Rest Up, Party Up
I’ve spoken previously about experiencing guilt over not putting the gym first when my schedule gets packed. This past weekend was yet another example of how much I have changed in terms of my priorities. Except this time my schedule was not packed – it was my nose. OK wait, that’s gross, but let me explain.
Firstly, a spontaneous Thursday night dinner at a spot I really enjoy, The Merchant, turned into a Thursday night out at Highball Lounge. Not a huge deal – I took the T home (I only took one Uber this entire weekend and it was just $8 – hooray!) and did not overdo it on food or drink.
Highball is a super cool spot. I would go back in a second, and once again order sparkling rose with a garnish of RUBBER DUCKY.
However I woke up on Friday morning with a stuffy nose and by the time noon hit, it was a full-on cold. I had already decided it was a rest day, since I hadn’t taken a 100% rest day since Christmas (oops…). So missing the gym on Friday wasn’t such a big deal to me. I still went out for a low key dinner and then had a couple of glasses of wine after at one of my favorite bars, Oak Long Bar + Kitchen in the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel. Jen was kind enough to join me and it was a great quiet Friday. And also involved lots of bread, which I crave when I have a cold. And in the moment, quenching my craving to make myself feel better was more important to me than counting carbs.
Blondes and red wine! I put my cardigan back on very soon after this photo was taken.
I hoped that I’d wake up Saturday feeling better, but despite sleeping 11 hours (!!!), I woke up feeling the same…if not worse. My original plan to work out in the morning and ALSO attend a yoga class with Greg turned into just attending a yoga class with Greg and walking a mile each way to the grocery store. After that grocery store walk felt like a marathon, I ended up cancelling the yoga and deciding that it’d be another day without a workout. I don’t remember the last time I took two rest days in a row. And you know what really motivated me to take the second rest day? The fact that I had plans that evening, plans that involved cocktails and food, and I wanted to be able to make it out for them.
Photo courtesy of Jeannie.
Now I know the “smart” thing to do would be to stay in, but a Saturday night out in Boston is hard to pass up, especially since the night started at Eastern Standard (one of my favorite bars in Boston – see above photo) and involved some really fun people!
So I took a bunch of Dayquil, chugged an iced coffee and (half) a green juice, covered my Rudolph nose with foundation, and even put on a dress (it was absolutely FRIGID out). And I had a great time, but the night didn’t go on too late. I treated myself to that Uber home and was in bed before midnight. And I woke up yesterday morning feeling almost 100%!
The evening ended at another favorite bar, Citizen!
The old me would have never gone out if she had taken two rest days in a row. Or she would have forced herself to work out so that she could enjoy her cocktails and her food. Do I feel really guilty about what I ate and drank on my second day in a row without a workout? Yes. Did I think I looked huge in about half the photos taken of me that evening? Definitely. But did I let any of that keep me in, hiding? No. And did I wake up yesterday morning ready to get back to the gym and get in a GREAT workout? Absolutely – and I did!
People get sick. They get better. They go to the gym, or they don’t. They enjoy a few cocktails, or they enjoy a day without alcohol. They eat a salad for dinner, or they eat a bunch of greasy appetizers. Every day is different. Each day does not define me and my lifestyle. Each day is not everyday. Such a hard lesson to learn, but I’m working on it.
Have you ever forced yourself to workout while sick?
What was the best part of your weekend?
