Tuesday, August 26, 2014

August 26th, 2014 Late Day

August 26th, 2014 Late Day

My day started late. It was very alarming to wake at 5:50am this morning when I must be on the air at precisely 5:59:50am in order to hit ABC News in New York live at 6am. I had overslept and now I was starting my day in a panic. I quickly picked up the phone to call a colleague to step in and cover my show until I could arrive. I threw a few eggs in my non-stick pan and set the heat on low so I could cook breakfast and get ready for work at the same time. Eggs were in the pan as I was rushing toward the shower when I heard the swoosh sound of a new text message. It was the owner of the broadcasting company I call home. The owner! His text let me know that he was listening and had noticed I wasn't the one on the air, you know--the one he pays to do the show.

My stress level shot through the roof after that text. Now, I had the general stress of being late with the added stress of knowing the man who's signature is on everyone of my paychecks isn't necessarily thrilled that his morning personality isn't on the air at the regularly scheduled time. It was a high stress-high rush start. Where was the trigger? You know, that trigger to eat more or eat crazy things as a reaction to stress. Certainly it's coming!! It didn't come. I wasn't racing to a drive-through like the days of old or crumbling under the stress by driving through the donut shop drive through. Those thoughts never crossed my mind. And that's a real blessing. I wasn't reacting to stress the same as I had for years prior. There was a distinct change in my reaction. I was in a kind of "focused rush."

I decided on a rugged look-Translation: I skipped shaving, instead doing the absolute minimum I could to get out the door as quickly as possible. Part of the absolute minimum was ripping through the eggs, rendering them scrambled--plating them, wrapping them--and grabbing a bag of fruit and some other assorted items for a later lunch. No time for a pretty little omelet. Thank goodness my Bunn Velocity Brew coffee maker makes an entire pot of coffee in three minutes flat. I appreciated the speed of my java this morning. I was going loose and rugged. This wasn't the best way to start my day. I didn't take time for prayer and meditation, I didn't take time to cut up my fruit, I didn't take time to sip a cup while going through my emails while I wake up. It was very different. I didn't eat breakfast during the first hour of my show, which is what I normally do, and after 7am my show gets too busy to eat.

Breakfast time came much later than normal. I was feeling it too. It was almost 10am when I made my way into the studio kitchen to finally cut my fruit and nourish my stressed out body. Of course, this schedule made everything late today. I was very busy. Too busy to listen to my body when the cues to eat something naturally fired. I didn't stop for a snack, then had a late lunch sometime around 4pm. I had work duties until late and ended up signing on to the support group call tonight, horribly late. Good thing Life Coach Gerri was handling things tonight. I had a few errands to run after the support group and that's when I decided to give myself a break by picking up some shrimp fajitas to go. It was after 9:30pm when I was finally eating dinner and a workout? That was in my living room floor in front of the Beachbody PiYo Hardcore On The Floor DVD.

I did this workout the other night for the first time and I was still feeling it today, two days later. It wasn't a bad feeling at all. It was a very good feeling. It was a feeling of, hey, I have muscles there?? Wow, neato! I gave my big treadmill to a friend--paying it forward by giving it to someone I know will get a lot of good use from it. It wasn't being used in the "spare bedroom gym," because I didn't want to disturb the very nice older lady who lives in the apartment directly below.  It took me and two other guys to help get it down and out of the apartment. I still have my NordicFlex and I plan on adding a few other non-vibration forms of exercise to my apartment friendly list of workout options.

I'm taking a vacation day tomorrow and tending to some important business in Tulsa. Perhaps I need a day off to get everything back in the groove it needs to be. I'm very proud of having a high stress day and not reacting like the typical stress/emotional eater I've been all these years. My food was good today. I was just under budget and my net calories after exercise was above 1300. That is a wonderful thing for me.

When it came down to my resolve and instinctual twists and turns, despite the stress level, everything seemed to be right on time. 

Tweets from today:










Thank you very much for reading and your continued support,
Strength,
Sean

24 comments:

  1. Great reaction to a stressful day.

    Pink lady apples are my favourite.

