Just because you can, doesn't mean you should...

Lately, I've been feeling kind of... crappy. Unmotivated in general, only up to the laziest of tasks. Bikes rides are wiping me out. I look tired. And no thirty-something girl wants to look tired. Or to feel too lazy to do important things like cook dinner or write.

When I feel like this, it always takes me a couple of weeks to think long and hard and realize that when I eat like shit, I perform like shit. There, I said it.

You would think that since we spent the summer getting Paul to Ironman glory, we would have been eating the cleanest diet around. If that is, in fact, what you are thinking, you are wrong. So wrong, it makes me laugh. We've been eating terribly for the past six months.

I was whining on my ride on Saturday about my legs cramping yet again and my heart rate going high yet again, all while riding with a guy I know who always has his nutrition dialed in to perfection. I felt a little silly complaining in front of him... because in the back of my mind, I knew the way I've been feeling had more to do with nutrition than any other factor.

I'll admit that I think I'm more affected by poor nutrition than the average bear. And when it affects me, it hits me hard. Crampy legs. Grumpy demeanor. General malaise. The desire to get off my bike and take a nap on the side of the road.

Sometimes I find myself in the mindset that because my metabolism will generally support the consumption of ridiculous amounts of processed foods and other crap, I should just go ahead and eat it. Unfortunately, I can't rely on my body to do crazy good things when I'm not feeding it crazy good things. Just because I can sit around eating handful after handful of cookies on any given night with very little repercussion in the area of pounds gained, it doesn't mean it's a good idea for my body. Dangit, this is my temple, and I only get one chance at this life... why am I wasting my time eating like that?

Tonight restarts proper eating at the Schwer household. No more late night runs to pick up a decadent treat. Dave Ramsey says something like, "If you eat lobster all the time, it isn't special anymore." I don't eat lobster (yuck. they're creepy, with their little antennae and claws...) but I think it's that way with everything.

Time to reset. Time to pull back the forces and return to basics. I want to be the best mom and cyclist I can be. I can't do that if I don't feel up to the task.