Last Week It Dawned On Me…
That maybe I had been getting a little lazy when it came to maintaining my fitness.
Don’t get me wrong I am no fanatic, but I like feeling fit (or relatively fit at least). It’s something I’ve always tried to maintain ( I want to die as old and as fit as I can be without being obsessed with it).
It’s not even that I haven’t been working out. I have. I am lucky enough to be pretty self motivated. It’s just my workouts of choice could probably be described as lazy.
Before Now…
I have favoured running as a workout and not because I am any good at it, believe me when I say I am no natural born runner. In fact it often takes all my willpower to get out the door, but once I’m out, I’m fine and by the time I get home I’m usually feeling great.
Running makes me feel better than any other workout.
I like to get out for a run at least three or four times a week and cross train on the other days. Or rather I did until a couple of months ago.
For The Past Couple Of Months…
I have been favouring the elliptical trainer, cycling or strength training. Half and hour on elliptical or an hour cycling isn’t as hard a workout as running and doesn’t give me the same ‘buzz’.
Strength training is strength training and over the years I have collected enough equipment to be able to workout at home. Which is great as I don’t have to leave the house to workout (which probably would never happen if I had to head to a gym to workout).
These past couple of months my running has become sporadic, sometimes once a week, sometimes twice and on a bad week not at all. And my fitness and well being has suffered for it…Not to mention my waistline!..Taking walk breaks when I do run has become a must too ( a real sign that my fitness is heading in the wrong direction).
My Excuses…
Are sad and obviously excuses.
This winter I have been making excuses for it being too cold/windy which can trigger my asthma (which for the most part is fully under control!).
It’s wet, raining or looks like rain…It’s windy and there’s an ‘a’ in the day of the week ..Yes, it’s winter, that’s the normal weather pattern and there’s always an ‘a’ in the say of the week!…So it’s no wonder my running workouts, along with my fitness, are down.
Another feeble excuse is that for one reason or another we haven’t been signing up to take part in any official runs, so there’s no real goal. Running makes me feel good regardless of there being an end goal (if the feel good factor counts for nothing), so what kind of excuse is that?… And shouldn’t staying fit be goal enough at the end of the day (or run).
This Morning…
I nearly did it again, I was trying to second guess the weather making excuses for not going for a run. Then it dawned on me that I’ve become lazy, coming up with all sorts of excuses as to why I can’t don’t want to run. I know they’re excuses as there have been many a time I have headed out the door when it’s not been raining, only to get caught in rain and end up getting so wet that I can wring my knickers out…And I felt great for have done it.
Last Friday was the same, but I managed to talk myself out the door. The rain held and I as I expected when I got home I felt great.
So this morning with storm clouds looming overhead, I forced myself out the door, ignoring the voice in my head telling me to stay home in the warm and workout on the elliptical trainer instead. Near the end of my run it did start to sleet and as I opened the gate to our house it started to thunder…But I felt soooo good for having gone for a run.
Today I Vowed…
No more excuses.
I will go back to running three or four times a week; unless the weather is genuinely really bad; which does happen sometimes, just not as often as it seemingly has this winter (one of our better ones too!).
I will go back to focusing on how running makes me feel (once I’m out the door). Just being out in the fresh air is wonderful and once spring arrives bringing with it lighter mornings I can get out early, a special time, just as the world is waking up. And it does make me feel alive.
I will stop being lazy by taking the easier workout options.
I will get fitter and build up my running again, slowly.
I know it’s going to be easier said than done to break the habit I’ve got into. I must change my mindset again. I must change my focus. And I must keep doing it until I have changed my workout habits.
What are your workout habits? How does working out make you feel?
© 2015 – 2017, Debbie. All rights reserved.
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health • running, • That's life • weightloss • wellbeing
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