A Little Bit About…Fresh Starts

Deciding to make a fresh start can be hard. Whether you start a new job, join a new gym or make a new group of friends, let’s face it, it’s daunting. And normally an emotional rollercoaster: excitement, nerves, confusion, enthusiasm, tension, all rolled into one. And why is it, that no matter what age you are, that very feeling of being the “new kid on the block” is as vivid as it was when you were only 5 years old? It never gets any easier. But after a while, you get used to it and learn to turn it on its head and appreciate it.

Yes, the unknown is scary, and yes, leaving what you know behind – people, places, comfort zones – is terrifying. But when you’re new, you have the best license in the world in my opinion – the license to learn (and my favourite part of all…asking all the silly questions under the sun and no one can judge you for it).

Of course, fresh starts can mean different to things to different people. A fresh start might simply be starting off a new week on a Monday morning with a positive attitude. It doesn’t always have to be a big life change. That being said, I personally find it easier to start afresh with the smaller things if I’m also starting afresh one of the big things.

Without really realising it, I’ve lost myself a little bit in the last 6 to 8 months. Not in a dramatic way, just in a “life gets in the way” kind of way. Between adapting to life after lockdown and balancing my much needed social life (considering I’m so far away from family and friends) with being COVID-19 responsible, I let some of the important things in my life slide a little bit. I gave work my all, but outwith that, I got lazy. I was eating what and when I could, as opposed to enjoying each and every meal. I was being inconsistent with exercising, some weeks I’d train 3 times a week, then do nothing for 10 days. I even stopped writing. Something I used to love and do religiously every Sunday. I started to look at it as a chore, as “yet another thing” I had to fit into my busy week.

So after months of losing myself without really even realising, I recently had the opportunity to start afresh one of the big things – I started a new job. Same company, some of the same people, but a very different role. Naturally, I felt like a fish out of water at the start (and still kind of do), but I’m getting there day by day. And the change in routine and perspective has done me the world of good. It weirdly feels like since then, I’ve had a fresh start in all kinds of ways. I’ve started training regularly, got a food plan in place, have a balanced social life and low and behold….I’ve started to write again.

That’s right, it’s time to talk about the elephant in the room. I’ve taken a big break from my blog over the past 6 months and although it’s not been entirely deliberate, it’s been needed. That being said, it’s weighed on my mind a lot. So thanks to a good friend of mine here in Madrid who inspired me and encouraged me to get back to (as well as the few glasses of wine we had together), I’ve finally talked myself into taking the time to write again. No pressure, no guilt, no expectations. Just a girl doing what she used to love again… I’ve realised that all of the best fresh starts in my life have been the ones that happen naturally. I’ve not necessarily made the big, bold decision to start afresh, yet a series of decisions and life choices lead me to do so. And at the risk of sounding a bit too sentimental, I’ve grown the most from those experiences. New experiences – be that new people that come into your life or new opportunities you end up taking – should always propel you forward; they should never pull you back. So onwards and upwards we go…