I am not ashamed to admit I hate exercising. I respect gym fanatics and people who really care about fitness, but I have never been one of those people. I try to maintain my health by drinking enough water, getting at least 8 hours of sleep per night, and eating a balanced meal. But, when my doctor delivered a judgmental stare and some side-eye when I told her I didn’t exercise daily, I realized I should try to find a workout method that I actually enjoy.
My endurance is horrible, so running was out of the question. I decided to try morning yoga to see if I liked it and would potentially join a yoga studio this summer. I bought a yoga mat (of course it was pink and covered in cherry blossoms), looked up some YouTube videos, and promised myself to complete a short workout every morning for a week for at least 30 minutes each day.
Waking up early is already a rough process, waking up early and then exercising is so much worse. But, each morning I forced myself to roll out my mat, stretch, and try various yoga poses. Of course, I knew yoga was challenging considering yoga instructors are ridiculously fit. However, I never knew how difficult it is to hold the simplest poses. At first, I was disappointed in how easily I lost my balance. Then, I realized doing these exercises helped me finally admit to myself that I need to do more to take care of my health, and yoga will teach me what areas I need to focus on the most.
Morning yoga overall improved the rest of my day. I felt like I had more energy because I began my day being active. I had a clearer mindset because it allowed me to distress and try to keep that peacefulness throughout the day. Most importantly, it made me more cautious to have better eating habits throughout the day so that my workout was not pointless. After a week of morning yoga every day, I think I have finally found a workout style that suits me!
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