Exercise and I have never exactly been buddies. Sure, when I was a 11-year-old I had my share of rolling around in the mud because beating my cousin in a wrestling match was a definite must. I also did countless games of tag that kept me running around in circles because I just had to prove that I was faster than any sucker. But then, like many of us, somewhere along the way exercise became my mortal enemy.
In my defense, plenty of other things sounded a lot more fun that panting like a walrus on a treadmill. Let’s be honest, binge-watching Netflix on a nice comfy couch is just so much more tempting than doing sit-ups and dying inside. But to the shock of…well, the world, by the second month of summer, I started exercising.
I know, it’s crazy! Madness, I tell you. I was surprised, my family was surprised, I’m still surprised because I have quite a reputation for being lazy. That all changed though when my sister decided to scare the crap out of me by telling me of a video she once saw of a younger woman that looked fine and relatively fit but when they studied her health, she might as well have been fifty. Apparently, her system was similar to someone way older due to her lack of exercise and bad diet. On the other hand, when they studied an older man in his forties, he seemed to have the health of someone in their twenties due to his daily exercise and healthy diet. Appearances really didn’t matter in all this because out of the two, the one who looked healthy was actually the one who was pretty fudged up on the inside.
Somehow that was enough of a wake up call because the next thing I know, I end up following my own exercise routine for a whole month. And even crazier, I’m still doing it!
I’m going to be honest though. I do still find Netflix binging so much more tempting and exercise still makes me cringe BUT I put that aside because my body is so much more happy. I end the day feeling productive and I generally feel more energetic. Before, I felt kind of gross most of the time because I would sometimes eat unhealthy food but do nothing to really counter it besides eat vegetables. That didn’t feel like enough but now that I added exercise, I feel way better.
Also, I feel kind of badass now. I’m no Serena Williams but I can safely say I have way better condition that I had a month ago. I can run for longer periods of time and I don’t get tired as easily. Suddenly, I understand why athletes tend to be considered badass—because they’re basically superhumans! It’s incredible to be able to do so much more if you just push yourself to take the step to not only be healthier but feel good about yourself.
And it doesn’t have to be anything intense like running five freaking miles every day, instead it can be as simple as doing a twenty-minute round of jumping jacks, sit-ups, etc, for a couple days each week. Personally, my routine isn’t anything special. I run for 15-20 minutes and then I do thirty sit-ups, a one minute plank, thirty squats, and then a couple warm-ups so my body won’t feel like death the next day. With just that, I can feel a huge difference. Also, I keep the weekends to myself, exercising for only five days a week. I am human after all.
Ultimately though, I can definitely say I don’t regret a thing. This is a habit I’m happy to keep for the rest of my life because as addicting as staying on the couch sounds, being able to hike up a mountain with my five-year-old niece without passing out sounds pretty good too (unlike that other hike I once had with her).