Yearn to Learn

I'm teacher AND student - so I get the apple.

I am always learning, and my favorite things to learn are things about - you guessed it - myself.  Here is what I'm learning this week:

1. Insanity has kicked my cardio capabilities into another hemisphere.  I began training for my half-marathon/5k/10k combo scheduled for October, and - miracle of miracles - I no longer need those pesky walking intervals.  I can just run.  Now, I may add in the the walks when I increase my time and mileage simply for fear of injury - but they'll be few and far between (and weeded out as soon as possible), but for right now, my sports bra is near bustin' with pride.  (It has very little else to bust with these days.)

2.  My heart rate may get all kinds o' jacked up while pushing through Insanity or a speedy run interval, but it drops right back down the way a healthy person's would.  I no longer need long cooldowns to return my heart rate to its resting rate; it gets there lickity split all on its own.  Stop yammering!  I still cool down and stretch because I like it and it's good for my pretty muscles.  I'm just sayin' that before, I would still be huffin' and puffin' like the Big Bad Wolf after some bacon.  Now, I'm just as serene as the brick-layin' pig.  (But much leaner.)

Mine is working just dandy, thanks.

3.  I can make my goals happen all on my own, even if they aren't fitness-related.  I wanted to be an author; yesterday I made it so.  Thank you to createspace.com and their helpful step-by-step into the world of self-publishing.  Now, you can take me to bed with you!  I will post links to buy the physical copy of SweatItOut: My Journey From CouchSpud to FitGal as soon as everything is a go.  For now, you can find me on Kindle by searching "SweatItOut." 

4.  My love of fitness is spreading, and it's spreading because of me.  The Werewolf is doing yoga all on his own and loving it.  He's namaste-in' with Rodney Yee two or three times a week and becoming more and more intent on maintaining his focus - so "please be QUIET, Mom and Sissy."  This makes me incredibly happy and even bustier with pride (well, maybe not bustier, but a gal can always dream).  This weekend we will be shopping for yoga supplies so he can try out some backbends.



The Werewolf's yoga partner

5.  Exercise is the key component to my productivity.  Days that I don't work out, I don't do much else either.  I allow myself to slump in front of the computer, the television, my iPhone.  My energy piques around 1:00 pm.  I begin getting cranky around 4:00.  Days that I do work out, my chores are done by noon, I'm chipper and ready to get outta the house by 1:00, and the kids typically follow by 2:00.  (I wait for them, of course....no matter how tempted I may be for a solo trip.)  Nutrition - the same!  When I take my supplements (added in a B-Complex to support my Iron) and eat well, my body thanks me with energy and good moods.  Why mess with it?  Sloth and gluttony just aren't my sins.

Those are all pretty kick ass new things about me.  But know what's better?  Next week, I'm gonna find out something else.  Fact is, I just get better on a daily basis.  So try to keep up, would ya?

Accessorizing: What's Hot This Year

No matter what workout you choose, you're gonna need "stuff." Even running, which I believe to be the simplest of all workouts in terms of equipment, requires the right shoes.  The right playlist.  And eventually, the right fuel belt.  Personally, I love the "stuff." Walking through a sporting goods store gives me butterflies.  Everywhere I look, I see fitness possibilities! Exercises I haven't tried! Clothing to showcase my new muscles! And shoes...oh! the shoes...

My favorite stuff varies from workout to workout.  I love my new Brooks Ghosts for running; my iPhone, with mapmyrun and my music to keep my legs pumping; my fuel belt for lip balm, Gu, and water. When I punch and kick my way through TurboFire, I have to wear my weighted gloves (sculpting those bi's and tri's while burning an unseemly number of calories) and Under Armour sportsbras (my girls are happiest in those).  P90X and ChaLEAN Extreme require weights, which require lifting gloves to keep my hands callous-free and make me look like a serious contender.  Yoga...I must have a mat in a pretty carrying case, yoga gloves and slippers so my sweaty extremities stay where I put them, and yoga pants to make my rear view extra appealing (solely for the hubby's benefit, I swear!).

Sometimes, the stuff can provide that extra motivation.  I want new stuff.  I want to wear new stuff and use new stuff.  I enjoy the purchasing of the stuff, the unwrapping of the stuff, the new smell emanating from the stuff.  If I don't actually exercise, the stuff seems a tad superfluous.  Plus, I like being able to say, "I need stuff."  It's a valid excuse to shop! I really do need new shoes, new sports bras, yoga pants, running skirts...and whatever else may catch my eye as I wander the brightly colored aisles inhaling the myriad scents of rubber and spandex. No guilt here.  Just a conscientious member of society, doing my part for the economy while I maintain my personal health.

Soooo...pick yourself a workout you love.  And make sure it requires some stuff, even if said stuff is just a bangin' new outfit you wear during said workout.  Sometimes the best smiles I get all day are the admiring ones I aim at my reflection during a particularly sweaty session of HipHop Abs.