5 Year Plans, Emotional Eating, & the Buzz of Busy

“What’s your 5 year plan?” She asked.

I laughed. 

Sister, 2 months ago I wouldn’t have thought one of the most important decisions of my week would be what sweatpants I’m wearing to the living room today?

I stumbled across a to do list as I flipped back through my daily planner…

…I welled with emotion.

It was so BUSY.

Photo credit: @doot_doodler

Busy with apts, shopping lists, workouts, work schedules, errands to run, consults, projects ideas, meetings, down to what color scrubs I needed to wear to make sure I went to the right hospitals.

Stress — on my body, mind, & spirit. 

I felt ashamed to discover it. Time & life have changed so much. Forced to slow down. To long for that old life, the “normalcy.”

It was also a great reminder. 

A reminder of how we’ve transformed busyness into beingness.

I’m different now. I long for pieces of that old “normalcy” but not the busy.

I loathe the word busy. I used it as a bullshit excuse & conversation filler for years. I catch myself doing it now.

I used it for not doing things I wanted to. 

Travel. Vacation.

Spend time with friends & loved ones.

Invest in a new project, job, or venture.

Move.

Just fucking BE & do what I want to in a day.

Mostly out of fear of not having enough money  or being seen as lazy. BUSY made me feel safe & worthy.

Same with control. If I control my body, my food, my workouts, my schedule — everything will be ok. Which in the past I’ve realized leads to disordered eating & body image & a poor relationship with food, myself, & exercise.

You place your worth on what you look like & how much you’re achieving.

Photo credit: @what.is.mental.illness

So when you’re not “busy” what initially happens?

You emotionally eat.

You doubt yourself.

You compare.

You get anxiety.

You lose your labels & sense of self.

Your relationships suffer.

Basically you step on the hot mess express full speed ahead.

Emotional eating is a biggie. 

So here are some things to help you:

🌞 Stay occupied, halfway organize your day and do a brain dump the night before. That way you kind of know what to expect & can set a semischedule. 

🌞 Jot down tentative eating times so you have something to stick to — expectations & commitments to yourself. And this way you can plan around your activities for the day. 

🌞 Good activities that help pass the time positively:

-Cleaning house

-Purging old things from closets and spaces it makes way for new positive energy

-Take a nap, most of us don’t get enough sleep anyways

-Read — Knowledge + action is power

-Invest in a new learning course or workshop — be a forever student

-Color or pick up a creative hobby that keeps your mind and hands busy

-Go for a walk or do a mini workout for 20 minutes

-Call a friend 

-Brain dump and schedule your week

-Listen to a podcast or write in your journal

-Go shopping, run errands, get out of the house

-Keep trigger foods out of the house if you know you can’t control yourself well around certain foods

– Eat a big breakfast with plenty of proteins and fats they will keep you fuller the majority of the day: things like eggs and sausage, eggs and bacon, burgers, roasts, it doesn’t have to be breakfast food

It’s ok to plan, but leave room for grace, flexibility & adventure.

Next time when I’m sitting in traffic, running late, I’ll reflect on the time of not having anywhere to run to. I’ll remember in the midst of confusion & suffocating stillness I grew strong, calm, & found a new appreciation of life & control.

Xoxo Coach K