So when I graduated college and entered the working world, boy, was I in for a shocker. After months of working 80-, sometimes 90-hour weeks, for the first time, I felt like a truck filled with emotional turmoil and guilt about my exercise and eating habits had run me over. I had gone from being a college athlete who’d scarf down a burrito in minutes to someone who barely made it to the gym and begrudgingly went for a salad every night.
I finally had to confront the fact that my lifestyle had changed—that exercising was harder to do now than it had ever been and that I may not be able to eat care-free anymore. I don’t regret the choice I made to enter a demanding role, but I’ve since tried my best to change my guilt-ridden mindset to a more positive and productive one.
So for all us hard-working ladies who are juggling work and wellness on the daily, here are a couple things I’ve learned along the way.
Cut Yourself Some Slack
It wasn’t until recently that I stopped questioning my endurance and started valuing rest and recovery. It was OK that I needed seven hours of sleep to get a good workout in, or that I chose sleep over exercise when my body was screaming, "Exhausted!"
Salad Isn’t Everything
I quickly learned that I’m not one of those people, but until then, I forced myself to eat salad to the point where I didn’t look forward to meals anymore. But seriously, life is too short to not enjoy what you’re eating. So I decided to mix things up by (1) incorporating more grain bowls, fruits, and nuts into my diet and (2) indulging in moderation.
As far as indulgence goes—it took me a while to get comfortable with this, but ordering a pizza or mac and cheese when you really need comfort food isn’t going to ruin your health, as long as you keep it in check. Obviously, it’s terrific to stick to an ultra-healthy diet, but the point is, don’t succumb to eating a certain way out of guilt—happiness and health go hand in hand.
You Can’t Live in the Past
Rather than accept that things had changed, I’d obsess over how things used to be, which turned out to be pretty unhealthy for my self-esteem. So what I’m now focusing on is turning that frustration into action.
We’re All in This Together
It wasn’t until I recently started listening to Girlboss Media’s podcast that my perspective really changed. On the podcast, Sophia asks each of her speakers whether or not they believe in balance. Over and over again, these badass ladies admit that they don’t always have their shit together and that there is no such thing as perfect balance. In our appearance-driven world, knowing that our role models face the same challenges we do is both comforting and motivating—after all, we’re all in this together.