7 Ways I Learned to Love Exercising

7 Ways I Learned to Love Exercising…for the first time in my life.

This is a complete paradigm shift for those who hate to exercise.

For years I tried to exercise. I hated it. It was not for me. I was not the girl for it. This was my favorite break up line. I broke up with exercising repeatedly.  I tried, and then I would miss a day, then two, then a week…you get the picture.

I wanted to be the girl who loved exercising. Well, not really. I really hated exercising. If I loved it, I would have to do it. Maybe I wanted to want to be the girl who loved exercising. I was far from either of those.

But something changed. One day I woke up and had lost most normal use of my hands, and the pain was debilitating. This lasted for most of a year, while I worked on healing.  It hurt to turn a door knob. It hurt to even button or unbutton my pants. This was every single day. This was my new normal.

All I could think of was how I had taken my hands for granted all those years. This made me realize that I was still taking so many other things for granted, things I hadn’t lost.

I began to change how I saw my body and my health.

After making some progress with my hands and being able to do normal things again, I decided that I was not going to take anything for granted again. If I could use it, I was going to move it. I was going to move it simply because I could.  That singleness of thought was now my motivation.

I began stepping every day. This is my version of walking without actually leaving my house.  I had a Striiv Smart Pedometer, Basic Bundle, which I liked, but I wanted to connect with my friends. It’s funny how we have become like that with our lives, pictures, blogs, and everything else on social media and online. We like to be connected. So I got a Fitbit One Wireless Activity Plus Sleep Tracker, Black because that is what all of my photography friends were using.

It was the best thing I ever did. Adding that little bit of competitiveness was extremely motivating to push myself past what I ever thought I could have done. I was moving, but I think I still had some barriers in my thinking about what I could actually do. I thought 10,000 steps was a dream. Not only did it become a reality, but I passed it almost every day. I became a genius at squeezing in steps everywhere in my day.

This created momentum in my life. Momentum is a powerful thing. Very powerful.

I followed that momentum and did a 30 day plank challenge. I was so hooked. I was becoming one of those exercise nuts.

I wanted to do everything I possibly could…slowly and gradually of course, but I was a woman on a mission.

But then something happened, and this is how I know that this change of mindset I had with exercising was here to stay. It wasn’t temporary. It wasn’t a fad.

I injured myself doing something completely unrelated to exercise and was out of commission for the last six months. It drove me crazy. After many sad attempts, I had to accept I was down for a bit, because every time I tried to move I made it all worse, and the bottom line was this girl needed to heal so she could get to moving.

I am doing much better now, and I am able to start with my steps again…slowly building up again. I can’t wait to add more to my routine.

The old me would have long forgotten about exercising after having to take a forced sabbatical for such an extended time, but no…this girl was chomping at the bit to get back to it. I changed on the inside.

It is not longer about having to exercise. It’s about getting to exercise. It is about getting to MOVE.

It is about moving because I CAN.

It is a complete paradigm shift. Exercising  because I wanted to look a certain way or because I should was just never true motivation for a life change, which is why it was never lasting.  Now it’s become who I am. I became the person who walks because she CAN. I am the person who planks because she can. I am the person who does 30 day fitness challenges because she can.

It was when it became a celebration of doing it because I could that I was truly motivated.

I exercise because I can. I move because I can. 

It is an empowered way of thinking that can be life changing.

7 Ways I Learned to Love Exercising

1. Realize how blessed you are that  you CAN move. Be grateful for the health you DO have. Celebrate that blessing by doing what you were created to do with that part of your body…move it. You don’t HAVE to exercise. You GET to MOVE.
2. Move as if your life depended on it. It actually does. Our sedentary lifestyles are killing us. That health that you are blessed with depends on your using it. Use your body because you CAN. There are many who would give anything to be able to do what we take for granted every day. Celebrate it by moving it. Do it because you can, and do it for those who can’t.
3. Take a 30 Day Challenge.  Commit to doing three 30 day challenges over the next 90 days. Do the same one three times if you want. Just commit to doing three over the next 90 days.
4. Think of it as moving, not exercise. We have so many ugly connotations with the word exercise.  Think of it as MOVING….moving with momentum…moving with celebration…moving with intention…moving with victory.
5. Know that you are far more capable that you ever dreamed possible. And it all begins with the first step.
6. Have an exercise buddy. This is easy enough now with fitbit.
7. Walk your first 5k, even if it’s a virtual one with friends. Some of the virtual ones even give medals.  One 5k might be all it takes to hook you. It is amazing how empowered we feel when we accomplish something out of our comfort zone. You might be surprised at the effect it has on your whole life. You can be the girl who does these things. It’s not just for everyone else.
8. Try different forms of moving (walking, dancing, zumba, weights, kettle balls, swimming, etc.). You never know what really might be the thing that excites you. It only takes one thing to snowball you into being a fitness nut.

This shift in my thinking changed me to my very core. I move now…because I CAN. Since I got use of my hands back again, I practically celebrate every time I turn a door knob.  Exercise is no longer something I HAVE to do. It is something I GET to do.

Once you start thinking about it this new way and start moving, you will be amazed at how powerful momentum is.

If we are not intentional about moving and move with purpose just because we can, one day we will wish we had. It is just a regret that we don’t need to have.

Think of the things you did as a child that you can no longer do. We stopped doing them, and then one day we realized that we were no longer able to do them.

Start where you are.

I remember when I started to doing steps and was really getting up there with my numbers, I was going to sign up for a 5K with a friend, but then I thought how lame would that be to walk it and not run it.  All the cool people run them, not walk. Then I remembered the story of Dick Hoyt, the dad who pushed his son who was wheelchair bound over the finished line in 72 marathons. He started at the age of 36, never having been a runner before in his life.  His son’s face was just priceless as he was pushed across the finished line. I realized I was doing it again, taking for granted what I could do. There are some people who would give anything to be able to walk themselves over that finished line. Let’s not ever sell ourselves short over anything that we CAN do. Those are things we celebrate, no matter how small they may seem. To someone else, they are HUGE.

There are so many who would give anything to be able to move who can’t.  If you lost use of your legs tomorrow, you would give anything to be able to walk or run a 5K.  You probably couldn’t think of much that would make you happier. Let’s not wait until we lose something to appreciate it and celebrate it. Do it now. It is still every bit as celebration worthy.

The main thing is to find what motivates you to get started. For more ways to help motivate yourself, Emily from Zen and Spice, a health and nutrition blog, shares what has helped her the most in Tips for Overcoming Excuses and Getting the Best Out of Exercise.

Start where you are. Move what you can. And keep moving it.

A body in motion stays in motion.

30 Day Challenge – 10,000 Steps a Day

30 Day Challenge – Easy Plank Challenge for Beginners

Resources:

Free, Printable 30 Day Challenges

Striiv Smart Pedometer, Basic Bundle

Fitbit One Wireless Activity Plus Sleep Tracker, Black

These are both good products, but I definitely preferred the Fitbit for being able to connect with my friends.

The 10K Steps a Day Challenge – Or Pick Your Number and Start Where You Are!

Always seek a doctor’s advice before you begin an exercise program. (Affiliate links included in this post, but opinions are 100% my own.)