My Fitness Journey 180+ Days In: How I Balance My Health With Other Priorities

It's September already? Where did the summer go?

The month of August was a tricky month for me when it came to balancing my workout routine with my other work priorities. I have my grandmother here visiting from Sweden, and I don't get to see her too often, so we've been spending lots of quality time together. I also have been taking care of her while my parents have been out of town for business. She doesn't drive, and we don't speak the same language, so it definitely was a unique challenge for us. As a result, we've bonded more than ever. I've given her some fun activities to keep her busy and happy, such as baking and gardening. We also have a mutual love for organizing, so we've been upstairs in our closets sorting through our clothes and accessories together. Thinking up some chores to keep each other busy was super important (and a little bit of work), but it helped us kill the time. And as a result, keeping busy with activities established a valuable bonding experience for us. In the end, it was truly great to have that special time with my grandmother that I don't get to have all the time.

With that said, because I had to put certain obligations first, I haven't been working out has much. But to be honest, I still feel great. I am on my feet quite a lot for my retail job. And I still wear my Fit-bit everyday to track my steps, my sleep, and my calorie burn. After a long day of working and taking care of my grandmother, I am truly exhausted. I have noticed I lost three pounds, which makes me feel a little bad, but I know I still have the muscle. I feel it in my arms and legs, especially. And for days, my shoulder muscles have been twitching!

I've been really pushing myself when I can, maybe at times a little too much (hence the muscle twitching?). That's also why I've decided to slow down a little. I don't want to overwhelm my body and jeopardize my physical health to the point where I may exert some unintended harm physically and mentally. I have learned mental health is just as important as physical health. So some adjustments have been made to compensate both. I've been using my free time to work on advancing my handbag business. We're in the middle of negotiating production quantities and costs. It's been quite the ride so far!

So as you can see, I had a lot going on during the month of August, and I still do as we roll into September. I'm writing this post right now when I normally would be at my favorite Thai Kickboxing class. But because I haven't been going as frequently, it's been harder to collect the motivation to get up and go (especially when it's cold and rainy outside, arggh summer disappeared on us). However, I promise you, I'm not giving up on myself. I take my health very seriously, and I will always try to put my best foot forward. But at the same time, I am still one person. I believe I can admit to some flaws and still be Wonder Woman. I am proud of what I can juggle. I think I've been balancing my health and fitness considerably well, since I manage three jobs all by myself.

Right now, I've set the goal to workout at least once a week. I know that's a significant difference from my goal of 5 days a week. But considering what I can handle, as of now this is what's been working for me. I try not to let myself go a week without something. To me, 1 class a week is a reasonable goal. Back when I was in graduate school, I worked out once a week for 1 hour and I felt great. On the remaining days, I moved around campus walking from class to class. And let me tell you, my graduate school campus was on a mountain. I had plenty of uphill and downhill to tackle! That honestly saved me, too, I think.

So, at the end of the day, we're not all perfect. But we can at least try to be our perfect selves. It's the effort that counts. If that means having to miss a work out class here and there in order to take care of grandma, or get work done - to me that's okay. It's important to set goals but we must not forget our priorities. I believe everything is key in moderation. Balance in life is so important. I still feel amazing and I love my body and what it can do. Judging from this month's fitness photos, I have't been taking my work-outs too seriously. But life doesn't have to be so serious. I'm happier than ever. Don't forget about taking care of your mental health, too. See you next month!