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Finding your sweet spotYou can do anything you set your mind to, man" Eminem, Lose Yourself If you gotta run, gotta lift, gotta crunch, are you doing in a spot that is truly deserving of such an feat? Are you surrounding yourself with the motivation to kick those crunches to the curb or are you just laying down in the middle of your living room, pushing aside the morning paper and the toys that the kids didn't put away the night before? Are you running around the neighborhood, dodging trashcans and errant dogs? These places do serve a purpose; don't get me wrong. Everyone needs to start somewhere, and boy do I know that something is better than nothing. But when do you go to your sweet spot, the one place where you know that motivation runs high and finishing brings such sweet satisfaction? I recently discovered my sweet spot. At work, no less! Here I can have a Top Gun moment (in running shoes rather than a motorcycle, mind) while I listen to tunes that keep me going. There's nothing like it. Can you run on a wooded trail? (Keep it safe and run with a friend!) Along a riverfront? How about practicing yoga in a garden, surrounded by the smells of beautiful flowers? Find a sweet spot worthy of your activity, even if you can only go there once or twice a month. Make it a ritual!  Motivation"Kick on the starter give it all you got" Start Me Up, Rolling Stones There is a woman, at least sixty years old, who comes to the pool regularly throughout the week. It takes her a while, but she makes it into the pool, leans back and just floats for a moment. Just for a moment, and then she's off. She's walking through the water as if she's plowing through 5 feet of snow. Shoulders forward, legs determined and brows set. She pushes herself, gently, mind, but she pushes herself. Many days you can tell that she's dreading this task, but she's bound and determined. She's also extremely overweight. Obese, even. When I started teaching classes in the pool a year ago, I had to move out of way so she could get by me on the pool deck...she was that big. She's now easily moving past me. I'd say that she's easily lost one hundred pounds, and probably has one hundred more to go. But she's determined. And she'll make it. Fake it 'till you make it"You know it all by heart | Why are you standing in one place?" Gwen Stefani, What You Waiting For? Sometimes it's impossible for me to wring out an ounce of motivation. Really impossible. Cause then I don't want to work out. If I'm at the gym I'll find myself doing things half-assed and that's not doing me any good--or the folks in the pool if I happen to be teaching a class. Are you feeling this yet? Making Time"Something better than nothing" White Stripes, Blue Orchid
With the onset of school I have GOT to find a way to get a quality workout in during the week. The way I figuire it, the only way THAT'S gonig to happen is by exercising in the morning. Early in the morning, at that.
And while my dreams won't last as long, I can take comfort in the fact there there are many benefits of working out in the morning:
I'm cool with that If you're gonna talk the talk you better walk the walk"Buddy you're a young man, hard man | Shoutin in the street, gonna take on the world some day" Queen, We Will Rock You
Yesterday I embarked on the journey to "know my shit". While I can truly be enthusiastic about getting folks up and moving that can hardly count for anything if I don't know what the hell I'm talking about. Well... I do know some stuff. But my personal knowlege hardly stands up to cold hard data and rock solid research. Ergo, College.
What I discovered in one class is that part of my hour will be spent working out. Not "let's discuss the proper alignment for a bicep curl" but Working Out. Sweating. Lifting. Running. Crunching. Getting sweaty. I'm going to be partly graded on my workouts.
I am SO acing that class.
Will lifting books be as effective as lifting weights?"Take a chance you stupid ho" Gwen Stefani, What You Waitng For?
I love that line of that song. Perhaps that's why it shows up as frequently as it does. And right now I'm really taking a chance so it's use is apt.
Today I signed up for a handful of classes. I'm going back to school. And I'm not spending a buttload of money so that I can experience all the joys of college strife, er, life that I missed out on in my younger days. I am showing up with a purpose: God willing, I'll have an Associate's in exercise science in the not so distant future.
And then I'll have to edit my disclaimer. 1:30:22 Baby!I FINISHED! I am an official (sprint) triathlete!
Wow...what an amazing experience. I feel tired but euphoric and my fanny is aching but overall I'm feeling great. I wanted to finish before 2 hours and did I ever! In fact I finished 6th for my age group and 119 overall out of 307. That I finished better than half of the participants, first time out, blows my mind. I won't bore you with a play by play but will say that the swim went great, the biking fantastic (thanks to my biking coach's bike!) and the run...eh. I think I could have done better...and next year I will.
