Thursday, September 2, 2010

Rediscovering Me -- Do Something for YOU, Feel Good About Yourself

Wow! So, today I am proud of myself. I left with the kids this morning on our daily walk to school (1 mile there and 1 mile back) and said to myself, "Today I'll skip on my attempts at jogging because my knee is sore for no reason."

We packed up our lunches, grabbed backpacks and were off. As with every morning, we had conversations about everything from their favorite video game, to their homework to "why can't we wear flip flops again?" I enjoy this time and it's a great way for me to ensure that they get some sort of physical activity every day. Their reward for doing so comes in the form of dessert without having to hop on the treadmill.

Anyway, as I watched them cross the walk to the school and then turned around to head back, I noticed that my knee wasn't really twinging anymore. "Nah . . .I should be safe and just stick to walking today," I thought.

Quick background: Back in April (about 4 months ago) I went on Nutrisystem and after two months, lost 23 lbs!!! So, feeling healthy again is pretty new and very important. I have to say, it doesn't hurt when your husband tells you several time daily that "You're looking hot, babe." Seriously, he SAYS that!

That's a long way from where I was before I decided it was time to make a change. I know we all do it. Especially as a parent, between work, kids, house chores, volunteering and just life itself, you forget about "you." And, before you know it, you have no time to yourself, no time to think about eating or what you should eat -- it's just about grabbing something between point A and point B. Before you know it, you're snoozing in bed and have trouble remembering how you got there. So, I had that "Aha! moment" that you always hear about and I'm still working on it now.

So, back to my story. After walking the kids and while listening to Nickelback on my mp3, I got to the park. This is where I usually kick into one of my tiny blips of jogging inspiration. I thought, "Should I?"

I did . .thinking that it would just be a quick burst and that would be enough. And then I got to the spot where I planned on exiting and stopping and there was a man there with his dog. So, I made a quick change and went further into the park, still jogging and then, before I knew it, I was still jogging and I wasn't gasping for air or thinking about the second that I would stop. And, I kept jogging right across the street and for another long stretch.

OK OK OK . . .I know this probably isn't that impressive for many of the athletic people out there. For the record, this is coming from someone who has never been big on athletics, at least on land (I did Swim Team as a kid for many years). But, anyway, when I did stop. Man, I just felt SO good, so proud of myself. I'm old now and wow . .I may be getting in shape. I LOVE it!

So, there it is. I know it's a small thing, and yet it isn't. It made me smile and feel good about myself. And you know what? That really does matter.

Morale of the day: Get out there and inspire yourself (but don't hurt yourself doing it). Do something for YOU!

Have a great one!!

No comments:

Post a Comment