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By kilax, January 9, 2010 6:46 am

Do you ever catch signs that you are slowly falling into a funk?

Sometimes I catch signs such as:

• losing interest in things
• being extremely irritable
• feeling anti-social
• not wanting to take care of my body
• wanting to sleep all the time
• feeling defensive and cranky

The question is, once we’ve noticed the signs, how do we avoid falling into a full fledged funk? This is something I’ve been trying to figure out for eight years.

I’ve noticed that if I develop a plan of reaction to each sign of falling into a funk, it helps. It gives me tools to use when I realize I am not feeling like myself. Now, I completely prefer preventitive actions to reactive actions, but for now, this is the best I can do.

When I first notice the signs of falling into a funk, I tell myself to pause and look at the bigger picture. Is the reason for my funk right in front of me? Is there an issue I have been avoiding? If it’s situational, and I can nip my unease in the butt by addressing the issue, I try to. Otherwise, I address each sign one by one until I work my way out of the funk. Click “more” if you’d like to read examples of my plans of reaction.

What are your tips on how to avoid falling into a funk? Do you ever catch signs that you are? What are your signs?

Continue reading 'How to avoid falling into a funk'»

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By kilax, December 10, 2009 5:16 am

The December issue of Shape* has an article titled “Eat what you want and still lose weight!” with nine somewhat tired strategies to “celebrate the season without feeling deprived – and may(be) even drop 5 pounds in the process!”

Ha. Ha ha.

Tip #8, “Keep Your Focus” is about not being preoccupied when you eat. “Give your full attention to the conversation or sit down to concentrate on the food in front of you – you’ll appreciate it more.”

Makes sense, right? But then they throw this in:

Where you sit a dinner matters too. Try snagging the chair next to your brother’s cute friend: A new study published in the journal Appetitefound that women who ate in the presence of a man consumed 358 fewer calories than when they dined with a group of women. Researchers at Canada’s McGill University say women often suppress their eating in front of a person of the opposite sex.

Okay. This struck me the wrong way. It’s all fine and dandy if this study is true. BUT, the fact that the magazine is encouraging it?! I think this is something women should get away from! They should feel comfortable eating how they really want to around men. I know the magazine is just including it as a tip, but I think they were better off sticking with “keep your focus” and “be mindful of conversation.”

And, really? I am more self-conscious around some women than men!

What do you think? Do you think the study is accurate? Do you think it’s a good tip? What are your holiday tips for not going overboard with food?

Here’s a tip that wasn’t included: become a vegan so you can’t eat anything at all during the holidays! Ha ha, I am just joking around, but it IS particularily bad at the office holiday potluck. Almost every dish has meat in it. I bring my own food from home for the parties.

Note: After I wrote this, I found an article on the same topic on The Great Fitness Expermient (she pretty much came to the same conclusion as me). I was going to do a similar poll, but decided not to since there was one up there.

*What is with all of the magazine references, Kim?! This is what happens when you have two flights in one day and are stuck in the airport for awhile!

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By kilax, May 27, 2009 12:21 pm

I had such a crappy, “not what I expected” Memorial Day weekend that it’s left me in a fog this week. It’s causing this huge funk that feels like it’s taking forever to shake off.

It’s also reiterated that nothing is ever going to turn out how I expect it. I can’t control people. I can’t stop them from being judgmental and irrational and pushy and ridiculous (the list could go on). ALL I CAN CONTROL IS MYSELF.

I just hate that I turn into a bitch (and more) when someone pisses me off. So I’ll work on that. And I’ll work on avoiding the people that make me feel this way.

This is why we don’t care that we live so far away from our families. Because most of them MAKE US CRAZY after long periods of time.* There, I said it.

*A long period of time being more than a day.

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By kilax, May 20, 2009 6:39 am

I liked today’s Runner’s World Quote of the Day:

The quote says: Running gives me a sense of controlling my life. I like the finiteness of runs, the fact that I have a clear beginning and end. I set a goal and achieve it. A good run makes you feel sort of holy.

Except for the whole “feeling holy” part (what does that even mean?), I can totally relate to this.

I am someone who struggles with having control in their life. I need structure. I need goals/milestones/guidelines. I can be easy going and go with the flow of things, but I am someone who works best with a PLAN.

Running gives me the opportunity to have long-term goals and plans to achieve them, along with mini daily goals. I DO feel accomplished when I have it in my mind that I am going to run a certain distance/time that day, then I go out and do it. It’s maybe the one thing in my life that is simple enough I CAN control on a daily basis.

My only worry with this is that I am TOO goal-oriented. Honestly, I was feeling a bit lost in my running until I signed up for the Kansas City Marathon. I felt worried that I would “lose” my endurance if I wasn’t following a training plan. Even now, I am keeping up around 20+/- miles a week, but I still feel lost/unstructured, because my official training does not start until 6/15.

And surprisingly, feeling lost in running spilled over into feeling “uneasy” in general. I was really, really anxious until I selected my next goal and developed my next plan. I guess running truly is my balance now.

So, while I think it is good to have plans and goals to follow, because they make me feel like I have some control, I realize that I have some sort of addiction. Steven actually told me he thinks I have compulsive behavior when it comes to running (and other things) – he thinks I set my mind on something, and won’t stop until I achieve it (or something like that – he wasn’t trying to insult me). That can be both good and bad. It would be really good if I could take some of that and apply it to other life goals (oh you know, like getting licensed, blah de blah), but for now, my focus seems to be on running. Which is good… until I become too obsessive. And I don’t feel like I am there yet. Ha!

This is actually not meant to be a post all about running, but about control and goals, and I think it could apply to a lot of different behaviors or activities. Do you feel like there are elements in your life that you feel you have control over, and bring you a sense of accomplishment, or calm?

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By kilax, April 28, 2009 6:53 am

I’ve been tagged by Mrs. Smith. Here are the rules:

1. Take a pic of yourself right now.
2. No primping or preparing.
3. Just snap a picture.
4. Load the picture onto your blog.
5. Tag some people to play along. I don’t tag, but participate if you want!

This is me, when I woke up at 5:00 am, sans makeup! (See how wavy my hair is, Denise?!)

Of course, Data saw that I was snapping pics with my phone and wanted to get in on the action. I think he cheated though – he was definitely licking himself before he jumped into the photo!

See how tired I look? I look this tired ALL DAY LONG. Even though I put on makeup, try to get enough sleep and drink lots of water… I always look tired. Even when I don’t feel tired.

And… more blabbing – I love Jillian Michaels’s* podcasts. I often feel like she is speaking directly to me, about something I am personally struggling with. Already, I have been able to apply something I listened to last night to a situation this morning. More below…

Continue reading 'No primping or preparing / Why I love Jillian Michaels'»