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What's Your Excuse?

2010-12-27T21:09:00Z

Wow - been 50 days since I last posted a blog on my "continuous commitment to health and wellness". In the past 50 days, I've exercised over 50 hours. So, that includes rest days and the fact that some of my workouts have been greater than 1 hour and some of them have been less than 1 hour. In the past 50 days, I've managed to eat and drink in moderation over Thanksgiving and Christmas. In the past 50 days I've struggled with getting up while it's still dark outside and finding the energy to stay committed when all the forces of nature tell me to eat and hibernate.

New Year 2011 arrives in less than 1 week. It's typically the time of Resolutions, Starting Fresh, Turning Over a New Leaf. It's also typical to slip into old patterns as of February 12th, 2011 (6 weeks later).

So, instead of New Year's Resolutions, let's talk about New Year's Excuses. I'm serious. What are the reasons why you stop that new exercise routine, stop eating well, start smoking again? If you can plan for the barriers before they arrive, you are much more likely to move beyond them and stay on track.

Here are some common reasons/excuses for quitting that commitment to healthier living:

1. I'm not seeing results fast enough

2. I can't find the time

3. I'm bored

4. I'm no good at this

5. It's too hard

Let's tackle these 1 by 1.

1. I'm not seeing results fast enough - yes, true and very true. You won't see results as fast as you would like if your expectations are inappropriate. This is probably the number one reason I hear for why people quit their New Year's Resolution. So, what's "inappropriate"? Well, losing weight quickly (more than 1.5 lbs/week) is one example of inappropriate. Instead, shift the focus away from the end result and instead focus on small, achievable endpoints like "I feel great after getting my workout in for the day."

2. I can't find the time - hmmm, no, you choose not to make the time to exercise or prepare healthy meals. Sorry, I don't budge on this one. It's a matter of priority. Think about all those small moments every day that you're doing nothing at all. All of those small moments add up to at least 30 minutes if not more. That' s more than enough time to exercise, or get to the grocery store or prepare a healthy meal.

3. I'm bored - ok, fair enough. Change things up often. Both in the exercise and food categories.

4. I'm no good at this - poppycock. Who said you had to be an expert? Everyone can break a sweat by walking fast. Pick something you know you can do and do it. Don't take up fencing if you hate fencing.

5. It's too hard - well, yes, it is. Change is hard. If you stick with change, it eventually becomes less hard. Notice, I didn't say easy. You know, I believe most of us are hedonists. That is to say, our natural tendencies are to find comfort and stay there. That is the path of least resistance. I'm I suggesting becoming some sort of Puritan? Hell no. Just find the middle ground and that's not easy to do. But, it's worth it.

So, what's your excuse(s)? No, really - I want to know. Post them here for all to read and I'll bet you'll help someone not feel so alone in the struggle to commit to health and wellness.

peace out,

leah

It's been awhile

2010-11-08T01:04:00Z

Wow - I'm sooooo sorry that I haven't blogged! It's been exactly 2 months since I last wrote of my continuous commitment to health and wellness. I last wrote of being your own guru.

Since then, lots has happened. Still very committed - why stop now? I've been doing this ever since I was in my early 20s. But, things have tried to derail me. About 1 month ago, got a 2 week upper respiratory virus. Ugh. Had to take time off. You know, it's those moments that often derail us from our continuous commitment. We get sick, we travel, we get injured and our routine gets interrupted. Even though we recover from the illness, the injury gets better or we are home from our travels, we tend to not return to our fitness/healthy eating patterns. Why is that?

Here's what I often hear people say. "It's so hard to start again. Feels like I'm starting over." That statement is interesting to me. I rarely think of starting anything over again. If I've stopped doing something for a bit and then start up again, I don't start where I've left off. I start where I am. In other words, I don't compare today to yesterday or last week or 1 month ago. I guess that's a bit of a Buddhist approach. Whatever you name it, I like it.

The beauty of this way of thinking is that the current moment is the most important moment. And, I love coming back to fitness or eating well after I've been derailed. I come back with a sense of gratitude. Wow, I can do this! I'm no longer sick or injured or whatever took me off the path for a bit. I don't come back thinking, "Wow, I suck. I'm so out of shape. Why even try eating well because it all goes away so fast."

