It's an age-old struggle that many of us deal with: working out and exercising. It certainly wasn't hard to do as a kid and throughout school (I was very involved in sports). But once we hit adulthood.....BAM! It becomes something you have to schedule in and make time for. I think that's hard, both for people who are dedicated to fitness and those that have had a hard time adopting it as a routine.
After the birth of my 3rd child five years ago, I became determined to get in shape. This goal was two-fold. I wanted to be confident and healthy. Secondly, I wanted to set a good example for my children. I don't think any parent out there would argue with me that this is something universally true for parents: we want to be the best person we can be for our kids.
My journey began well. I lost 95 pounds, shed pregnancy weight (weight that was leftover from 3 pregnancies), and even a little beyond that. I had taken up numerous routines for fitness: walking (which soon became running), yoga, the elliptical, and fitness classes. I was on a roll, I loved it. Even better, I was eating well and treating myself on weekends and special occasions. It was textbook. I could've been on Oprah.
In true stride, I took a turn. Well, I have a good excuse (at least for the beginning of the downfall). I became plagued with plantar fasciitis. For those of you who have heard of this yet not experienced it, it really is THAT painful on the arches of your feet. I did a series of acupuncture visits and custom insoles and it got better. It took 6 months, though. So, my running program got off track.
I also had a lot of people complimenting me and telling me how great I looked. For me, this is a recipe for disaster. I compute this in my little head and spit out the phrase, "Oh, I'm done. Guess I can eat whatever I want now."
And I did. But I also kept working out like crazy; so it all balanced out. But 2013 has been a tough year. My workout routine quickly crumbled and I haven't worked out at all in a few months.
But that fire is still there. I want to get outside and run (Fall is my favorite time for the activity). I want to do yoga. Somehow, I have missed putting myself first. I think a lot of Mom's are guilty of that, not just when it comes to exercise, but in many areas of our lives. But all those areas, whatever they may be, where we short ourselves, we ultimately end up shorting our families, too. If we aren't truly happy with ourselves, how can we be a good example to our children? If we feel bummed out or depressed because of missing out on something we love or need, how can we have true happiness? And particularly when it comes to exercise, if we are not healthy for our children, how are we making sure that they are healthy?
It's hard to be stuck in ruts. But I know it's going to feel really good setting myself free.
I understand completely! I've always been a smaller girl but after two pregnancies I see a lot of changes in my body. Not even necessarily weight as much as lack of energy from not doing as much exercise, my legs aren't as toned and I don't carry myself as well. It feels like I'm a prisoner in my own body :-/ You're right...you're going to feel amazing when you reach your goals!
ReplyDeleteI get this! Really I do. I'm older and my once lightning fast metabolism has hit the bricks so I really need to be more careful about what I eat and really need to exercise. I've put on at least 20 lbs. in the last year and need to tone it up. I agree that it's important to feel good about ourselves to set an example for our kids, especially when I have an eleven year old daughter just becoming aware of her own body image.
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