We, and hopefully you, have planted the seeds of exercise and nutrition but now need to nourish them. What could be better to keep them growing than a dose of fun. How to best incorporate fun into our fitness is a question I have been pondering this week. Here are my thoughts.
1. Find a partner. Dean and I are fortunate to have each other to exercise with on weekends and to encourage one another when needed.
2. Join a group. Social support is key. Surround yourself with supportive people. We have joined a Saturday morning running group sponsored by our local running store and a neighborhood market. All ages and levels of ability are welcomed. Everyone is friendly, plus afterwards breakfast and coffee are available there at the market.
3. Set short and long term goals (kedges). We have signed up for a 10K run for the end of September which winds through the 3 major sports venues in town. It sounds really fun and not at all competitive.
4. Reward yourself. After attending 10 sessions of our running group, we get a free running group tee-shirt. Who could ever have enough free tee-shirts? Am I right? It gets me there. Find a reward that inspires you.
5. Enjoy cooking. I do...on occasion. It is an inventive activity that can really get those creative juices flowing. I love to try new and seasonal foods. Last weekend after the group run, the sponsoring neighborhood market had great produce so we combined some of them ....we had arugula salad topped with quinoa with fresh ginger, steamed asparagus, broccolini, 3 colors of bell peppers, tofu, a little soy sauce, topped with pumpkin seeds. It was fantastic. I felt like a real foodie eating such a gourmet meal.
6. Learn to love a good left-over. Always cook extra servings so you have something healthy and fast in the fridge for when you are in a hurry or cooking seems to be a drag or for next day lunch at work. I still cook as if we had a houseful of teenagers at home, but teenagers who love vegetables.
7. Find a sport you love. One that is purely play for you. This is the one I haven't solved yet. I do need a cross-training sport. My husband loves basketball and bike-riding...they are play for him. I like walking and hiking, but those aren't really cross-training for jogging. So I am still looking for the exercise that is play in my life. Maybe dance? Maybe another dog in our family someday...dogs are all play.
In summary, try new things, meet new people, shake it up, and get out of your rut. Just play.
"I still get wildly enthusiastic about little things. I play with leaves. I skip down the street and run against the wind." Leo F. Buscaglia
Looking together in the same direction.
Sea otters hold hands while they sleep so they don't drift apart.
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