What Happened to My Foot, and What I've Learned

Always listen to your body.

(Something that I failed to do this week.)

44 days ago I promised myself to get in shape for my belated honeymoon to Hawaii. Every summer I pledge to shed my beer belly, and every summer I get too drunk to drive to the gym. Okay, I don’t get that drunk, but I do always fall off the wagon and retire my fitness plan about one week in.

This year was going to be different. I was really going to do it! I was going to eat more salad, drink more water, and up my physical activity. I made realistic goals that didn’t exhaust me or leave me feeling starved. By the second week of my fitness plan my physical activity and diet habits became second nature. Running became easier and I was going twice as far. Healthy food was the only thing that sounded good because my exerted body craved the nutrients. I felt and looked great.

And then my feet started to hurt.

Not wanting to miss a day of cardio, I kept running. I ran until the foot cramps worked themselves out and I didn’t feel the pain anymore. That was my first mistake. Rather than keep going, I should have rested, because now my feet hurt so bad that I’m not even sure I’ll be able to get another run in before Hawaii.

In terms of my workout plan it’s not a huge deal because I can do other workouts that don’t put as much stress on my lower extremities. What is a big deal is what I have learned from the experience.

Last night I went out with my best friend and I drank more than I have since starting my fitness plan. This morning when my foot pain was too intense to run, and my breath was stale from the gin and my eyes burned red from the hangover, I would have exchanged every ounce of alcohol consumed the previous night just to be able to lace up my running shoes.

I guess my point is that when we make certain lifestyle changes, those changes impact other aspects of our life. Certain things that we used to enjoy become secondary as new rituals move in and take over. Had my feet felt strong and ready to run this morning, I still would have felt hungover and weak, and the performance of my workout would have diminished. In more ways than one I observed this feeling as a turning point and sort of next-step or pilgrimage into adulthood.

I’m looking forward to my feet strengthening up and getting some good sandy beach runs in during my trip to Hawaii. As for the gin and whiskey, next time I think I’ll skip out on that last shot.

xo.