Valeria Out Loud

Hey Everyone!

Recently, I started thinking it was time to get myself back into a routine with my lifestyle choices and decided to jump with both feet into Sober October.

Getting back to the Gym: For a few years, as my friends have seen on Snap and IG, I was a gym rat. I was giving myself goals and shattering them, which is something that boosted my confidence ten fold.  My ultimate goal going to the gym was to be a better version of my lazy self; basically, shed some weight and gain muscle.  I was never a skinny person, so I wasn’t trying to look a certain way, but I was really trying to feel a certain way. About myself.  About my body.  I loved going.  I overall loved my body and loved how I felt.

Then 2018 happened.  Last year was a crazy year.  I had a car accident (right before a big trip!).  A cancer scare which lead to surgery on Valentine’s Day! My youngest broke her arm on the second day of school! I had double shoulder impingements, trips and just lots of crazy stress.  I called it my Jinx Year.

The pain from the impingements was something that I was ignoring for a few months, thinking it was car accident related and figuring the pain would subside. But it never did.  It got worse. (I should mention that I am a bit of a hard-headed gal when it comes to this type of stuff.  I normally don’t freak out about things, figuring they will pass.)   By December, I stopped hitting the gym, replacing it with biweekly physical therapy sessions ..for months. My PT doctor told me that I could continue going, but well, I just went so sparingly.  I got the all clear in June, but I was fearful that working out would screw my shoulders all up again. I went to the gym maybe twice after I left physical therapy, totally scared that I’d stress out the tears. At this same time, I started getting tremendously busy at work, new responsibilities, which kept me sedentary most of my days, and led me to lose interest in the gym. Which is a bad thing!  I am such a creature of lazy habits!

Lifestyle change: On top of this, I drink. Wine with dinner every night. Cocktails on Fridays. Almost every weekend dinner with friends, which means drinking. This is my life every week. I am not saying I am an alcoholic because I know how I feel and do stop drinking any time I want, and do, but I prefer it. Which isn’t good for me. And I just feel like this is a good way to help me shut it down, and normalize it.

So… My Sober October personal challenge is no alcohol, no junk food, get back to portion control and see my gym religiously.  This won’t be an easy journey for me, which is why I am looping in the blog.  If I can blog about my days, even if it’s every few days, I feel like it will keep me motivated.  Even on those days that I don’t want to be motivated.  🙂

So here I go… to my first real day back at the gym in a while …wish me luck!