Tuesday, January 3, 2012

2012 Intention: Health

I used to be an exercise junkie. Starting in college, through med school and residency, with a brief hiatus in fellowship when we moved here and couldn't afford a gym membership and hurt my foot so I couldn't run...I worked out most every day. I ran a marathon in 2000, but messed up my knees a bit and couldn't do those kind of distances anymore, yet I kept running. When time was short, I cut down minutes but added intensity. Treadmill, elliptical, biking, step aerobics, running outside, free weights, machines...pretty much anything but swimming. I loved exercising, it made me feel alive and healthy, and the toned and fit body was a big motivation, too. It was also a really great connection for G & I---we loved going on long runs on weekend mornings, when the rest of the world was sleeping off their hangovers or lounging in front of the TV. 

Boy were we smug about it, too. When people (whether patients, family, or friends) told me they didn't have time to exercise, I internally blew them off. Come on, just get up a little earlier or go on the way home from work. If I can find time to work out during a grueling pre-work-hour-restriction residency, so can you! Smug smug smug. And I had every intention of continuing the pattern to become a smug pregnant women bouncing into the gym until the day I delivered...and then a smug mom, teaching her kids the value of physical activity by my own example.

And then I got pregnant. And the smugness wound up in the toilet around week 5 and I haven't gotten it back. I have not exercised regularly since April of 2009. I won't go into all my excuses for why, I just really really want to change this.

So I'm resetting the same goal I had in 2011---to try for SOME form of exercise most days---NOT including my walking commute. Whether its 30 minutes on the elliptical (we bought this at the end of my 1st pregnancy, thinking we would have a hard time going to the gym but could certainly exercise at home post-baby...HAH!) or 10 minutes of crunches (need to build up my abs after tearing them during this delivery) or even a few minutes of toddler lifting (great for the deltoids!) I just want to get back in the habit of moving and using my body. I decided to try for every day, because I know that if I say "3 days a week"  I will put if off and then something will come up. I purchased a GroupOn for 10 classes at a neighborhood yoga studio and I'm going to my first class (my first class of yoga EVER) tomorrow.


Wish me luck.

I've decided to reassess my goals quarterly, so at the change of each season this year I'll see how I've fared, and readjust if it is a dismal failure.

4 comments:

  1. Before I found out I was pregnant (not sure how long you've been following me), Luca and I tried doing the 100-push-ups program. I really hate push-ups, but it was a really satisfying program because a) it took practically no time to do, and b) you see improvements really fast. Plus you get Michelle Obama arms!

    This is their website:
    http://hundredpushups.com/

    I totally intend to get back into this post-delivery. And I totally hear you about falling off the exercise bandwagon. Getting back on will be tough, but after a month or so you'll begin to see and feel a difference. You already know this though. Now, if you could just promise to give me a pep talk about 2-3 months from now....

    :-)

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  2. My husband likes to do tricep curls using our son.

    Yoga is a gentle reintroduction to activity -- but it's far from easy! Hope you enjoy it.

    Good luck with your goals!

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  3. This one may be one of the most common but that's clearly because it is by far one of the most important. Health is truly everything and it really does become difficult to fit in. I have very high hopes to get back to regular movement after this pregnancy. Good luck to both of us!!

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  4. Thanks all for the encouragement. BabySmiling, I did go to the yoga class and it kicked my ass. I knew it would be hard but I was unaware of just how out of shape I am these days! OMDG, I don't know about 100 pushups but I'm going to try to get back to the 25-30 in a row I used to do (can barely do 5 now...ugh).

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