The moral of the story. You'll get derailed. Plan for it. Think about your comeback and how sweet it is.

Keep up your commitment. It matters.

Be your own guru

2010-09-07T16:54:00Z

I've been thinking. Thinking about those things that keep me motivated to pursue my own health and wellness. Hell, that's why I'm blogging, right? It's been my hope that you can see through my blogging that I'm no Wizard of Oz. What's behind my curtain is no different than what's behind your curtain.

I'm not your Guru. You are.

That's right. Give up the guru. You have the know how, the wisdom, the ability to make change in your life. I've said all along that this commitment is not easy. It takes getting up every day and recommitting to making it happen. Thinking about each moment as an opportunity to make a better choice towards your investment in self. It's about choice. And, choice is about taking responsibility to know yourself well enough to better understand what motivates you to choose A or B.

That bears repeating. Take responsibility to know yourself: what drives you, what motivates you. This knowledge is the key to unlock your barriers. Not some special program, not some guru.

So, maybe spend less time looking outside of yourself for the solution and spend more time looking inside of yourself.

And, go ahead and do something that makes you sweat today and eat something that is recognizably from nature.

keep up the commitment.....

leah

Get inspired

2010-08-31T20:16:00Z

It's been almost 3 weeks since I last blogged about my commitment to health and wellness. Oh, don't worry, I'm still committed. But, I seem less committed to blogging. Sorry about that.

Lately, I've been thinking about what inspires me to stay on this path. It's not the elite athlete. Don't get me wrong. I'm in awe of their talent and hard-work. But, what's more inspiring to me is watching people overcome. And, by overcome, I don't mean it has been be huge barriers to be considered inspiring. I'm inspired by the elderly woman who despite her age, I see walking on the bike path. I'm inspired by the middle-age man who despite his addiction to cigarettes, decides to take up cycling. I'm inspired by the woman, who despite living with cancer, continues her commitment to training for a 5K.

I don't have any of these barriers. Age is not a barrier, addiction is not a barrier and illness is not a barrier. I have it easy. My health is not to be taken for granted. Why would I waste this precious time I have being healthy and not continuing to enjoy the fruits of my fortune. If those around me who overcome in the face of their barriers, then I can continue to commitment to my daily investment in health and wellness. So when every I don't feel like taking that first step off of the couch and out the door, I think of them and get inspired.

And, if my words didn't inspire you, then check out the like I've posted the the website for "Athlete the Movie". It will do the trick.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqgpxmO_upQ />
Keep on, keeping on,

leah

Tolerate the discomfort

2010-08-12T19:47:00Z

What does learning to tolerate discomfort have to do with a continuous commitment to health and wellness? Well, it's a little tricky. I'm not asking for you to recalibrate your pain threshold. What I am asking of you is to check in with your ability to hang in there when something doesn't feel very good - physically or emotionally. Be honest with yourself - do you tend to avoid doing things that create discomfort? If so, it must be hard to commit to a healthy lifestyle over the long haul.

Come on - fitness is not always fun - actually, many, many times it's not fun at all until it's done. It kinda hurts: muscles burning, lungs burning, hard to breath, sweat in eyes, etc.

Making healthy food choices is also not always the most comfortable experience. Since our bodies are hard-wired to crave sugar, fat and salt we learn to work with these cravings and not follow their every whim.

What would happen if we avoided feeling uncomfortable? We would most likely follow the path of least resistance in both fitness choices and food choices. For example - drive cars instead of walking, riding bikes; take elevators/escalators instead of stairs; have our shopping delivered to our doors via internet; grocery shopping instead of growing our own food; eating prepared foods or convenience foods instead of preparing meals and on and on and on.

So, the next time you have the opportunity to feel a little or a lot uncomfortable in the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle, do it. Take the road less traveled, the path of more resistance not least. It may hurt a little more, but it will be worth it.

