Summer's Setting

BANK HOLIDAY BLOW OUT

The summer has nearly come to a close. There's been some hard partying for more but It's been even more concentrated in this whirlwind month of August because of my girlfriend's 40th birthday. We've been celebrating for 4-6 weeks at least. Making the most of the sunshine and our longer days for socialising, has meant there's been little regular exercise, no budgeting and not enough focus on learning or bettering myself. 

Keeping Track

Thankfully, I put a lot of hard work doing a yoga session every day for 4-6 weeks prior to this excessive period - preparing myself in the run up to the big 40th birthday. It's kept me going where so many would have gotten Ill. 

My best trick for keeping on top of things, has been the daily diary. Not only has it helped me take daily assessments, but it's also helped me remember my movements on a daily basis too. This has been very handy for remembering those potentially lost nights! So, last week, I returned from my holiday in Spain and discovered that I'd put on over 3kg (6-7lbs). This whole week, I've been watching my intake by writing down everything that enters my mouth and working out the calories consumed per day. My daily diary and weekly blog posts that I've been doing since the 1st Jan 2015, coupled with the daily food/drink calorie watch, have really helped me stay balanced. Under the circumstances, that's quite an achievement. Something so simple, yet effective, has meant that I could get through a period of craziness and come out the other end being perfectly ok. 

Closing Party

In a way, I'm glad to see all the leaves turning brown and the party season coming to a close once again. I am looking forwards to my return to mindful mornings of learning, exercising and improving my physical & mental wellbeing. I have some commitments that need to be met - my daily exercise routine plus a consistent study of languages, understanding body & mind, now needs to get underway. The next few months should see a return to form, especially now the other temptations are removed from my life. Summer - it's been fun, but I'm moving on to an early Autumn, thanks very much!

Holiday From A Holiday

THE GETAWAY

The holiday getaway - perfect for recharging the batteries - just as a true holiday should be. But for me somehow, it always seems to be the opposite. Rest and recuperation are what is needed after this current Spanish adventure. 

When we have a routine to follow, we tend to fit in our r&r around the busy schedule of work commitments. So, we make the necessary allowances for keeping the fun/work balance in check. 

Having time carefully measured out between the essentials of working, exercising and having fun, plus being watchful of the money through mindful budgeting and cost saving decisions, means the time is well spent keeping a good balance in life and the bank account too. There's not too much excess because work needs to get done and there's budgets for food in the week, plus better choices made for taking in the right food at home, work and for exercising. But when we go on holiday, with so much time on our hands, plus the restraints removed for getting ourselves up and into work, it means the balance is completely thrown off. Over-indulgence of alcohol, rich food, over spending in flashy restaurants every night and a lot of laying around, are all going to make a significant difference with thinning the wallet and fattening the waistline, And that's why I now need a holiday from the holiday. 

I'm actually looking forward to having a break from fun and focussing more on getting quality sleep, better nutrition, regular workouts and saving money. A boot camp reset to salvage the damage done over the last few months of summer. So big has this summer been, that I'm going to rein in the fun a good three months earlier than I did with starting last year's restraints! 

We all need to be more mindful of our daily actions. That's why recording everything in a blog/diary is so helpful. The first thing will be to catch up on sleep. The second will be to regain the figure. The ultimate goal from September, is to clear up my hefty debts. So in my daily dairy, I'll be noting the non-drinking rule, there'll be a calorie watching food diary plus an exercise routine to-do check list to adhere to - a very conscious recovery update which I'll be including in my weekly posts.