I read this statement the other day and it stuck with me…. How does exercise make me feel?
At first glance most of you are probably thinking sweaty, tired, achy some may even say painful and that’s what I was thinking at first too. But then I really thought about it….
How I feel, an hour or so after, and I came up with energized, strong, happy, satisfied, good about myself, empowered, like I can do anything.
And isn’t that really the reason why we exercise? To feel all those things? Sometimes I think people stop exercising because they don’t feel these things immediately and they only focus on those initial feelings of exercise. But you have to look beyond those initial feelings, which is hard at times but so worth it in the end!
Now don’t get me wrong when I first started exercising it was hard not to get discouraged and give up. At times I felt like I was going to die! But I kept at it. Slowly I changed my mindset and began to focus on the positive feelings. And now I feel worse when I don’t get a workout in.
Isn’t life all about stepping out of your comfort zone to grow and learn. I know it’s hard to get up at 5 am and exercise, or come home from a hard, long day of work and go exercise, or drop the kids off at school and go exercise when the beds are still unmade and the dirty dishes in the sink but that time you take for yourself is so worth it. Taking the time for yourself makes you a better person: a better wife/husband, parent, friend, and/or coworker.
So at those times when you are struggling focus on how exercise REALLY makes you feel!

Melissa