do you want to do this?' and I invariably go. Yes, friendship and fun is important, but so is time to get my house in order, or writing, or just chilling out by myself.

I struggle with exercise partly because I find it boring. I'm working on ways around that, but it is a struggle. I never feel any special high or other positive feedback after exercising, so that's no help. For now it is just something I must do to protect my health.

In any case, I've discovered my cardio is down in the toilet. Whatever my muscles can do, my heart and lungs won't support it. I decided (yesterday) that my new focus is just to work on that and keep up with my knee care.

I find I won't go to my swim class unless my friends go, so you might keep that in mind with your own goals.

*HUGS*

[aprivatefox]

I've been going through major stress with work lately, and some days the fact that I'm paying how much?! for my gym membership is the only thing that gets me to go in. But every time I go in, it helps; you nailed the bit about feeling badass. For me, every time I do my workout, it's spitting in the face of all those people who told me to hate my body when I was growing up. My weight has been level (and higher than I want) for a long time. But every time I prove that I can still put myself through a workout, that my body is still awesome enough to do that, it makes a lot of the other stress easier to manage

[sinthrex]

" But every time I prove that I can still put myself through a workout, that my body is still awesome enough to do that, it makes a lot of the other stress easier to manage.

I wonder, too, if what you're saying about the specific, measurable stuff from Weight Watchers might be applicable to some of the exercise stuff. For me, I set hard goals that I can just achieve - and then, when they stop being hard, I turn them up just a little."

This.

[singingnettle]

I don't do well at working out, but it works for me to do active things I love, like dancing, drumming, and yoga, and doing the group classes at the Y that serve exercise in that form.

[joycemocha]

What everyone else said.

What I m finding is that it takes systematic, regular restructuring of my life to make self-care routines important. It took getting to the point where I hurt if I don't work out to keep it a regular habit; additionally, acquiring a level of fitness that is sustainable or easily reattainable when the inevitable sickness or injury strikes takes time.

It also helps to get into a pleasurable activity which requires additional conditioning to succeed at it...for example, horseback riding and skiing both go much better if I maintain a regular pattern of conditioning training.