The best part? My husband said to me that he'd do this with me next year. That put me over the moon! Motivation"Failure is only a fact when you give up. Everyone gets knocked down, the question is: Will you get back up?"--Author Unknown I have been giving a lot of thought lately to getting back to the basics. After my slump, the prospect of climbing back on the proverbial horse seems daunting. I feel worn out just thinking about the rigorous regimen that I was doing. It wasn't necessarily hardcore but it was constant--especially when I was teaching at the gym. So after a brief breather (and a few extra pounds) I'm again focusing on my health and well being. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else than the weight room. MotivationI'm lifting this from my other blog because it's too good not to post here. *cough*
Every so often I'll run across something that inspires me to workout. I've seen tons of Nike Women's ads that inspire me to run, and an ad for this or that that'll make me want to pick up weights and lift. Last night I finally found an ad that makes me want to put on my bag gloves and go a few rounds. Wanna see it? A word of caution: this ad might inspire more than just the urge to get into a ring. Motivation"Take a chance you stupid ho" Gwen Stefani, What You Waiting For? I gotta hand it to my mother. The woman is completley out of shape. Overweight. Hasn't exercised in YEARS. She's got foot problems so standing and walking can be painful. And yet. I've got her sitting on a chair with a set of weights. Lifitng, pressing, curling. She's listening to me as I count down the reps, breathing when I remind her to breathe and flexing when I tell her to squeeze. Now we're laying on the floor doing crunches. Up, down, up down. She's ambling onto the elliptical machine, hoping that she doesn't fall off. I see her pushing, sweating, moving, trying to catch her breath. When she makes it on there for 5 minutes I tell her what a great job she's done and she replys that she feels like she's dying. And we'll go again tomorrow. And again. And again. Building up strength and endurance. Burning fat. Building muscle. Oh, and she just quit smoking. I can't be more proud of her. I know she can do this. She can do anything she puts her mind to, and I tell her that. Who have you encouraged today? Back on the wagon"You never forget the blood, sweat and tears" Linkin Park, Nobody's Listening
Falling off the wagon is easy. Getting back on it is hard. Inaction seems so much more simpler. It requires no effort.
I haven't exercised in a week and I've been eating out of control. I have my list of reasons: a house that needed attention, sick kids, a backwards work schedule, 4 hours spent on an airplane, etc. What I don't have is an excuse.
Stop making excuses for bad choices. Own the fact that you made a conscious decision to do what was easiest and move on. I'm human, you're human. We can't be perfect...all the time anyway. That's just too tiresome.
The easiest way for me to get back on the exercise bandwagon is just to get dressed. If I have my workout gear on I felt like I have to go. My commitment to teach a water aerobics class was just an added bonus yesterday.
You can dive into a better food battle plan at any time during the day. I prefer to set my sights on a brand new day because it's fresh, untainted and full of possibilities. Push back that box of PopTarts and reach for the whole grain bread instead. Don't just pour your liquid creamer into your coffee cup. Grab that measuring spoon and give yourself only 2 tablespoons. Have fruit at the ready for sudden cravings. Prepare yourself.
How far have you come? Have you lost 5 pounds? 10? 20? 3 dress sizes already? Toned up those arms? Ran that mile in under 10 minutes? Are you prepared to ruin those accomplishments by wasting the blood, sweat and tears that went into reaching it? Don't you deserve better?
I know I do. Gulp!I don't have much in the way of an actual entry this evening as I have to get my butt into bed early, HOWEVER.
I have uploaded 2 photos... I'm not sure why, perhaps I have this crazy need to be honest with you, to show that yes, I do believe in what I'm saying cause it's worked for me. Dedication and effort pay off. But you have to keep at it.
So, the photos. My "before" photo was taken in September 2002. The month I decided I had to do something about my weight. I can attribute some of my weight to that whole "I just had a baby 10 months ago thing" but not all of it. That would be too many bean burritos with sour cream from Taco Bell and one too many nights of Chinese takeout. I haven't labled the next shot (taken last year) as an "after" because I consider myself a work in progress. There's still a lot that I can do with myself: improve my health, lift more weight, run a little faster, and yes, get rid of belly roll here or there.
So that's me, for better or for worse. Put up your own "before" and "during" shot on the fridge, on your bathroom mirror, or pinned to your little black dress that you want to look drop dead in. Remind yourself of what you are working towards. Motivation"Don't let it go away/This feeling has got to stay" No Doubt, New
Sometimes inspiration and motivation can come from unlikely places at unlikely times. On my way home from dropping off my daughter at preschool I see this guy running on the sidewalk. He's looking the part: wearing shorts (check out those calves!), got the tunes hooked up, sunglasses on to fend off the morning glare and to top it off: a gorgeous blue sky in mild temperatures. Perfect for running.
I thought my legs were going to start twitching. Right then I wanted to be on the road too, pounding the pavement and listening to my own tunes. I felt like I could lose myself in that feeling and I could have run forever. Spring officially arrives March 20th. I just caught Spring Fever. Motivation"Hit me, you can't hurt me" Red Hot Chili Peppers, Suck My Kiss
Saturday morning I taught class in the pool. As I'm heading out of the media room into the pool I met a lady coming out of the locker room. She took one look at me and said, with total sincerity, "Oh, no. Not you!"
I smiled at her and said, "Ill take that as a compliment".
That's all she wrote. And it was brilliant. Motivation"Oh...am I making myself clear?" No Doubt, Just A Girl If No Doubt isn't your bag, go buy a concert video from your favorite band and rock out. Whatever keeps you motivated! What motivates you?"Pump it, louder come on/Don't stop, and keep it goin'/Do it, lets get it on/Move it!/Come on baby, do it" Black Eyed Peas, Pump It
What motivates you to get in or stay in shape? What motivates you to walk that extra quarter mile? To lift one more set? To hold Tree pose?
Is it your kids? Your lover? Your health? Your vanity?
My motivation lies in the shadows and curves of my life, but I find it each day. Have you found yours? |
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