I've found a new way to enjoy running! I've never really liked running. I DREADED it in elementary, middle, and high school. A few years ago my roommate Melanie talked me into doing a marathon. I ended up LOViNG it. BUT, after crossing the finish line after 26.2 miles, I found myself reverting to my old perspective on running.
When I met Ryan, he didn't really like running either. He was more of a lifting kind of guy (former football player, typical). I like that! The thing I did enjoy was lifting. However, after Ryan started taking Usana supplements, his reasons for disliking running - back pain, join issues, etc - were diappearing. Since we've been married, he's been trying to get me to run with him a couple times a week instead of lifting.
We still do that sometimes, but we've found a compromise. We run to and from the gym, about .5 miles each way. The run happens, and I still get my lift on. The problem was, after a lift, I had no motivation or will to run. Not only that, but my hard effort to go faster never matched the physical abilities of Ryan's hard effort. It got discouraging!
So Ryan had the idea of having me start before him, and he'd try to catch up after I'd gone for 30 seconds. It's so fun! I start out, and I already feel like I'm winning. Despite going the same distance and having done the same challenging lift, I suddenly had more energy and motivation to make sure Ryan didn't catch up.
It's crazy how mental our efforts are! It made me think about how natural it can be to feel defeated with our efforts in getting back into some form of exercise. Maybe you tried pilates, yoga, walking, or running, but it never stuck. The thing is, though, when we have a mindset of victory, its so much easier to push forward.
Try a new way of something you used to do. For example, instead of getting up early to walk in the morning, go for a walk in the evening wih a friend or a spouse after dinner. Or, say you tried going to the gym, but never knew what to do. Join a class and make that particular a class a priority, and make class friends! There's all kinds of options for what you can do that allows YOU to WIN at fitness.
The question is, when will you try?
