New Ways To Get Fit

Wow, I can't believe September is already more than half over...that was fast. I wish I could say we've been partying and having an awesome time, but it's actually been pretty par for the course. School is school, work is work, and life goes on much as it usually does. Maybe I should blog more often about our "boring, normal" days, but probably no one would read the blog any more after that.

So I'll get narcissistic for a bit and blog about myself, and my personal fitness. Not that I'm a prime physical specimen, but I've been changing up my usual exercise routines lately and I've had fun discovering some new local fitness programs that I've never tried before. I love summer vacations with my kids, but one reason I'm happy when the kids go back to school is that I can exercise more regularly and more intensely.

Up until this school year, I've been participating in an exercise "co-op" with several of my friends; each day, one of us would watch the kids while the other ladies went to exercise. We usually had four to five people in the group, so that meant we got to exercise three or four times a week. Plus, our kids got play dates daily. Everyone was a winner!

But this year, with my youngest kid in preschool three days a week, I decided to opt out of the exercise group, after being part of it for almost six years(!). The group has moved on without me, and I have been left to my own devices. It's been harder than I thought to re-adjust to my new, no-exercise-group schedule. Without friends counting on you every week, it can be hard to stay as motivated to exercise. Without any kids at home (something which is suddenly happening a lot), the temptation to crash on the couch and watch television is a lot greater than it used to be.

But I've managed to (mostly) avoid the temptation to loaf...partly because I've been gaining some weight over the last several months and I decided it was time to re-commit myself to calorie counting and weight loss. Last year, when I started using the MyFitnessPal app, I was able to drop 15 pounds, and teach myself some better eating & exercising habits. Luckily, I haven't gained all that weight back, but still...the scale had been creeping up over the summer and I was getting concerned. One of the things I learned last year was that calorie counting and exercise was the most effective form of weight loss for me, so I was determined to keep exercising at least three times a week, just as I'd done in the past year.

When I was part of exercise group, my exercise choices usually revolved around the local clubhouse, which has a nice fitness center inside. Sometimes, I would just go inside and walk on the treadmill or  ride on the stationery bike, followed by some strength training. As I got a little stronger (and more daring) over the years, I'd try out the stair machine, or the elliptical trainers. I used to swim laps in the pool, which I love doing, but I've done it less over the last year or two. This is probably because the pool was recently resurfaced, which caused it to lose six inches of depth. It has made swimming (especially turning) a little more awkward. Perhaps when the spring rolls around next year I will give it another try.

About two years ago I started running, something I'd never really done before. Growing up, I despised running and couldn't understand why any sane person would want to do it. However, as I have improved as a runner, I've found myself kind of enjoying it. Weird, huh? I have improved, bit by bit, as a runner over the last two years, and I've realized that so much of running is mentally willing yourself to do it. When I'm running, I'm complaining and grouchy the entire time...and yet, when I'm done, I feel awesome and energized! For me, at least, running is a matter of my mind convincing my body that it can keep going...and then, when my body makes it, I get a huge sense of accomplishment. Perhaps this is the "runner's high" that I keep hearing about? Well, if the "runner's high" is something that happens while running, I don't think I'm quite there yet. Maybe someday!

While I have come to enjoy running, though, I want to mix up my exercise so I don't get too burned out doing any one thing (or miss out the opportunity to strengthen myself in other ways). I only wanted to run once or twice a week, and then try other things on the other weekdays. Now that my "official" exercise group was a thing of the past, my morning schedule was a little more wide-open, which has led me to try out other things I hadn't considered before...

...like volleyball! Every Monday and Friday, a group of men and women from my church get together inside the church gym and play volleyball...sometimes for hours. There's a wide variety of ages and experience among the volleyball "regulars." Some people played college volleyball, while others (like yours truly) haven't played since junior high! I have known about the volleyball "club" for years now (a few of my friends attend regularly), but because of my general lousiness at team sports (and volleyball in particular), I'd been afraid to join. But this summer, I finally went & tried it out.

It has actually been a lot of fun, even though I am definitely one of the worst players there! More often than not, I am the player who loses the volley for their team. But I have been getting better, bit by painful bit (although I recently went back after a couple of weeks off and my skills had declined again; oops). I have made a couple of good sets, which have then been spiked by more skilled players. Most of my serves make it over the net (even though they're all underhand serves...ugh). Once or twice, I have even gotten the ball over the net and gotten a point. All the other players are super nice and supportive, even when I am terrible. Overall, it's a pretty nice environment to be in...everyone there is just playing for fun, so it feels very low-pressure.

Another activity I just added to my workout list is Zumba, a dance-aerobics class. In the last couple of weeks, I've attended two different Zumba classes in two different places...both of which were free! The first was a twice-weekly class that was offered out of our clubhouse, taught by one of the resident fitness gurus. The class lasted about an hour, and it was really intense...much more so than I'd expected. In the past, I'd peer into the windows of the activity room and see all the women shaking their hips & waving their arms, and I'd snicker from the safety of my elliptical trainer. Well, no more mockery from me! After that Zumba class, my arms, legs, and back were all nice and sore from the exertion. There were basically no breaks for the entire hour, either...the instructor went right from one song to the next, and I almost felt like a sissy for running to grab a drink of water. At least I got to stand close to the large fan, so I was keeping pretty cool the whole time.

The second Zumba class I attended was inside an LDS church building, and taught by a member of a neighboring ward. It was a lot more laid-back than the class at the clubhouse; most of the moms had brought their kids along (many of whom joined in the dancing or ran unchecked through the halls). There were longer breaks between songs, and the instructor made more of an effort to teach everyone the steps involved in each dance before the music started. While it was fun to "learn on the go" at the clubhouse, I did appreciate the "hand-holding" I got at the church Zumba; it helped me feel like I actually knew what I was doing! Plus, a lot of my friends attended the Zumba at the church building (including many who'd been part of my old exercise group in the past), and it was really fun to work out with them again!

Plus, I got to dance like this guy...

In short, I really liked doing Zumba and I'd like to try it out at least once a week, at either the church sessions or the clubhouse. I think it's a fun, exciting way to work out my whole body and burn a good chunk of calories. It's fun to dance to exciting music and not worry about what anyone thinks of you! I just hope no one makes a recording of my dance moves; my kids might get a hold of it and use it as blackmail material against me at some point in the future. But if it helps me keep losing weight and toning up, I'll count it as a win overall.