finding the right speed

I have discovered WHY I want to exercise.

I have brainstormed WHAT to do for exercise.

Answering those foundation questions of why and what are extremely important to making exercise a healthy lifestyle habit, now HOW do I actually get out there and just do it? 

Here are a few things I am going to do.

I word it this way because I have recently been convicted of sounding like some know-it-all in my writing style, when in fact I know very little about health which is why I have dedicated this 2014 year to learn.  I am sorry if it has sounded that way.  If anything, I know a lot of things not to do.  Now that I have started learning, I find myself more aware than ever before of how truly little I know.

1. accept where I am and make a commitment to start there

It would be awesome if I could start my workout plan being in great shape, but that is never how it works.  And yes I did work out at the gym for a few months, but I would say that was to help postpartum body recovery and now I am finally starting at ground 0.  So I am out of shape, and that is ok.  I will start there.

2. make a SMART goal

SMART stands for Specific-Measureable-Attainable-Realistic-Timely.  Each element is important in having a goal that will produce fruit.  While my desire to walk 3 times a week is a good one, I need a little something more to motivate me in this new habit.   If the weather has been bad or the evening has gotten away from me, it has been easy to skip a walk because there has been really nothing to lose.   While my goal was specific and measurable, it was not attainable because it is ambiguous.  Walk for 30 minute 3x a week for how long?  Until when?  Forever?

3. create or find a plan

There is no need to reinvent the wheel here.  Through Google, Pinterest, Facebook, and dozens of other websites, I am sure I have never even heard of, there are oodles of pre-made exercise plans that are manageable and easy to follow. And now with smart phones it can even be easier because just in my basic search I found multiple apps that will guide you through any form of an exercise program step by step.

I like plans because that is how I am wired, and a plan does not allow for the excuse, "I don't know what to do."  Plans also provide an end mark which is important when just starting to create a new habit.  I am much less likely to give up if I know when this plan will end, and hopefully by the time I have reached the end of that specific plan I enjoy the fruit of exercise so much that I will find another way to continue.

4. protect myself with accountability

There will be times when I am tempted to throw in the towel, and for those moments, it is essntial to have accountabilty in place.   During my months at the gym, having paid for a membership was awesome accountability and motivation.  For this walking/jogging goal, my husband will be my main source of accountability, but I will also ask a few friends to check in on my progress and join me in my plan.

5. day by day

Once all of these are in place, the only way to create a new habit and make something happen is to put one foot in front of the other and take it one day at a time.

In light of these steps, I made a plan to walk, jog, and/or run a 5k at the end of the school year.  To avoid registration costs and the masses, I found a neat app, picked a date and local route, texted some friends and family inviting others to join me, and am going to do it.

A few reminders for myself.  These are the kinds of things I post on the bathroom mirror.

Be gracious with myself.  My dear mentor taught me to say "most of the time."  I follow my work out plan "most of the time."  This is important because it allows me to be human, to be tired, to have had a long day, to have unexpected situations come up, to skip a work-out, and to still get up and continue the next day without feeling like I have ruined the entire plan.  Because I am somewhat intense, I am naturally an "all or nothing" kind of girl."  I am learning to give myself grace.

Set a good pace.  The R in SMART goals stands for realistic, and I remind myself that I have to start with something that is possible and maybe even a little too easy at the beginning.  This plan I found is called "couch potato to 5k."  Am I a couch potato?  No.  But I wanted to start at a point in which I would be successful so that I would not give up on day 2 of my new plan because it was just too much.  In hopes of setting a good pace for myself, I chose a plan in which I could be successful in order to help me create this habit.

Pacing just might by the key to implementing exercise into my life in a way that can actually work and actually produce the kind of fruit I am looking for.  Pacing is a skill of health and something I am learning about not just in exercise, but also in life.  

I am looking for the right speed of life.  

While working full-time, editing a book, posting on this blog, exercising consistently, keeping up with housework, and attempting to enjoy the few and precious moments I have with Eden and my husband, finding the right speed has been a challenge and is something I am very much at the beginning of learning about.  It is awesome to have all of these healthy habits, but not if there is no time to enjoy the fruit.

In my pursuit of health, I am searching for the unforced rhythms of a balanced life as I prioritize, make choices about what is worth my time and energy, and enjoy my family during every free moment I can find!