One thing that I have always struggled with is how self-conscience I am about my weight. I have never been very overweight by any means, but I constantly compare myself to others (something I know I shouldn’t do) and I feel bad about myself if I don’t look a certain way. In my early years of college, it got to a point where I was pretty much starving myself and working out multiple times a day because I didn’t like the way I looked. Luckily, that phase didn’t last very long – mostly because I LOVE food – but also because I have people who care about me. They told me that as long as I was healthy, it really didn’t matter what I looked like.

I was told to watch what I eat, how much I eat, and if it helps, stop checking the scale. I’ve been doing pretty well at two of the three things. Usually, I do eat pretty healthy, and I try my hardest not to weigh myself. Usually the only exception is when I get a check up or something. The one thing I continue to struggle with is portion sizes. Especially now that I don’t swim as often as I used to. I’m still working out everyday, but let’s be real, swimming for an hour burns a heck of a lot more calories than running for an hour. I’m still eating like I’m swimming everyday, and because of that, I have gained some weight.

While I was visiting Molly and Tanner a few weeks ago, I saw their bathroom scale and was curious to see how much I weighed now. I really try hard not to weigh myself, because I really get in my head about it, and unfortunately, that’s what I did this time as well. 🙁 I stepped on the scale and saw a bigger number than I have ever seen before. I tried to reason with myself, “Well, it’s probably a lot of muscle weight.” and “It was right after the holidays, I’ll bounce back.” But then I got to thinking that lately, I have been getting kind of lazy with what I eat for dinner. I’ve been eating A LOT of Mac and Cheese and frozen pizzas, because they’re quick, easy, and delicious. But obviously, not very healthy. It was probably time I started being a little more conscious of what I was eating everyday.

I’ve talked about food and nutrition in my blog before, and how being fit is only 20% exercise, and 80% diet. I’ve got the exercise thing down. That’s no problem. But I still struggle with eating right, and I’m sure I’ll struggle with it for a very long time. Can I help that all the tastiest foods are the worst things for my body?? It’s something I still need to keep working on. And as much as I didn’t like seeing that big number on the scale, it was probably a wake up call for me. I’m not swimming everyday anymore, I need to stop eating like I am.

So, I started looking up some healthier recipes that were quick and easy to make when I get home from work. I’ve really focused on how much I served myself, and I never went back for seconds. Now, someone help me out here. Maybe, it’s just my body adjusting to eating less food, but I have been hungry ALL THE TIME. Tuesday morning, I even woke up before my 4:30 am alarm because I was so hungry! Am I doing this wrong?? Am I now not eating ENOUGH? I eat until I feel satisfied. Not full, but like I’ve had a decent amount. Someone please tell me this will get easier haha!

Anyways, any advice, thoughts, or yummy recipes you want to throw my way would be super appreciated. Do you also need help focusing on better exercise or diet? Let’s help keep each other accountable. Need a workout buddy? Give me a shout and I’m there. Want to eat salad, but dream of pizza with me? Heck, let’s do it. Whatever helps, I’m willing to give it a go!

Everything worth having in life takes a lot of work, and this is no exception. I want to look and feel great about myself, and to do that, I need to focus on eating better. If I can do it, so can you! 🙂

Until next time! 🙂

Megan Reiffenberger