Today was my first day back to teaching aerobics after 4 months of maternity leave. I kicked my own butt. I'm already sore.
The last few months of my pregnancy were too hard to continue with teaching and then of course, after having the baby I needed time to heal. I had been getting back into exercise since about three weeks postpartum, but it has indeed been a long time since I had a rock star workout. When you teach, you have to be "on." You can't take a break, leave the class early or roll your eyes at the instructor when she says "just ten more." I had to bring a dynamic workout to a room full of 50 eager members and couldn't take it easy.
There was several points during the 60-minute kickboxing class that I thought I might pass out. But, I dug down deep at told myself to keep going. Whenever I felt fatigue creep up, I smiled even bigger and punched a little harder. It felt great! I tackled the pain with a great attitude. This class was one step closer to losing the last 10 pounds of baby weight.
My message to you today is to really think about your attitude when you go to the gym, take a class or even when choosing the right foods to eat. If you go into things with a sour attitude then the outcome cannot be successful. Have you ever hit the gym and said "I hate this." Or eaten your healthy meal and thought "this is miserable, I'd rather have a hamburger"? What was the ultimate outcome? Did you leave the gym after only 25 minutes of what you deem "agony" on the treadmill? Did you abandon the healthy meal and indulge in a high-calorie meal. Don't think of healthy habits and exercise as necessary evils. Think of them as steps toward a better you.
A great 30-minute workout or smart choices at the dinner table are tiny accomplishments that ladder up to achieving your larger goals.
What is your fitness goal? Share it here.
2 comments:
I totally agree! It's all about making decisions that make you feel good and get you one step closer to your goals! For me, incorporating fitness into my day is like brushing my teeth, it has become part of my routine because it makes me feel so great! Although, sometimes I wonder if it's better to schedule days "off" or just listen to the signals from my body. A post about how setting a workout schedule makes people more or less likely to stick to a fitness program might be interesting (and helpful for me)!
~Erin
Thanks for your thoughts, Erin! I think that a workout schedule is crucial to fitness success. If you wait to get a workout in whenever you find a free minute, I think that most people won't be able to find the time.
However, when you "pencil it in" on designated days/times each week you will be more likely to hold yourself accountable. Just like brushing your teeth as you said!
Stay tuned for a post about this. I'll do a little unofficial research on this one before posting :)
Post a Comment