Choose your hard!
I deliberately skipped over a January blog. Honestly, who needs to hear more about goal-setting, tips for success and the usual string of 'new year-new you' lingo? Maybe because the start of the new year for me personally was just ok. No hype. No large vision. No big goal. Just another year that I started with caution rather than confidence.
But here we are, a month later.
February.
The month where typically people lose their mojo.
I've seen it time and time again. A jam-packed gym in January followed by a feeble February.
It's cold. It's winter. The holidays are long gone. And so we wait for spring. And wait. And wait.
And let's face it, for Canadians like me, hitting the gym when it's freezing cold outside is hard.
Schlepping my gear with me is hard.
Driving in messy winter conditions to the gym can be hard.
It's all just so hard.. am I right?
And even more so, training at the gym isn't easy. It's tough to squeeze in workouts when life's demands get in the way. Meetings. Deadlines. Kids. Traffic.
Dismal.
Tough.
Hard.
But carrying extra weight..? Hmm.. this too is hard.
Not being able to carry a laundry basket upstairs without being winded? Hard.
Having trouble tying shoelaces or bending down to pick something up? Hard.
Difficulty buying clothes that fit right? Hard.
Needing to take meds to keep cholesterol down. Hard.
Not getting good sound sleep? Hard.
So what's my point?
Both worlds have their challenges.
Both realms present difficulties and obstacles.
And both realities possess discomfort in one form or another.
Yes, exercise and movement should have an element of enjoyment and pleasure. No, it isn't punishment but rather a celebration of your body and all it's capable of doing. Agree! But truth be told, some days it's freaking HARD. Sometimes, it's a struggle. Often times it can be uncomfortable. And anyone who says otherwise is lying. Period.
No secret here...I love training at the gym. I get off on intensity, heavy lifting and pushing my body, but by no means is it easy or always 'fun'. It's a struggle at times. It's often uncomfortable. And it ain't always pretty.
The Spectrum - Choose your Hard
Make a choice.
Choose your hard.
Look at the spectrum of choice. One one end, struggling through simple daily movements. On the other end, some discomfort and sacrifice in the gym.
You choose.
You decide.
You own your fitness or lack thereof..
Whether it's in the midst of the January 'hoopla', dragging your butt through February winter blues or hitting the hot lazy days of summer and sangria.
This is not a 'new year' thing... and it's a lifestyle-lifetime thing.
Your body is merely a sum of the choices you make.