Erase the word "lazy" from your vocabulary

2010-08-04T20:40:00Z

"Lazy" from wiktionary:

an Adjective

lazy (comparative lazier, superlative laziest)

Unwilling to do work or make an effort.

Get out of bed, you lazy lout!
Requiring little or no effort.

lazy port
Relaxed or leisurely.

I love staying inside and reading on a lazy Sunday.
(optometry) Of an eye, squinting because of a weakness of the eye muscles.
(cattle brands) Turned so that the letter is horizontal instead of vertical.

[edit] Synonyms

(unwilling to work): bone-idle, idle, indolent, slothful, work-shy

It's a pet peeve of mine to hear people say they are "lazy". "I'm just lazy, I guess." They refer to it like it's some "condition". As if it's not their fault they are lazy. And, better yet, now that I've posted the definition above, it appears they are not truly understanding the definition of the word. I'm going with definition number 1: "unwilling to do work or make an effort." How do you interpret this? Me? I take it at face value. It means UNWILLING TO WORK OR MAKE AN EFFORT. It would be powerful if that's what we said every time we wanted to use the word lazy. Say it for what it is - unwilling to work or make an effort.

Ok, ok, why am I harping on this point? Because it's so blindly obvious. The definition of lazy is all about taking responsibility for avoiding work. And, the work I'm speaking of is the work of committing to health and fitness each and every day. Lazy is being UNWILLING TO WORK. So, the deeper set of questions try to get to what's behind the unwillingness. What are the reasons?

The theme of this blog is all about commitment - working each and every day to make healthy choices. Sometimes it feels like a lot of work and sometimes it feels like a little work, but it is work. I've opened up a little of my private life in hopes it might help others see that even some one like me, a "Health Professional, A Nutritionist, A Fitness Instructor" works at this daily commitment.

Thoughts?

Keep on keeping on.

It doesn't get any easier, it just gets a little less hard.

2010-07-29T22:00:00Z

Something dawned on me earlier this week while I was facilitating a group meeting to discuss committing to living a healthy lifestyle. Someone asked if this commitment to making healthy choices in food and fitness ever gets easy. And, that's when it dawned on me. "No", I replied. It just starts to feel a little less hard. And, some days it's just back to hard.

So, why do I even mention what appears to be semantics in word choice? Because, I'm thinking if we approach this commitment to lifestyle change with some sort of expectation that it will eventual get easy to do, we most certainly will feel let down, get frustrated, and throw in the towel. Instead, if you go into this lifestyle with the understanding that every day brings new challenges and detours to making the healthy choices in food and fitness, when the apparent road block appears you will have the patience to figure out how to go around it.

Some days present fewer road blocks than other days.

I often hear people describe their days as "good" or "bad". I ask them to please define. A "good" day includes exercising and eating small amounts of food throughout the day in meals and snacks which consist of healthy choices. A "bad" day is anything that deviates from a "good" day. And, the real issue is that a "bad" day or even a "bad" moment in a day often derails them. And, I mean really derails them. This is what it called in the biz as "black and white" thinking or "all or none". So, you eat the chocolate chip cookie. So? How does that make the day all of a sudden a "bad" day. And, better yet, why does eating the chocolate chip cookie become the reason you stop working on this whole lifestyle change all together?

Remember, if you really approach living a healthful life over the long haul, build into the process chocolate chip cookies. You get me drift. It doesn't ever get easy. It just gets a little less hard.....on some days.

Keep on keeping on....

Excuses, excuses

2010-07-21T21:21:00Z

Excuses, excuses.....I hear them a lot. I'm growing kinda weary of them. It's like there is an overpopulation problem with excuses. Let's commit to not making any more excuses about the reasons we don't exercise regularly or don't eat well or don't get enough sleep or don't manage our stress better. Instead, let's acknowledge the choices we make each day and learn to accept and commit to practice the change we want to see.

