Redefining my motivation

This past week has brought me to culmination. I have finished a 5k race. I have completed my coursework for my Bachelor's Degree. Now what? Things I have been working toward are completed and I never sat down and thought of what I wanted to do next. I feel lost. I feel like I have no motivation to continue on this journey. I know that I want to. I also know, that I worked really well when I had goals. I need to determine what short term goals I have. And now, that I'm within 50 pounds of my projected goal weight, I need a long term goal to get there. The problem is, I don't know what those goals should be.

Did I enjoy running enough to continue doing it? Was it really a weight loss booster like everyone has always said it would be? The answer to both of those is "I don't know."

First, running for enjoyment: I enjoyed meeting the plan's goals for the week. I enjoyed the feeling of getting out and exercising. But did I actually enjoy the running itself? Not overly, no.

Secondly, running for weight loss: I lost approximately 7 pounds in the 9 weeks I did the running training for the 5k. While you won't see me complaining about losing 7 pounds, I have to wonder, if I had been doing different training, would I have lost more?

Also, am I eating enough? Was I fueling my body enough for the training I was doing? I don't know. I have plans to meet with a nutritionist the first of October to go over just that. What do I actually need to fuel my body?

So what is my goal? Should I train for a bike ride next instead of a faster run? I do enjoy biking more than I enjoy running. I can answer that without too much thought. With winter approaching, I will have to either use Lincoln Center or the gym at work. Or else, do either strength or cardio at home and do the opposite at the gym at work, throwing in Lincoln Center for maybe a weekly walk/run.

Eating wise, I think I'm just going to maintain healthy eating habits with my 1700 calorie a day goal until I meet with the nutritionist.

Weight wise, I want to get down to 210 and then evaluate myself at that point. However I need to know if that is attainable with as much skin as I have hanging around. As long as my numbers continue to go slowly down, I think I'll be okay with this until I have a firmer grasp on things after consulting with some doctors and physical trainers in the near future.

First though, I want to get my workout plan on track, then my nutrition. Once I do that, the other should fall in line. Right?