Creative Fitness

I lost 2.2 pounds this week for a total of 25.4 pounds lost! Weight watchers gave me a new charm for my WW key chain, a 25 pound charm that looks like a fishing weight. It's cute and I appreciate the milestone marker. It's incentive not to go backwards.

As you all know I've got my "must exercise" weight and I'm only 8.4 pounds away from that now. I have been thinking more and more about exercise. Over 6 months ago I made a commitment, bore out of too much time on the couch. That commitment was to do one social activity a week. My life had become a series of trips between work, the grocery store, the gas station and my couch. I wasn't getting out at all and I was depressed. Now I do something every weekend and amazingly my schedule is booked through August! Most of the time a commitment does not feel like the chore it used to feel like. I am socializing, getting out of the house, and having fun.

This success got me to thinking. What if I make a commitment to do one physical activity a week? I'm thinking hiking, tennis, swimming, racquetball, walking, etc. Basically getting some fun physical activity in. I purchased 2 new hiking books and they have a lot of "easy" and "moderate" hikes that I could do. I also have a book about biking trails in my area. My husband is game for anything so I could easily get him to go with me if needed. I haven't ridden my mountain bike in ages so I can get that ready to go and do some easy rides. I'm not so much thinking about doing these things as "working out" but more to get myself moving in an enjoyable way to change my thinking around "working out". Again, having what I do be a reflection of what's going on inside. I've written before about my being in therapy. One thing I'm learning is that I have a pattern of feeling that things are forced upon me. I resist exercise like an adolescent resists cleaning their room, I haven't felt like it's what I want to do but something someone is making me do. That needs to change. I need to remember that the most enjoyable part of being in shape for me is being able to do things that I want to do. That I want to do. I used to love riding to a beautiful picnic spot in a remote area on a beautiful day. I really enjoyed hikes with big, beautiful, payoff views. I want to do those things again. I'm missing out on so much of life right now.

So - one physical activity per week. It can be an after work hike, a short, easy bike ride, swimming a few laps...anything. I feel really good about this. It's a good lead-in to my impending exercise routine. I'm starting to envision a workout routine that is part gym and part outdoors stuff. I can't do what I did before and fall flat. I have to try something different.