Easily said, huh? Much harder to do, I know. Here's the thing. What's the alternative? Stay stuck in the excuse trap or find the courage to accept factors, circumstances or whatever you can't change. Once that's done, focus on what you can change. Example? As far as I know, no one has yet to stop the aging process. Can't hide from aging. We all do it. Funny though how much energy we put towards slowing it or even trying to reverse it. And, it's those types of "we are desperate to change" areas in our lives that make us vulnerable to snake-oil peddlers (as I like to refer to them as). You know, dieting programs, books, pills, promises. Anti-wrinkle creams. Supplements promising better performance on the bike or in bed for that matter. Ugh. So sad.

So, what can you change in your life each and every day? Pick something - and preferably only 1 thing (it's easier to focus on 1 thing). Is it making sure you get to the grocery store so you have the healthy options to make a healthy dinner to bring a healthy lunch to work? Is it blocking out time to exercise? Is it getting to bed at a reasonable hour to ensure enough sleep? Is it taking at least 5 minutes to close your eyes and breath?

When you break it down, it doesn't seem all that impossible does it?

So, come on....stop making excuses and start making progress ...... every day.

Happy to be back in the groove

2010-07-14T22:00:00Z

Whew -

I'm back from my week of travel - literally driving across the country twice in 7 days. That's 3,600 miles in a car, on my butt, on the interstate with miles and miles of McDonald's, Arby's, Burger King and the occasional Subway to choose from. Oh, and Dairy Queen. It was an eye-opening experience to say the least. Yeah, yeah, yeah....the obesity epidemic is running rampant.....I now have a much greater appreciation of the reasons for the phenomenon. Very little obviously healthy choices on the road. It took a lot of extra planning - more than I currently do - to ensure that I had healthy choices on this trip. And, if you read my earlier blog about my fitness challenge, you know how tough that was.

This experience tested my commitment to health and wellness. The path of least resistance would have been to eat crap and not exercise the entire week. And, believe me, there were numerous times I wanted to travel down that path. Now, I certainly did not eat as well as I usually do when I'm home, nor did I exercise like I usually do. However, I did commit to try my best to maintain some sort of normalcy. Packed a cooler of food and had to restock frequently....it took 2.5 days to get there and 4 days to get back. This cooler of food represented investing in my nutritional sanity (is there such a thing?). So, no matter where I was on I-80 or I-70 or I-64, I could eat some fruit, some veggies, a yogurt, a home-made sandwich...you get my drift. I packed nuts, crackers, energy bars. I had choices.....it felt good. It took time and forethought. It was hard to make it happen. It was worth it.

Exercise was a bit harder to figure out.....it made packing a cooler look easy. I mentioned in my earlier blog that it was 103 degrees with 105 heat index on the east coast (my ultimate destination). No exercise allowed outside. Besides, I was mostly in the car, somewhere on my journey across the country. Driving days ranged from 10-18 hours at a time. Does it sound like I'm making excuses? Because I am. So, I stopped making excuses and exercised instead. That took getting up extraordinarily early some days to squeeze it in before getting in the car. No matter how bad the hotel fitness facility appeared to be, I found a way to use my own body to get my heart rate up, strength train and break a sweat. None of it was ideal. The exercise bouts were short, cumbersome, uncomfortable, etc. But, hey, something is ALWAYS better than nothing.

This entire time, I kept telling myself that it's only a week and that's doable. Quit whining. You're lucky to have the capability to do what you do. Who cares if it's not easy to figure out....figure it out!

And, what I want to report from this whole epic journey is that it solidified for me how important it is to stop, think, plan, and execute those daily wellness tasks. Don't think/assume it's going to magically happen. Or, you'll do it when you find time....that goes for both eating healthfully and exercising. None of it is easy. But, it's worth it.

Keep on, keeping on.

Figure out how to "Just Do It"

2010-07-07T20:51:00Z

I'm on the road and haven't kept up with my Blog about daily commitment to fitness. But, I have kept up with my daily commitment to fitness! Not easily, though.

This blurry photo is me "pumping" iron at the Quantico Marine Basic School. Sorry, no photos of marines. Gotta trust me on this one. I'm lifting weights instead of doing Sports Yoga because I was already creating a "stir" by being in this marines-only gym and really didn't want to draw any more attention to myself than I already had. But, believe me, I soooo wanted to drop down and do a few planks, upward dogs and Warrior Ones......

