I believe that fitness is an ever-changing journey with a destination that is different for every person. What worked for me ten years ago is different than what works for me now, both from a physiological standpoint and a lifestyle standpoint. It is finding balance and reaping the self-love benefits that is most important on this journey. All of the motivational images in this post were found on Pinterest and are pinned in my “Be Fit” board, along with a lot of great pictures of fit ladies that motivate me.
I would like to preface this conversation with the fact that I was dealt ‘skinny genetics.’ I know that I don’t have to work nearly as hard as the average gal to maintain fitness and for that I am lucky and grateful. On the flip side of that, when I do bust my butt the changes are hardly noticeable, even to the people that see me regularly. My spectrum looks like this: If I don’t watch what I eat at all and don’t exercise at all I weigh 5-7 pounds more but wear the same size clothes than if I work out five to six days a week and am on a very calorie conscious diet. I know that it is about more than the number on the scale, but measuring muscle mass and tone is not nearly as tangible as the numbers on the scale. I struggle with this.
I can say that I am a better person when I take the time to work out. I have a more positive outlook on life, I get better rest and I am less irritable. All of that makes me a better mother and wife. Sometimes I still feel guilty for taking the time away from other things though in order to get a workout in.
My Fitness & Workout Routine
We live thirty minutes from a gym. Taking the time to drive into town to hit the gym is not a realistic option. We do have a boot camp style group fitness option that is only ten minutes away. A couple girlfriends and I did this together for about six months a couple years ago. I loved doing it together with them and my competitive drive pushes me to workout harder in a group setting. Unfortunately, the 4:30 am wake-up call was not something that we were able to maintain.
So I asked for a new treadmill last year for Christmas (2016 Christmas). It finally got put together in May, then sat for a few more months… When the kids went back to school at the end of August I decided it was time and I was ready (mentally, that is). I was not happy with where I was at through the summer; I was constantly feeling self-conscious and dressing to camouflage how soft I had let myself get. Again, not noticeable to most people, but glaringly noticeable to myself.
I got a NordicTrack Commercial 1750 treadmill. It offers the option of an iFit subscription plan that provides access to running programs/series led by fitness experts from all over the world. It works for me. Running ‘with’ someone that is chatting away takes my mind off the effort being put forth and makes the work easier. I think there are those that are or can be runners and those that are not. It’s about finding what works for you individually.
I started out slow with easier runs/programs and worked up as my fitness allowed. After a month on the treadmill I decided that I was going to push things and get a half marathon in before the weather turned. This is part of my obsessive behavior and the need to set goals that I can mentally check off. This caused issues for me, as my muscles and cardiovascular system had adapted to the work, but my tendons and ligaments had not. My knees were killing me. I had to back down my time on the treadmill for a few weeks and give up that hairbrain goal to allow that system to catch up to the rest. Listening to your body is hugely important. (Me telling myself this, not preaching to you.)
These days my workout regime looks something like this: Monday, Wednesday, Friday’s are treadmill days. I try to vary the effort of my runs with one being an interval session run, one a V02 Max run and one an hour long endurance run. On Tuesdays and Thursday (and Saturdays sometimes) I do strength training. I have fallen in love with the FitnessBlender.com workout videos. These videos range from 10-50 minutes and can be easily modified to your abilities. I do leg day on Tuesdays and Arms/Abs on Thursdays.
Side Note: I did try the BBG Sweat app for a few weeks. It is a killer workout that guides you through bodyweight resistance strength training in a high intensity format for a tank-emptying result. You really do sweat, a lot! But then I missed a couple weeks between traveling and getting the flu. When I tried to go back to the program I found that it had kept advancing through the weeks even though I wasn’t using it. I got discouraged and quit using it.
Growing Emotionally
I am generally an ‘all in’ type of person. If I am going to do something, I am going to do it all the way. My husband says I’m obsessive. The reality is that he is right, I am obsessive. That has served me well in a lot of aspects of my life. However, I will admit that in my quest for my perception of perfection I can easily take things too far. Recently, determined to ditch the dimples (sounds cuter than cellulite, right?) in my butt cheeks I drastically cut my calorie intake while burning 300-500 calories working out each day. The dimples persisted though and instead I lost all the shape and the tiny bit of mass that I had gained in my arms. It looked terrible. My husband quickly called me out and firmly insisted that I increase my calorie intake. I am embarrassed to admit this, but am being honest with myself and trying to be realistic in my pursuit of fitness.
In addition to those stubborn dimples my hips/butt cheeks/upper thigh regions are riddled with stretch marks. Lovely, right? I was 14 and seemed to hit puberty overnight when those babies reared their ugly heads. Crazy enough though, I have not a stretch mark one on my tummy from two pregnancies. ‘What is the point to all of this/why I am telling you this’ you are asking. My point is that we all have problem areas that we struggle with. Some of those struggles are not physical either. I know I have a warped sense of self-perception. I compare myself to all of the amazing women all over social media – some that have never had kids, some that have had many, some that have ‘airbrushed’ their pictures and some that have not. No matter what, most of us compare ourselves to them all and sometimes dwell on all of our shortcomings.
Although I am writing this post ‘to’ you, I am writing this post ‘for’ myself. To remind myself that my fitness is for me, that I need to focus on being fit and healthy, not just skinny and that each person’s journey is unique and needs to be what is right for them. Fitness is not about punishing ourselves, but rather about loving ourselves. How are you loving yourself today?
