Mar 10, 2014

Help! I've Fallen off the Wagon

...and I can't get up. Literally.


I have fallen off the exercise bandwagon and I completely hate myself for it. I have been fit and healthy all of my life except for these last few months. And now the excuses, some bad and some legit, have been piled high for so long I feel like I can't crawl out from beneath them.

It all started with pregnancy. The first trimester completely knocked me out, flat out. I was sick, I was exhausted, and I wasn't eating or sleeping right. I was down for the count those first few weeks. Also, it was winter. Then, to make matters even worse, we mutually agreed to get rid of our gym passes to save money. A seemingly good decision, and I still support it mostly, but gosh I miss the gym. My single most used exercise outlet was suddenly very, very gone and I felt like there was nothing else for me. I did a few yoga routines and played Wii Fit here and there, but those made the pregnancy symptoms so much worse. I couldn't get motivated to keep it up.

The next thing I knew it had been about three months. Three months of poor eating, lots of lazing, and little to no physical exercise. I was getting fat, and not in a good pregnancy kind of way, but in a gaining too much weight in all the wrong places kind of way. I would get on the scale or look in the mirror and just gape in horror. Most alarming? My arms! They had never looked like this ever. Those were not my arms. They couldn't be.

This was about the time I had the opportunity to attend a fitness class at Cahoots Fitness and bring KB along for his own class too. Turned out it was the barre class that day. I went, I sweat, my muscles shook with disuse, and I really felt it. I felt that nice pull on my muscles, the tightness from a workout, and the strange exhilaration paired with utter exhaustion. I was so awful I'm sure, and completely out of my element, but it was also so good. Both my butt and arms were tingling for three days after. It was good to hurt like that again, to push the limits. I really look forward to going back and hope that the nausea and fatigue will lessen enough to allow it more frequently.

Next on the agenda is getting my own spin bike. When I was going to the gym this was my ultimate favorite things to do. In the last few weeks I couldn't ever get to the classes so I would just go in the big room all by myself, just me and the bikes. I would crank up my iPod and shred away on the cycle for an hour. It always felt so good and I would love, love, love to have that option at home. Hopefully the money we save on the gym passes can be set aside for this next big purchase.

Lastly, I am really looking forward to nice weather. That means walking, hiking and biking. Actually I tried hiking the other day and the path was closed. Gah! I tried biking too and my poor behind killed afterwards. Ow! But, I won't give up! Anyways, warm weather also means sweating in the yard while I mow and pull weeds. It means running around with my active toddler kicking balls, climbing ladders, and sliding. It means getting out and about in the fresh air. Hoorah! I am doing this thing. I am crawling out from under my excuses and setting them on fire. I am getting my arms back, MY arms. I am getting back on the wagon, whatever it takes. And the best motivator? Some workout tunes. Here are my faves on Spotify right now.

- From my iPhone

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