What's my point in blogging about this? Well, it's about the whole daily commitment thing. Where there is a will, there is a way. It's 103 degrees here with a heat-index of over 105 degrees and there is a severe heat advisory posted. What does that mean? Don't go outside unless you have to. I'm staying in a hotel with no fitness facility. No outdoor anything is possible. So, before I resorted to running the halls of this Holiday Inn, my brother (who works at the marine base) was able to get me in his gym.

Now, if that had not been an option. I would have run the halls of the Holiday Inn, done some push-ups, dips, sit-ups, planks, Sports Yoga in my room. Why? Where there is a will, there is a way. Why do I have the will? Because, I know that taking care of myself is not about whether or not it's convenient to do so. It's necessary - it's a priority.

Think about it. What's more important than self-care?

So, for those of you who travel a lot, who have kids with many demands, who have a life with many demands - I challenge you to find time, to make time to take care of you first. Find the will and there is a way.

Stay-tuned. I promise to keep up on my blog as I travel back from Virginia to Colorado....I may yet be running the stairs at my next hotel.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

2010-06-22T11:19:00Z

Well, it's been about a week since I last blogged (still getting used to blogging and saying the word "blogging"). If you were wondering...I didn't stop my "daily commitment to health and wellness"....I just went a little quiet on the "blog front".

During this past week, I found myself growing frustrated with my perceived limits. See how I used the word "limits"? They are my perception. Anyway, maybe because it's summer, the days are longer, the weather is awesome, I've been burning both ends of the fitness candle and I'm getting a little burned in the process. Too much exercise and not enough rest not only makes a bad combination but also a frustrating experience. And, on top of that, I started to dread the things I normally love doing. Now if that wasn't a warning sign to back off, then I'm not sure what is.

My remedy? Back off. And, have some fun with fitness. This fun factor has turned out to be the key ingredient for my "dread". At become fit, we've started the b'fit Sports and Social club or b'fit SSC for short. The focus is on the Social. This "club" has given me the opportunity to participate in some sort of fitness activity, with others while having FUN! Run Club, Hike Club, Group Ride and coming this Thursday, Kickball! Laughing with others has turned out to be the perfect antidote to my fitness burn-out.

Now, you may be wondering (or not) whether or not I'm having FUN teaching Spinning and Sports Yoga at become fit? Yes, I am and I'm passionate about it. And, I'm "in charge" and with that comes a certain level of responsibility and "being on" when I'm in front of the class. And, when I take class, I also have fun (with a little "f"). But, what I've realized this past week is that I can allow myself to have FUN (big "F", big "U", big "N")! I think it took giving myself permission in the b'fit SSC to laugh and play while becoming fit. I'm now going to do these 2 things much more often when I'm taking become fit classes.....I don't need to be "in charge" when I'm in class.

So, next time you are dreading exercise or are even in the middle of exercise and asking yourself, "am I having fun, yet?" Recognize the warning signs of burn-out. Look at your rest/recovery days - do you have any? And, ask yourself, "when is the last time I laughed or at least giggled a little while becoming fit?" If the answer turns out to be "a very long time" or "I don't remember", it's time to do something about it.

Remember when you were a kid and there was this thing called "recess"? Remember being told by your parents to go outside and play? Remember the games you played....like "tag"? I don't think I considered that exercise when I was 8 years old. It was called "playing" and having FUN!

It's time to reclaim RECESS. Have some fun today while you become fit.....I know I will.

Be patient - it's worth the wait

2010-06-15T16:50:00Z

Do you ever find yourself impatient on your journey of health and fitness? Kind of like taking a road trip, and somewhere in the middle of Kansas you're asking "are we there yet?". You know - you have those moments when you swear you've been working out consistently, eating well, really focused and you catch a glimpse in the mirror and "darn-it-all" (or whatever version you might choose to say), your butt doesn't look any smaller (or bigger).

Ah, the fitness road trip is a lot like driving across Nebraska or Kansas (sorry to all those natives of these really beautiful states, nothing personal).

