TO change your body, you must first change your mind

Over the summer, as my furlough wore on, and I was getting a little restless, the owner of my gym mentioned to me that she thought I would make a good trainer, and she would love to have me as an instructor should I ever decide to get my certification.  That planted a little seed in my mind, that could be really cool, and I believe I will actually pursue that in 2021. If you would have said something like that to me 5 years ago, it would have been hilarious.

5 years ago, I was living in Columbus and working at the Hyatt Regency. Some members of our team had been promoted and moved away leaving an opening and the position was filled by a young lady, closer to my age than anyone else in the office. She was new, and since I was the newest member of the team, I was excited to have someone I could relate to. I liked her immediately but…. she was into Crossfit.

I admit, at the time, and I am not proud of this, I was a little judgey. Everyone has seen the memes, Crossfit, Marathons, Veganism. Folks who are into those things are usually quick to tell you about it. For someone who is not into those things, it is Liz Lemon level eyeroll inducing. She got up at 4:00 AM to go workout before going to work. WHAT?! Why would someone do that when they can sleep? But I get it now. I mean, no, I am not really into Crossfit, or running marathons or veganism – but I understand why those that are talk about them. It is part of who they are. They are sharing something about themselves and they are trying to keep themselves on track. They are essentially holding themselves accountable by sharing what they are doing. They are not boasting, they are seeking support, or they are trying to encourage others to join them because they know how it has helped them. That is the important thing to remember. For outsiders, it feels like boasting. My transition to understanding this was a long slow process.

I started a few years ago, I joined the Rec Center and met with a personal trainer once a week. I needed a little guidance. He taught me some routines, gave me some ‘homework’, and focused more on strength training, not a ton of cardio because I was very upfront about hating, HATING cardio. The rec center also offered classes, so after I got a little more confidence, I tried a few. That was it- classes were for me. I needed the accountability, the encouragement, the competition. I joined kickboxing, spin, step, and eventually TRX.  Then we moved to new town. I worried I would back slide. My husband belonged to Planet Fitness, but they didn’t have classes. I would have to motivate myself? Meh, not for me. Then I noticed a sign for Studio BOSS, and I wondered what that was.

It turns out it was exactly what I needed. Staci Boss – yes that is her name! Staci is passionate about Behaviors Offering Sustainable Success. See what she did there? It turns out that is the exact mentality that I needed to focus on. In the past, I would put too much pressure on fast results. Eat nothing, work out hard – it wasn’t sustainable so I would inevitably stumble and regress. Since I joined Studio Boss there has been no backslide.

People use different tricks to motivate them to exercise. For some, thinking about the indulgent meal they have either had or plan to have works. That doesn’t seem to work for me. I mean, sure, I love food. I love to eat, cook, try new things, new restaurants- but during a workout, I find that I am more interested in making my body FEEL better, than I am in earning the meal I either already had, or will have in the future. I visualize my muscles stronger and leaner, more flexible. Admittedly, I do not push myself to the absolute limit at every workout. I don’t half ass it, but yeah, I probably do leave some effort on the table. Why? Because I don’t want to hate it.

Working so hard that my face is beet red, my side is cramping, and my throat is raw would make me hate the workout. It would be harder to motivate myself to do it again. When I can find the right level, where I am working hard, but I can sustain that level, I feel better. I am more likely to increase weight or reps, than running speed and I am OK with that. It is a slower progress, but it is progress and more important, it is sustainable. There are days when I do push myself harder, I just don’t push myself to the limit every single workout.

 My bodyweight has stayed relatively level in the last couple years, but I have noticed that my body composition is changing. I still have a soft middle. It is just where I hold weight and it will be the last thing to go. I have a stronger core now though. My butt isn’t pancake flat anymore. My inner thighs just barely touch, I can almost do a pull up! Perhaps I would make more progress if I really, really pushed myself. And if I didn’t have some ice cream, or goldfish crackers. But you know what? I love ice cream! And I love Goldfish Crackers! To me those small allowances are simple pleasures that make life more enjoyable and if I took those things away from myself, I don’t believe it would be sustainable. Perhaps I would get a flat stomach – but would I be happy? Would I KEEP it? I don’t think so.

I work out a reasonable amount with reasonable effort, so I shall eat a reasonable amount in a reasonably healthy style.  When I start making deals with myself like working extra hard to earn the food I already had, or plan to have will lead me to imbalance. Inevitably, I would allow myself too much. The effort I put into a workout might feel like I really earned that deep fried appetizer sampler platter – but unless that workout burned 2,000 calories (which even my best NEVER would) it would create imbalance. So, I don’t equate the two. I try to maintain a level workout routine, 4-5 workouts a week. Most days I try to eat a healthy diet, but occasionally I allow myself an indulgence. I don’t feel guilty about it. I just enjoy it. Plus, I have a highly motivated, super hard-working Husband to keep up with and to help me remember when I start to indulge a little too much.

It took me 40 years to find this balance, so I want to say thank you to my inspirations and those who have helped me figure out my fitness motivation and healthy lifestyle – you know who you are, but to name names: Jonathon, Haley, Staci, Kim, Tanya, and Jordan – Thank you for putting me on the right path and inspiring me to keep at it.