Saturday was friend get-together day! Instead of swapping gifts, we meet up and do some kind of activity together. It’s great since two of them live an hour and 15 mins away (in opposite directions of course!) and my other friend lives in town but our schedules don’t seem to match up all the time. So a day devoted to our friendship and fun is fabulous!
M and I started the day with a run. It was my first run since Dopey and M had a baby 8 weeks ago and it was her third or fourth run back. Let me just say, she is a champ! Check out her blog here for adorable baby pics and her post-baby fitness routine. I really appreciate how M finds pockets of time to be active with snowpocalypse and a wee babe!
After 3.5 fridgid (seriously, it was 17* and with a feels like 4) we quickly changed and headed out to meet up with L at our new Baskin Robbins! Yay! Really quick, the run felt good. I could feel it working out some racing kinks but yesterday my legs felt fairly fatigued. My knee tweak was also annoying me. Saturday night my feet hurt too and I am not sure if this was from the run or the mall-shopping extravaganza.
Coffee in hand we hit the mall. Here’s the deal, it’s not exactly like I haven’t been spending some cash lately. I’ve been wanting to build my reserves back up from the holidays and my vacation so I wasn’t planning on purchasing much.
HA! I laid out some cash. The economy should send me a thank you card. Part of the catalyst for my change of heart/mind was Thursday I noticed my favorite pants are starting to get a hole in them. Granted, I’ve had these pants for 6 or 7 years but I only have a couple of pairs that I feel look decent, i.e. aren’t summer capris, don’t make me look like a street walker because they are so tight, or gigantic from my much heavier days. Yes, I’ve kept some of these clothes but this is a subject for a post on another day.
While I’ve been kicking up the fashion a bit lately by getting creative with my closet, having two pairs of pants in the middle of an arctic winter is difficult. Considering what I just mentioned above about the state of my other pants, there is something to be said about feeling confident in what I am wearing. Stuffing myself into a pair of pants so I have to stand in a certain way or suck in my tummy all day makes me feel really down on myself. I don’t think about how I just ran 48.6 miles in four days. I think about how I’m a failure and should be losing weight. Boo.
So spending some money is worth it. I’ve had this realization before but it took some talks with my friends to realize it again. I’m worth it! My body is worth it! And feeling good about myself begets healthier habits – whether it’s to maintain weight and fitness or to improve it. Dealing with depression has brought on approximately 15 lbs and I need to stop feeling ashamed of this and instead embrace the fact that I’ve made it to the other side of the depression.
Oh yeah and the SALES! This definitely made it easier! For instance? I got two pairs of cords from Ann Taylor Loft for $40. I bought four bras that were each $16.00 – and this was from Victoria. Probably TMI but I think nice underlovlies equals higher self-worth (for me). Why? Because I’m even spending money on something the world doesn’t see! Just my own theory/view.
All in all, it was a great day!
What do you do if you are having a low self-esteem day?
Do you love or loathe shopping?
Amy's Recipe for Disaster 