Running Rewards | My Office Has a Candy Wall

candywall-slideOn the opening slide of one of our capabilities presentations is a brief infographic with an overview of r2i, (the digital marketing and technology agency where I’m Director of Marketing) and there is a snapshot of things we love. At the top of the list is the Candy Wall. For the purposes of this post, it is absolutely a proper noun. The problem is, it’s not just one Wall of Candy where there are jars of Reese’s Pieces (my favorite), gummie bears, peppermint patties, peanut M&Ms and more; there’s candy around every corner. It’s in the lobby, conference rooms, the kitchen, at the printer stations, on our desks! And it just so happens one of my biggest weaknesses is my sweet tooth.

Searching for Self-Control in a Sea of Chocolate

r2icandywall (5)Most runners have some sort of reward system they give themselves. RW and other magazines give the correct advice that the best reward you can give yourself for running one mile, 3 miles, 10 miles–whatever the distance is that you need to reward yourself for–is something healthy. Put money in the “massage jar,” buy socks, shoes, go have coffee (small, no-fat, skim, etc); the list of healthy rewards is not hard to create. But then there are some of us, me, who reward ourselves with a little too much of the wrong things that totally contradict all the hard work and training we do. Whether I run 10 miles in a week or 30, 7 days in a row or just 2, cross-train and do ab work–no matter my accomplishment–I tend to reward myself with over-indulgence in unhealthy choices. Namely chocolate (ok, let’s be real, chocolate, ice cream, candy, cookies, brownies, anything sweet!) or alcohol (wine, a good IPA, a bourbon, depends on the weather, literally).

r2icandywallI intentionally don’t buy sweets for the house which up until a month ago made it easy to indulge (binge) very rarely. I now pass by all of my favorite sweets literally on an hourly basis (or more!) at my office. I have worked at r2i for about 5 weeks now and have only made it 4 days in a row without eating a piece of candy. Every single other day I caved…more than once.

I believe I truly have an addiction and this is my confession. My name is Natalie and I love sweets.

I would give anything for some self-control. A tiny bit of willpower over the little Snickers, Milky Way and Twix bars. If I could be satisfied with just one. But I don’t even know how to start. Actually, I guess that’s the problem. I know exactly how to start. I just don’t know how (or when) to stop.

And so, I run some more.

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