This is me finishing my most recent race…I was actually using it as a training run.
This morning I participated in a group exercise class at #M26Fitness. This isn’t new, as I usually try to get in two classes a week. But this was a new day /time /instructor for me. I enjoyed the very hard work of this class and will have to fit some of these into my weekly schedule.
The purpose of writing about it today is the big reminder that it gave me. As part of our lower body workout we had to do 30 second sets of walking lunges while holding kettle bells in each hand. I chose 15 pound weights, thus lunging across the room holding an extra 30 pounds. Towards the end of each 30 seconds, and then for most of the last set this extra 30 pounds while lunging was heavier and heavier.
With my husband, after a 5k and the beginning of this running journey.
Then I remembered that I am 80 pounds (plus or minus) lighter than I was five years ago…50 pounds lighter than three years ago…30 pounds lighter than two years ago…and so on. Today I can’t imagine how I functioned with that extra weight!
Now sometimes we want to lose weight and we want to lose it quickly. That’s been me for much of my life. But what worked for me was to not focus so much on weight, but rather on fitness and healthy eating. When I did this the pounds SLOWLY came off. At the beginning one could say, “5+ years to lose 80 pounds! No way! That takes too long.”
But the real benefit is in being able to look back and say, I’ve become a runner…actually a marathoner and the weight loss is an added benefit. My advice to anyone wanting to work on fitness is to try something… commit to it long enough that you really can do it…and have fun. Then, one day you will be able to look back and say, “wow!”
Today I’m personally thankful for: the mental and physical health benefits of running (and other hard work); beautiful Ventura County where it’s easy to run and play; and life!
