A dear friend asked me on Monday if I was on an anti-depressant. It wasn't a negative quesiton at all.... in fact she mentioned that her doctor was a huge advocate of meds. Her doctor says 'life is too short to be unhappy... let's get you equipped!'. We chatted a minute about the fact that I do actually have to go to the psychatrist for my depression and anxiety meds and can't just call in refills... well I have to go every few months.
She then posed the question if I ever walked the dogs in my building so that I could get outside and get some sunshine and get my blood pumping. And while I did when I was on medical leave, it was not something I had done since I went back to work. I had wanted to start going to the gym that is in our building, and that has yet to happen, pure lack of motivation.
She mentioned her fitbit had been dead for sometime and she wasn't even sure how long, but she knows that she feels better when she gets out and walks. She mentioned maybe we could bug eachother to get walking. I said I was not even getting 3,000 steps a day in, sometimes not even 2,000.
So Monday began our goal day, AFTER we both charged our fitbits! Each day last week we set a goal of steps, sometimes the night before, sometimes the morning of. The goals were as follows:
Monday - 2,000
Tuesday - 2,500
Wednesday - 3,000
Thursday - 3,500
Friday - 4,000
Saturday - we forgot to set a goal
Sunday - 4,500
And here is how my week went (and I can honestly say it would NOT have gone like this had it not been for the goals set, the motivation and encouragement received and just the overall conversations had:
Monday - 2,476
Tuesday - 2,931
Wednesday - 4,037
Thursday - 4,211
Friday - 5,044
Saturday - 8,552
Sunday - 7,372
And my friend kicked a** too!!! It was amazing and it felt good too. I felt accomplished.
A while back my doctor had told me to set my fitbit goal at something that was achievable so that when I hit it and my fitbit would congratulate me (it vibrates and does fireworks on the display) that I would feel proud and that I could keep increasing it each week until I was up to where I needed/wanted to be. So I did that this week on Tuesday I believe. I set it for 3.000. My partner saw me dinking around with my phone and asked what I was doing and I told her I was changing my step goal for fitbit and she asked to what and I told her and she laughed.... a hurtful laugh... I was crushed. I told her I was doing what Dr. C had recommended so that I would not feel defeated at the end of the day and if she felt that was pitiful then she could think that, but I was doing this for me. We didn't talk much for a little bit and we didn't bring up that topic again. It stung, it still does in the back of my mind and I should/will talk to her about it when I am not so emotional or angry. I want to transform my life for the better and I want the people in my life to understand that or at least listen to why I feel the way I do. They don't have to agree by any means, but they do not need to be hurtful either. As I mentioned we didn't bring up the topic again and we had a great weekend for the most part and did almost all of our walking together. We went to the National Zoo on Saturday and walked down to the Potomac in Old Town on Sunday so she got lots of steps in too.
Here is to setting goals and obtaining them. Here is to friends that help inspire us. Here is to transforming myself. And finally, here is to me just trying to find myself.
She then posed the question if I ever walked the dogs in my building so that I could get outside and get some sunshine and get my blood pumping. And while I did when I was on medical leave, it was not something I had done since I went back to work. I had wanted to start going to the gym that is in our building, and that has yet to happen, pure lack of motivation.
She mentioned her fitbit had been dead for sometime and she wasn't even sure how long, but she knows that she feels better when she gets out and walks. She mentioned maybe we could bug eachother to get walking. I said I was not even getting 3,000 steps a day in, sometimes not even 2,000.
So Monday began our goal day, AFTER we both charged our fitbits! Each day last week we set a goal of steps, sometimes the night before, sometimes the morning of. The goals were as follows:
Monday - 2,000
Tuesday - 2,500
Wednesday - 3,000
Thursday - 3,500
Friday - 4,000
Saturday - we forgot to set a goal
Sunday - 4,500
And here is how my week went (and I can honestly say it would NOT have gone like this had it not been for the goals set, the motivation and encouragement received and just the overall conversations had:
Monday - 2,476
Tuesday - 2,931
Wednesday - 4,037
Thursday - 4,211
Friday - 5,044
Saturday - 8,552
Sunday - 7,372
And my friend kicked a** too!!! It was amazing and it felt good too. I felt accomplished.
A while back my doctor had told me to set my fitbit goal at something that was achievable so that when I hit it and my fitbit would congratulate me (it vibrates and does fireworks on the display) that I would feel proud and that I could keep increasing it each week until I was up to where I needed/wanted to be. So I did that this week on Tuesday I believe. I set it for 3.000. My partner saw me dinking around with my phone and asked what I was doing and I told her I was changing my step goal for fitbit and she asked to what and I told her and she laughed.... a hurtful laugh... I was crushed. I told her I was doing what Dr. C had recommended so that I would not feel defeated at the end of the day and if she felt that was pitiful then she could think that, but I was doing this for me. We didn't talk much for a little bit and we didn't bring up that topic again. It stung, it still does in the back of my mind and I should/will talk to her about it when I am not so emotional or angry. I want to transform my life for the better and I want the people in my life to understand that or at least listen to why I feel the way I do. They don't have to agree by any means, but they do not need to be hurtful either. As I mentioned we didn't bring up the topic again and we had a great weekend for the most part and did almost all of our walking together. We went to the National Zoo on Saturday and walked down to the Potomac in Old Town on Sunday so she got lots of steps in too.
Here is to setting goals and obtaining them. Here is to friends that help inspire us. Here is to transforming myself. And finally, here is to me just trying to find myself.