KarenI’ve never been a sporty person, I never particularly enjoyed exercise and PE was my least favourite subject at school. Recently though I’ve found myself preaching to my children about how they ought to lay off the sweets, how they should practise mindfulness, how they can’t duck training sessions for their sports because we need to look after our bodies, inside and out. I was a pretty big hypocrite really.
It’s really easy to tell you how busy I am, how tired I am, how much I have on my to-do list. But these are excuses. They’re reasonable ones, but they don’t mean I can’t look after myself more. My morning mindfulness sessions fell by the wayside when the toddler stopped sleeping through, and I haven’t lost any weight in years despite really needing to.
So recently I began listening to a mindfulness podcast at night, or a story through my calm app, and I’ve been sleeping so much better.
Thinking about my physical health though was a bit trickier. I have a gym membership at a pretty nice gym, but aside from taking the boys swimming I don’t really go. I’m not a huge fan of gym equipment but I think that’s probably because I don’t know how to use it. Obviously that can be rectified with a proper induction but I’ve never booked one. Something I did know how to use though was the treadmill so when I did get to the gym, that’s what I used.
Fast forward a couple of months and my friend Emma asked me to do a 5k with her. I’ve done the Race for Life a couple of times before but not since 2014 and I’ve never run it. This run was different though – you get pizza at the end!
It was still a somewhat reluctant sign up, but I bought a ticket anyway.
The day of the run came around far quicker than I expected. I had been a couple of times to the gym and I’d downloaded the couch to 10k app on my phone, but it’s sent enough to see me sail around the Pizza Run course (obviously).
Nevertheless, I did complete the run, and I wasn’t last either… the race isn’t a timed one but my lovely supporters tell me I completed it in just under 40 minutes. My best time on the treadmill is 33 but running outside, unsurprisingly, is a heck of a lot harder than running on a treadmill! Add in the hilly terrain and a hot sun and I’m pretty pleased with 40 minutes.
So, feeling rather energised and like I’d found something I could actually do without wanting to cry (much), I signed up to the Race for Life! Blog about that coming soon.
I’m not sure I’ll ever love running, or any sort of exercise really, but I was pretty proud of myself for pushing my boundaries and taking up something new.
