I just love this comic (by Sarah Anderson)! It's so true for many things in life, and really shows you how just a little bit of sustained effort can really pay off.
It has been about a year now since I started exercising, and I'm really proud of how far I've come. This is the first time in my life where I've managed to sustain an exercise program for more than a few weeks. While I have had my battles, especially with trying to restart again after I got sick in August, I've managed to keep fighting and even paid for those gym classes at F45 so that I really do have to go or lose the money! Yesterday I really, really wasn't feeling it- but if you cancel with less than 24 hours' notice you forfeit the class credit. They're far too expensive for me to do that, so I got up and I went and I let my trainer kick my butt.
Admittedly, I did make the mistake of telling her that she was right! A few weeks ago when I was in, she told me she thought I was getting stronger already. I didn't believe her- it's been what, a month? And now that my 2 week trial offer is over, I can only really afford to go once or twice a week at most. How could I possibly have gotten stronger that quickly? But then I did a Walk at Home video the other day that incorporated a resistance band, and I pulled out my trusty blue band that has been working just fine for me the whole time... and this time, I could tell it wasn't giving me enough resistance for a good workout. Well shucks- guess the professional that I pay to see is right about something! And now I need to get a stronger resistance band to use on the days I'm at home!
Why did I call it a mistake to tell her that? Well, the outcome is that for some reason, the smaller weight dumbbells disappeared from the circuit today. Oops. At home, I started with 3lb dumbbells a year ago, and moved up to 5lb weights not too long after. I think I was starting to work up to 8lb weights when I got sick, so I hadn't had much time working with them yet. Well, my trainer had started me with 4kg weights which is close to the 8lbs and I figured I'd be there for a while, but after the first week the smallest weights were now 5kg weights. Then each session she was pushing me on the final set to move up to 6kg weights. Note the change from lbs to kg which is a big difference! And yesterday? Somehow, the smaller weights weren't there and the only ones out for me were 7kg! I've been trying to stick to that suggestion and do at least one set with a heavier weight each time but I wasn't expecting to move up that quickly. She told me she wants to see me at 10kg by the end of January. I think that's not going to happen since the bad weather will likely keep me from going as often as I'd like (it's a half hour walk each way to the gym) but it was certainly scary!
The biggest change, though, I think is my attitude. I still don't like exercising, but it's starting to feel like me time. Like something I am doing for self care, whether I like it or not. And that's really important, and I think it's helping me keep it up. This is something that I need to do for my body. It's good for me, and ultimately it will help me feel better and be a better version of myself, which is far more important than a little boredom or temporary discomfort. My heart will be stronger and work better. I'll have more energy. I'll be able to do things for myself around the house rather than asking for help (if I can press 10kg dumbbells, I will certainly be able to lift the 30lb jugs of water onto my water cooler by myself!), and it will boost my metabolic rate which means that even when I'm done losing weight, I won't have to go to a very low level of calories for maintenance. A body with a higher percentage of muscle burns more calories than one with a lower percentage of muscle, even at the identical weight. Even before maintenance- I should burn calories quicker, lose more weight, and my body will be more toned and have more inch loss because a pound of muscle is smaller than a pound of fat.
I spent years ignoring what my body needed and instead did what I wanted. Now that I'm getting older, taking care of my body is not only a quality of life issue, but a quantity of life issue. My doctor told me when I got my T2 diabetes diagnosis that if I kept on the way I was going that I would die young. That was quite the reality check! Humans are very well known for having difficulty appreciating long term consequences. We should change now because something *might* happen in the distant future? Our brains simply aren't wired to fully recognize the gravity of the situation when it's so far from being immediate. I wish I had been taking better care of myself all along so that I wouldn't have gotten to the point I was, because there's certainly some damage that can't be repaired. I can't undo the past... but I can rewrite the future.
Things that have helped me keep going: The first one is wearing a fitness tracker. That little bit of feedback that reminds you to move your body, and to keep track of how you're doing over time really is a helpful push! Secondly, having a friend as an exercise supporter. It doesn't even have to be someone who is local to you- just someone who you can chat with about how you're doing and your struggles. And you can always do the same exercise video online wearing a headset with a friend who's far away (ask me how I know!!) and suffer together! Thirdly, finding something that challenges you without overwhelming you. I learned from the past if I try to do something that's just too hard to willpower through it, at some point I just won't be able to keep going, and then I give up entirely. By starting smaller and slowly ramping up to suit my fitness and energy levels, I can still make a lot of progress over time! I'm not Superman, and I can't leap tall buildings in a single bound no matter how hard I try to force myself to. But maybe I can jump higher and higher over time (OK, we all know I'm never going to be Superman, but I might just be able to be Super Susie!).
So take that first baby step... even when you hit the inevitable snags, have to backtrack a little, or stay in place for a while... you might be surprised at how far you can come in a year.
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