Giving Up My Lazy Life For An Active One.

I’m famous for my lackluster and inconsistent efforts to get in shape. Or really just to live a healthier lifestyle, in general. Ok, famous may be an exaggeration. I don’t think people are paying that close attention. My daughter pays attention, though, so she can lecture me about drinking too much Cherry Coke. But, even the disappointment of my child could not make me strong enough to resist the call of the carbonation.

For years, I have been drinking Cherry Coke for breakfast, paired with my only slightly healthier chocolate Pop-tart. I was almost proud of my commitment to my hedonistic breakfast.

When I moved to a house with stairs, it started to really catch up with me. I was already on the short of end of the endurance stick but I think going up and down stairs everyday really drove that point home.  My tolerable back pain became much less tolerable. I developed Plantar Fasciitis and I was so weak from all this pain and the general lack of “in-shapeness,” that I would find myself literally pulling myself up the stairs. Yay for strong handrails, huh? And don’t even get me started on my knees. So, while moving into my parents’ house with my family was a dream come true, I felt like I was also turning into my parents. Their ages, anyway.

The last few years haven’t been easy for me. It has taken me a really long time to come to terms with losing my dad (and now my mom). I’m not ashamed that antidepressants have helped get me through. But, I was really unhappy to learn that a different dosage would cause me to gain so much weight; putting me at a number that I have never seen from my scale.

I want to feel better. But, all these things made it feel hopeless. Everything hurt and when I tried to take those walks that my (much younger than me) doctor recommended, I felt like I was going to die.  For awhile, I convinced myself that this is just aging. But then I see Candy Keane twirling upside down on instagram. 🙂

I know that others have it worse. I also know that others have it better.  Now that I’m finally doing something about it (spoiler alert!), I guess I’m hoping this will help motivate someone else. Or maybe it will just make me happy to see in the future when I’m (hopefully) in a better place.

I’m not sure exactly what finally flipped the switch. It may have been the discovery that if I joined the gym up the street, we could use the hydromassage beds. It may have been the frustration of breathing heavy after walking up the stairs. It may have been watching my mom’s body betray her; watching her struggle with back pain and muscle weakness. I knew that I was heading that way but worse because my mom ate healthy, got exercise and took her vitamins. I was doing none of that. It was all of those things.  I’m not sure which one finally got me going but I’m just glad it did. I finally started to believe that maybe I could feel better. 

So I did all the important things. Brian and I joined Planet Fitness and immediately asked to try the hydromassage machines. They are awesome, for the record. Heck, it would be worth the cost of the membership just to go get one of those massages a couple of time a month. I ordered a Wonder Woman shirt to work out in from Amazon. Then a few weeks passed. Then I bought vitamins and calcium chews (I still haven’t remembered to take them out of the car…). Then I bought a couple pairs of workout pants and shirts from the thrift store.  Then I ordered some socks for the gym after looking at way too many basically identical options on Amazon (I love Amazon!). Then I found the Air Pods that I got my son for Christmas. The ones that I lost before Christmas so I had to last-minute order replacements. Now we both have some. Winning!

Then I got worried that I wasn’t going to do anything.

So enter the baby steps. I decided to commit to five days of Thrive. By the way, this is not a sneak attack, I’m not going to try to sell you anything! Haha. But, “The Thrive Experience” really does help me with my energy level. You are supposed to give it an honest 8 weeks. I have been doing it off and on.  But I figured I could make it through five days. The first couple of days, I felt kind of lousy, but the next day was better. But, I had the energy. I walked the dog and I even went to the gym on my first day. Granted, only for 10 minutes. But life, aka, a sick kid called.

The next day, Brian and I went for our “official” first time. I dressed for success because that’s the most important thing, right? haha. Brian and I both started slow. He’s right when he says that we need to ease into it. I resisted the urge to push myself and just focused on the fact that I was on a treadmill at all. 🙂 Also, we tried out the massage chairs this time!

 

I gotta say, I already feel better. Today, I walked two dogs (short walks but still!) and still felt like I had some energy left. I hope that I can keep the momentum. I hope it will help.

And, as for those damn Cherry Cokes. I’m down to two cans a day, instead of four cans and one Hershey bar a day instead of two.  Seriously, not a healthy eater!

Last night, I posted my gym pics. I poked fun at myself for the ridiculously small amount of calories that I burned.

But, all I got was support. Props from friends on facebook and strangers on instagram. Proving once again that most people are inherently good. Or they, at least, have the decency to laugh behind my back. Either way, thanks! 😉

Here’s to baby steps turning into adult steps!