So, what happens when you don't notice those changes fast enough (or in my case, anymore)? Do you get bored? Lose focus? Drop out? All of the above?

Waiting for some endpoint is a bit of a slippery slope....what happens if you don't get there or you get there and it's not what you expected? Instead of going through the motions or hating every moment of the experience or distracting yourself so much just to get through it - notice all of it - be in the moment.

I've had many moments when I didn't want to be in that moment - mile 20 in a marathon, 20 mph headwinds up a mountain pass, driving across Nebraska. However, when you stay with it, face it, experience it - the rewards are rich. Mile 20 in the Chicago Marathon and I was struggling I wanted it over with - just then I saw a young woman running with her friend. I heard her say, "Come on - we can do this." She grabbed her hand and they continued on their way. Honestly, I remember that moment more vividly than the memory of crossing the finish line.

Next time you are feeling impatient, bored, distracted with your fitness...try coming back into the moment and notice....it will be worth it.

Take the bad with the good

2010-06-11T19:34:00Z

Ever have one of those training sessions that you just felt like hell? You know, the ones where you can't catch your breath, your legs feel like you are dragging them through wet cement and your stomach is not happy. Well, if you are committed to fitness for a lifetime, you have had at least one of these workouts (most likely many) and you will have more - that's a guarantee.

It's not the "I feel great" training sessions that I want to talk about today. It's the "wow, I feel like crap" workouts. Why? Because these experiences often derail our efforts to stay committed to our fitness plan. They leave a bad taste in our mouths, don't they? Why would we want to feel that again and any time soon? One bad day is just that - one bad day. Not training, not exercising, not working out to avoid the "it might hurt" feeling will give you immediate gratification of not hurting. But what are the other consequences? Most likely poor health outcomes - both physical and mental - maybe not today, but certainly in the future.

So, the next time you have one of those "bad" days, take it for what it is - one day in your lifetime of taking care of yourself. Don't let it derail you from your investment in self and in health. Tomorrow will be different - that is for sure......

Training for life?

2010-06-10T16:38:00Z

Here's a photo of Jessi and I running the Colorado Half-Marathon. We started training in January. I've been a "runner" since I was 21. So, I guess you can say I started training back then. The race was on Mother's Day. I didn't stop running after the race. I still run. What's my point?

I often get asked about what it means to exercise or work-out for a lifetime. Sounds daunting, huh? Well, it is if you think of it as a lifetime. It's not if you consider fitness as just part of your daily life.

In other words....exercise/working out/or whatever you like to call it is much more likely to stick when you do it for the sake of doing it....not so much for some sort of end point. I often see people start an exercise program in order to lose weight or tone-up. Good reasons. But, what happens when you achieve that end-point, or even don't achieve that end-point? Do you stop exercising? This is often the case because exercise was a means to the end and if the end was met or not met (either way), then there is no more need to exercise.

Instead, exercise because it is fun, feel goods, a social outlet, improves your confidence....you get my drift.

It starts with last night

2010-06-09T17:03:00Z

Yep -

planning your next day's fitness, starts with thinking about it the night before. One might argue that it starts way before the night before and that would be true of elite/professional athletes who have their training planned for the entire year/season of their sport(s).

But, for the rest of us normal folk, the time line doesn't have to be that long. Whew.

However, if you don't think ahead at least a little, chances are your date with exercise won't happen.

Yesterday, I felt tired. So, imagine thinking about exercising the next day when you are already feeling tired. What to do? Tell yourself you are tired in the moment and the moment passes...shouldn't stop you from planning tomorrow because tomorrow will be different. You can always reassess when that moment arrives.

Today's plan that I made last night. Get up early...short run.....group ride at 6:15pm....I will bookend my day with exercise. Nice way to start the day and great way to end it.

And you?

I'm tired today.

2010-06-08T21:10:00Z

With the good comes the struggle...I'm tired today....

Some hard training yesterday - my body and mind are feeling it.

Getting ready for a little boot camp tonight. Just thinking of it brings on feelings of dread. So, time to adjust any expectations I may have going into it. Like, "oh, it won't hurt that badly today." to "I'll do the best I can because something is better than nothing today." I figure my choices are: 1. go after it as if I had all the energy in the world, 2. skip it entirely or 3. do whatever I can and respect that I'm tired today.

