Working Out!

Howdy! "I have to exercise in the morning before my brain figures out what I'm doing."  ~Marsha Doble

I work out several times a day.  This daily practice is a part of a dream realized.  Movement keeps me going and I appreciate it every day.  There have been times in my life where I had a hard time motivating to go to the gym.  The most recent time was after about a year of living in Seattle.  My nephew had passed away the year before and I was feeling unmotivated.  I was coaching rowing at Lake Union Crew and my wake up time was 4:30am.  I normally get up with very little effort, but during this time I was actually tempted to hit snooze again and again.  Finally, I went to a doctor who discovered that I was so low in Vitamin D that I needed a prescription to get it to a safe range.  I remember feeling soooo much better in a short time and haven't really been stuck in a rut since.

There were times, in the past, where I would walk into the gym, lift some weights, talk to some folks, lift more and leave.  I could spend 45 minutes in the gym and get 20 minutes of work in.  Seriously.  I saw this woman in a gym today doing just that.  I was working with a client in a small fitness center when a woman came in and got on the treadmill.  After about 7 minutes she got off, grabbed some water and slowly returned to the treadmill.  She started it, then stopped to play with her iPod.  She spent another 3 minutes on the treadmill then left.  All of this was done with the guise that serious effort to work out had been made.  It was a beautiful dance.

It dawned on me that she was not unusual.  She was me, in the past, and lots of folks right now.  She would say she had worked out today.  She would say that she went to the gym.  You know what, going isn't enough.  10 low impact, interrupted minutes isn't actually a workout.  I know that many fitness mags and 'experts' say that any movement is good and that is fine.  I am a proponent of actually working out, of getting your heart rate up, of sweating, of showing up instead of just being there.  We all could use a little kick in the ass when it comes to getting our workout done.  Stop making excuses and bringing distractions.  You get out of your workouts what you put into them.

If you are finding that you are lacking motivation it would be helpful to ask to get your Vitamin D checked.  It makes a huge difference if you have been living with a Vitamin D Deficiency.

"Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness."  ~Edward Stanley

xo

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