Week Thirty-Three: I've Had Enough!

Hier und jetzt endet leider meine Reise auf Pixabay aber from Pixabay 

Have you ever gotten so frustrated with something that you quit, knowing you'd never go back again?

Me too. 

I'd had enough with a few things this week, one of them being my job.

Wait- did you think I was quitting Intermittent Fasting? I'd had enough there too, but in IFing, that's a good thing. Actually, both were good things- just one was really frustrating. Let me explain.

My job got to the point that I not only wanted to quit, I needed to quit. My van is on its last legs...er...tires, and our mechanic said that the less driving we did, the better off we'd be. After crunching some numbers, we realized it was actually starting to cost us for me to do this job.

So I called my boss and gently gave notice. Not the typical two weeks, because I knew that would be tough for them, but enough time so that they could find another driver. I figured a month, maybe a little more. 

My boss didn't have the best bedside manner and let me know there would be no replacement driver. He was ready to let me go then and there. I was shocked and more than a bit hurt by his callous attitude but said I would finish out the week. I had to let my stores and customers know I'd no longer be there. I won't say what the company that hired us would do for deliveries, but I knew it would be chaos, and I wanted my stores to be prepared.

Even though I was prepared to quit, the abruptness of it had me reeling. When something like this happens, I get stressed, and my usual go-to behavior is eating. But I'd had enough there too.

I didn't want to eat. I wanted to plan. I wanted to make my home life, my IFing life, my professional life better. The more I settled into the idea I would finally be home full-time again, the more excited I became.

The hardest part would be the exercise. I needed to be more mobile, and even the job when I was walking wasn't going to be enough in a few weeks. But I don't walk just to walk either- I needed to figure out what to do to be on my feet and moving.

Have you seen my house? All I had to do was look around to see I had plenty of reason to be on my feet and moving! From repotting plants for my shelf garden to a full-blown reorganization of the chaos that is my living and dining rooms, I had lots of things to do.

So I got to do what I love to do but haven't done in ages. Make lists.

Lists of active and inactive things I can do to make life better for my family. I need both because I still can't stand for more than thirty to forty minutes, so like my IF journey, I need to have up-time and down-time during the day to keep going all day long. 

Lists for new recipes I want to try. Lists of chores I can do so my husband can come home to a cleaner, more sane household. And lists of things I can do outside of the house, so I get some sunshine, exercise (like walking around warehouse stores while shopping- no motorized carts!), and don't feel housebound.

No TV and no eating until at least 3 pm. That's what I did when I had my job. Now my job is in the house most of the time, and the temptation to eat will be stronger. I can resist by staying upstairs and writing, sewing, decluttering, or cleaning. There's always plenty to do in a house this big- and full of people.

In two weeks, there will be more people living here. We're getting my daughter from college in New Hampshire. I definitely won't have time to be bored!

I never realized just how much I missed being a homemaker. Even though I worked a few hours a day, it was right in the middle of the day, so it was more challenging for me to get in the zone. Now I can zone all I want without restrictions! God had blessed me with the time, and I intend on using it to its fullest.

Eating this week was so much better than the past month. Opening my window wider during the weekends definitely helped. This morning I woke up refreshed (though the Benadryl helped), and when I stood up, I had that 'skinny' feeling again. I had two meals on Saturday and three smaller ones on Sunday, so I expected to feel bloated. Nope. Apparently, I had enough! 

Today is my down day (one meal), and I already have a full schedule. I feel terrific- not just physically, but I feel like I could take on the world and win. 

This is where the tires meet the pavement, folks. Can I resist temptations and not revert back to my couch potato days? Will I resist becoming a TV and junk food junkie? Will I become a more active, happier person?

Stay tuned for the next episode of IFing For Life!