Hitting the "Refresh" Button/Failing Successfully

Back from a fantastic trip to California for a work conference.  I had a great time learning new things, reconnecting with old friends and meeting new ones.  The hardest part was being away from my precious family, but I spoke with Brad at least once, if not twice, each day, and I had so many amazing friends to lean on.  I took my workout clothes, and I utilized them....once!  The conference kept me busy mostly all day and I took the opportunity to sleep past 6 am (which would have been the prime opportunity to hit the gym). 

Regarding my food choices - I felt like I handled it fairly well.  Breakfast: I had the bagel thins I brought as opposed to the catered breakfasts.  Lunch: the salads were very delicious.  The entrees were OK, and I only needed half of them to feel comfortable (hunger-wise).  Desserts were also good, so I had 1/3-1/2 of those (two catered lunches).  Dinners: I went with the "stop when feeling full, not overstuffed" way of thinking as opposed to ordering the naked chicken with green veggies, no butter each time.  Seemed to work out pretty well.  The one thing I wish I'd been better about was water.  The meeting rooms were chilly and drinking cold water never felt like the right thing to do.  Today, my Mickey Mouse hands have me regretting that decision.  Oh well.

Today I'm hitting the "refresh" button on my wellness.  Starting with a 10 am Zumba class and a trip to the grocery store to load up on healthy and delicious foods for the week.  This week I will need to do the week of 5K training I did not complete last week.  I love a break from a routine, but there is something so comfortable about returning to it. 

Failing Successfully
I wanted to bring up something one of our speakers talked about - failing successfully.  Essencially, it's fine to fail provided you take it for what it is, learn from it, and move on.  Will you fail again?  Inevitably.  But, he said it's about what purpose you allow that failure to play in your life.  Will it be a game changer, and if so, for better or for worse?  He suggested to honestly treat every mistake as a learning experience.  In fact, he encouraged us to fail (to a point).  And I think in wellness, we know what causes us to fail.  That's the "knowledge" part.  To fail successfully, either take actions to avoid those mistakes in the future or change what happens in the aftermath.  A couple of examples (based on personal experience):

Mistake: Not checking the points/nutritional value before eating a food only to discover that that "healthy" salad was actually 1,300 calories/13 points/etc.  Make it a successful failure: bookmark calorieking.com and use it next time!
Mistake: Eating as if it's going out of style to prove that you "can" and still lose weight...only to be horrificly ill with a stomach ache.  Make it a successful failure: Realize the only person you need to prove anything to is you - no one is really going to remember that you attended such and such an event and hogged.  Promise yourself not to do it again becuase you know you're the only person you're hurting.

He also said to celebrate the small successes.  For this example, he referenced weight loss specifically.  Lose 8 oz - CELEBRATE!  It is so frustrating to watch every calorie, count every point, log every second of exercise and see such small losses, maintains, or *gasp* small gains (trust me).  However, I always try to remember that when those 8 ounces are gone, they're gone for good (for what it's worth...try is the optimal word here...).

I've seen so many individuals do "fad" diets or "prepackaged food plans" and drop weight incredibly fast.  It sucks - not going to lie.  It's like the feeling you had in high school where you studied and studied and got a B- on your trig test, but the other girl knew how to hide the formulas in her calulator and got an A, even though she got lost on the way TO the class. 

But....what goes around.  The fad diets and prepackaged food plans don't teach anyone how to eat appropriately or how to improve the relationship with food.  Getting the weight off is one thing - keeping it off is a completely different ball game.  You can't eat frozen food for the rest of your life.  And even if you could, would you really want to?  Or do you want to know how to go to a restaurant and order appropriately and NOT feel guilty after the meal?

The beauty of the last week is that it was a complete break in my routine.  Everything about my normal routine was shattered (albiet temporarily).  I had a plan going into the week, and I did not accomplish all of my goals or completely stick to my plan. 

BUT

• I refreshed relationships with people I have respect for personally and professionally.   
• I felt good about the relationship I had with food there.  I did not let the anticipation of each meal torture me.  I took each in stride and exercised my best judgement.
• I DID exercise...even if it was only once. 
• I learned some new practices I can take back with me to the office, AND that I can apply in my personal life.

How have you turned your failures (no matter how big or small) into successes?