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    1. Natalie--yes, pink lady apples are really good too! Thank you! It felt good to make it through and realize I had not only made it, but the integrity of my calorie budget was intact!

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  2. Whew, sounds like a challenging day, Sean, but you handled it well! Glad you get a day off tomorrow to recuperate.

    FYI, I actually commented on your last two posts as well, but in my late night tiredness just hit "publish"-- and since I don't have a Google account, that erases what I typed. I apologize, but I was just too tired to retype. Kudos both days, though, for the well-written posts.

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    1. Thank you Becky! The Google issue is so frustrating! It's happened to me before too because I forget to sign in first-- and when you lose a long well thought out and written reply--it hurts!! Very frustrating!! You're awesome, Becky!

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  3. This was a true testing day. Enjoy your day today :)

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  4. A very well handled stressful morning!

    I also handled something well today!
    I went grocery shopping. I plan on baking some muffins in the evening. So in the shop I grabbed a packet of donuts ("I'll be baking muffins anyways, why not go all-out!"). So I did the rounds, got my stuff and then put back those donuts. I was a little sad.
    About a half an hour later I was really content and happy with my decision.
    And those couple of little muffins I will bake, because my son turned 8 months today, will taste better than those extra donuts.
    It's YOUR blog, but I felt like sharing, I hope it's ok. I'ts just so good to make good decisions and I think it's cumulative. That the next good decisions will then come easier, too.

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    1. Kai, It's always okay to share here!! So happy for your victory over the donuts! It is cumulative!! You're creating a positive momentum, Kai! Congrats on your son's 8 months!!
      I really appreciated how you turned feelings of sadness, perhaps deprivation into something incredibly positive and empowering. It's these moments, Kai--and these epiphanies that will absolutely propel you forward in wonderful ways!!
      Your sharing here is always okay. Your insights and perspectives--and your experience is appreciated and you never know how it could help someone else who might read what you've written and feel a connection with whatever you've mentioned. Thank you, Kai!

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  5. That sure was a hectic day, hope yur day off will be what you need to take care of your things and get you ready for the best of the week!

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    1. Oh Alati--yes--it's going to be a very good day indeed! The best is yet to come, my friend!

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  6. So good to know when a really stressful day comes, you are equipped to handle it! Good job! Have you ever tried Honey Crisp apples? They are soooo good! To me, they really taste like you just reached up and picked it off the tree.

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    1. I've tried honeycrisp--yes, they're very good too!!

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    2. It was a true test, for sure. Claire--thank you for your wonderful support!

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    4. Honeycrisp are my favorite, followed closely by Pink Lady! The honeycrisp are like candy to me. Love them!

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  7. A wise man once said, "It's about you deserving better, because you do. It's about you being important, because you are important."

    Since it is not only unrealistic, but decidedly abusive, for someone to expect a person to go to bed at midnight and be up by 5am (At the latest?) I'm thinking that you need to have a talk with whoever is making you keep such a health-breaking schedule and see what adjustments can be made.

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    1. Deb,
      Your comment reminds me of a story recently shared with me about a person who was complaining about their schedule being too busy. A colleague leans in and asks, "So, who makes your schedule?" The reply: "I do." Hmmmm!!
      Great point.

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    2. ^^^Smart woman up there!^^^

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  8. What a good result from the super awful stress of your day! How many times do we just click back to the "old ways of handling stress" and you have moved past that! Hooray!!!! Proud of you! Sure not one of your nicely paced for food choices day - proud of you!!!

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  9. I agree with Deb Willbefree's "Tough Love" comment above.

    A good night's sleep is required to refresh and restore both the mind and body. Since you are taking such extraordinary care in many aspects of your life, why not this one?

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  10. Whoa! Babe! If ever there was a perfect time for a shake, this day would have been THAT day!! Easily drinkable while taking on-air breaks. You handled the day very well!! I'm curious if you had any other cravings we've recently discussed. Well done, love, well done!!

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    1. Thank you sweetheart! Shakeology really would have been perfect. I had it for lunch today--with a banana and 32 grams of all natural peanut butter!

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