Gym Doppelganger: The Best Workout EVER!
Photo Credit: CreateHerStock
I started back at the gym this week and I went 4 times. On Day 1 I was like, OK it was winter when I last did any real weight training so take it slooow. I remember times I tried to come at it too hard and was so sore I had to scoot up the stairs backward for days. And I couldn’t get my sports bra over my head because my arms were like noodles. No, not this time. I’m too smart for the ole okey-doke!
Day 2 Still stoked. I hit some different machines to let those Day 1 muscles recover and whatnot like it says in all those shiny health magazines. I don’t work out the next day but I felt just enough soreness to remind me that I’ve been putting in work. Yesss!!
Day 3 Suddenly I don’t even feel like working out already. Come ON! How will I ever make this a habit? But once at the gym, I hit a new machine and I’m back. Feeling so good I decide to go where all the serious athletes are and get my free-weights on. Why did I do that?...
There’s a 19 year-old doing reverse jump-squat-lunges all in one motion. I didn’t even know that was a thing. Her shorts were like tiny panties like women track stars wear and her legs were ahhmaaazing. I would get shorts like that but the friction from my thighs rubbing together causes a caustic situation. Moving on…
On Day 4 I get back to some basics. Ab work and pushups. I used to do 40 straight up military pushups. I pushed up but couldn’t go back down very far without flopping to the floor. So in my mind my pushups were mini-pulses. Apparently these pulses were imperceptible to the naked eye I was just holding myself up in the plank position. Dammit how did I let myself go?
I could be embarrassed, and give up. After all, I just want to take the stairs without getting winded. Bring in my own Amazon packages, and retrieve the keys I dropped without devising a 3-point plan around whether to bend or squat.
Too often in life we’d rather quit than fail. But there is no failure. There’s only a story that hasn’t finished. Obstacles to overcome. In God, victory is guaranteed. Yes. I said it, and I mean it. But it does take constant reminders. So with a little awareness called upon from years of mindfulness practice I call forth the positive, the way the universe intends.
So hey! I’m okay. Didn’t I just run my second half-marathon this year through sciatica and foot nerve pain? Come ON, TONYA! Cut yourself some slack. At this point in my life I’m doing fantastic all things considered. And you are too because we are all just doing the best we can with what we have.
I invite you to also start your new workout routine today with a daily mindfulness practice to strengthen those positivity muscles. The goal here isn’t pushups. The goal is to cultivate the awareness to always bring yourself back to a space of kindness (especially when you’re spiraling). And to treat yourself like you would your own best friend or a welcome guest. Because you are. Now go get ‘er done. This is the best workout…EVER!
UGottaEat…So Eat Mindfully