The good things about not having grad school anymore are that I have:
1. No homework, massive amounts of reading, 20+ page papers, and extra STRESS
2. No more interning 23 hours a week for free.
3. No more stress about getting an A on every assignment and staying up into the wee hours of the night to do so.
Got it? Okay good. Let's talk about what I plan to fill my extra time with.
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That's right.
Running.
Yoga.
Pilates.
Weight Training.
No more of the excuses. And actually...at this point I don't have any more excuses.
The best thing about ending a phase of my life that took 3 years worth of my time and energy to complete means that I have the opportunity right now to shape the way the next phase of my life will look like.
And I want to seriously focus on my fitness.
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As I've discussed in many past posts, I've had a pretty tough struggle with the motivation to work out. I'm sure many of you can relate? It seems like every time I make up my mind to get into shape I come up against this wall. Maybe my wall isn't so much motivation as it is negative thinking from the start. Thinking, well last time it didn't work, I bet this time it won't either. Or constantly inspecting myself for improvement and giving up if it's not visible quickly.
I'm also a perfectionist. Surprise!
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The problem is, I have a fear of failing. If I sense that I am not good at something or it's pretty difficult, somehow I tend to give up. Maybe if I just don't do it at all it's better than trying and failing.
But maybe it's not about being perfect. It's just about doing my best. It's a hard concept for my brain to comprehend.
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Perhaps I just need to be a perfectionist about just doing it. If It's hard, it's okay. If I have a bad day, it's okay--there's always tomorrow. But, if I at least put as much energy into my fitness as I did into my graduate education...I think there's a possibility I'd get some good results. I just have to knock down that wall I always seem to encounter.
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So, I need to make a choice.
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And maybe I need to make a conscious decision not only now, but each day. Each day I can choose to run, to lift, to do yoga or pilates or I can choose to stay in bed, sit on the couch, let myself fail and be lazy.
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So here's the plan.
Monday: Abs {p90x, insanity or pilates ab work-outs to switch it up}
Tuesday: 15-20 minute jog/walk
Wednesday: Abs {p90x, insanity or pilates abs}
Thursday: Yoga & 15-20 minute jog/walk
Friday: Abs {p90x, insanity or pilates abs}
Saturday: 30 minute run/walk
Sunday: Rest
and no excuses.
2 comments:
Way to plan! Hope you can stick to it - I find that once it becomes regular, it seems weird _not_ to work out.
Also, as a longtime fitness junkie, and as someone who hates runnign with a burning passion, might I recommend CrossFit. It's not cheap to hit up the gym (you pay per visit), but its the most...fit inducing without hour-long sweat sessions I've ever been exposed to (says the former swimmer and gymnast and bootcamp lover). I do three 20-min sessions a week, and I have better posture and all-over muscle tone than I think I've had at any time in my life (as a 6-month pregnant person!) other than when I competed as a gymnast in middle school (and let's face it, I weighted like 80 pounds with almost no body fat, so how hard was it to stay fit then?). CrossFit works your cardio system well with some intense interval training, works muscles that girls tend to shy away from (traps? outside of your shoulders? what?), uses easy-form moves with mostly just your body weight, and some of the workouts are times so you can easily compare a couple of months down the road. Here's the website i use, and you can google any moves you don't understand up front: http://calicrossfit.blogspot.com/
Thanks Holly! I remember you mentioning crossfit before and I'm definitely interested! We have a pretty cheap gym membership right now with Retro and have it for at least 6 more months, but the plan is to try to mix it up to keep my muscles "confused" because I hear that's the best way to get toned. I will definitely check out the website! Thanks so much :)
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