I'll go with choice number 3.

That's how I am able to keep with it....adjust, flex, go with the flow....

And, after boot camp, Sports Yoga!!! Now THAT I'm looking forward to....although I'll still be tired, it's a more gentle training session than boot camp. And, even though this body of mine is all about finding new edges and limits sometimes, it's also about respecting those limits at other times.

I think that's called BALANCE.

Stay-tuned....I'll keep you in my loop,

ciao.

The Continuous Commitment to become fit

2010-06-07T16:46:00Z

Ok - this is it - I'm going to open up the fitness/wellness chapter of my life for all to read. If you know me, you know I'm intensely private about most things. I've decided to blog about this because maybe, just maybe, it will inspire others to do whatever it takes to prioritize their health.

The backstory: I wasn't born fit.

Yes, my parents exposed me to lots of sports and I tried most of what they tossed my way. Early on - (age 7) figure skating - til age 13. High school - gymnastics, a little running....I was average at best. High school were my lost years - I'll leave that to your interpretation.

Once in college at UW-Madison, I rediscovered exercise and relieved it was no longer competitive. I started running again. Started very slow and short. My running mentor was a super chill guy 40 years my senior. He taught me the secret of staying relaxed and finding my stride, my breath. We went on these runs that were so meditative along the shores of Lake Mendota, out to Picnic Point, through the woods. I fell in love.

About that time, a woman I worked with in the Nutrition Lab (by this time I'm in grad school) introduced me to road biking. My very first bike was a pink Fuji. She would take me on these lovely rides around Verona, WI.

And, this was the time in my life that I first started teaching fitness classes at a small exercise studio in Madison called the Exercise Studio. It was the 80s and high-impact, step aerobics was all the rage. I'd post a photo of my in a thong if I could find one. Working with all types of people, sharing my enthusiasm, watching them become fit....again, I fell in love.

So, I'm in my early 20s, going to Grad School and finding my confidence through exercise. That's right. That's where I felt the most grounded. It was a certain thing in my life. Something I could count on. I always felt better about myself after some sort of sweat fest. That doesn't mean I always felt good during it. That's not the point. I realized that this was time spent just for me, on me, an investment. It became my solace.

Bad day in the lab? Go for a ride...the day just got better. Broke up with my boyfriend? Long run....by the end I had it all figured out.

So you see...I didn't start exercising to lose weight, get toned, look better than the next person. I started exercising because I felt better physically and emotionally as a result of doing it.

This is why it has stuck - I'm now almost 44 years old....yes old. I'm a lot slower than I used to be and it takes me longer to recover from some of the crazy stuff I still attempt to do...but, I still do it and I still feel better.

Today? I got up early - very early - got on my bike - went for a 20 miler, watched the sun rise, smelled the rich, thick scents that come with early summer. I feel better.

And you?

Stay-tuned......

Keep on keeping on....become fit.

Hiking with the b'fit hiking group

2010-06-04T22:34:00Z

We are sooo excited that Sheryl has created our new summer hiking program. It's a series of 6 hikes followed by the 7th hike to summit Torrey's and Gray's on August 22nd! First hike is on Sunday, June 13th - meet at become fit at 7:00.

Let's start talking about some of our favorite hiking experiences here. Also a great opportunity to ask Sheryl questions about the upcoming hikes.

Your Favorite Music to Sweat to

2010-04-28T03:51:00Z

Hey Gang! Here is a blog set up for all of you who enjoy the music you hear at become fit. This is a place for instructors to post playlists and for you to make recommendations! Let's have fun with it!

March Madness at become fit! What's your most inspiring become fit experience?

2010-03-01T18:29:00Z

We want you to share with the world your most inspiring become fit experience! Why? Because, you will inspire others to become fit and it's such a great virus to spread!

And, if we vote your story the most inspirational (must be true by the way), you will win 2 FREE Dinners at El Monte Lounge and Grille!!

Come on and shout it out!!!