While at home last week for Thanksgiving, I decided it would be a good idea to hop on the scale. I figured that because I had been running fairly consistently this fall and walking more, that I may have lost a few pounds. Instead I found out that I had actually put on another 8 since August. This puts me up almost 30 pounds from my college running days.
Now, I didn't expect to stay the weight I was in college. I wasn't running 30-40 miles a week, running two days of hard workouts and competing in meets every weekend anymore. But I was running 10-20 miles a week and, after getting my dog, was walking a mile or two a day. I will say that my diet is not great. I do eat out a lot (despite have virtually no money) opting for chinese or pizza most of the time. I guess I have also been drinking more frequently then I had in college, which is probably the opposite for most. Not to say that I get drunk more now but now I'm more likely to have a beer or glass of wine with dinner, go to a happy hour, or meet friends out mid-week for a drink to catch up.
Still, all things considered, I don't feel like these things should cause a 30lb increase. Sure, maybe if I was doing all of that and not exercising at all, but I have been running and walking.
It's things like these that get me really down on myself and my efforts to get back in shape. All I see is that even if I try to be good and consistent with running, I still end up with a net gain in weight. I guess the only thing to do is to nix all the bad eating habits for a couple months, keep running, and see what happens. Easier said then done; especially for a PhD student who turns to food when stressed.
