I’ve been meaning to do a fitness update post for awhile now, but honestly, I’ve just been really lazy. Both with the post and with the fitness. Ugh. I haven’t worked out consistently for over a month now, and as such, I kind of feel like a total slug. I was doing so well, too, working up to week 4 in my Jillian Michaels workouts and really feeling great.
Then I got sick the week before Christmas, which meant I got approximately zero workouts in. Things were a little better in Hawaii, though, as I walked a solid 3 hilly miles (if not more) almost every single day. I even threw a little jogging in on some of those too. So that made for a good exercise week.
But since we’ve been back, my level of activity has dropped back to the nothing range. I think I’ve gotten 1, maybe 2, workouts in with my trainer, which are excellent, but when they come so infrequently I can’t believe they’re doing a whole lot of good. I was pretty proud of myself at my workout last week, though – I tested my pull-up endurance at the start of the session and was still able to do 5 full pull-ups. Not bad.
Outside of that, though, nada. Gone are the twice-weekly 5am workouts with Jillian I was sticking with so well to bump my weekly workouts up to 3. I felt like another cold was coming on this past week so was super tired, and in the weeks before this I’ve just been busy, tired, busy and tired, or just plain didn’t feel like it. And no matter how geared up I can be to exercise, if I just don’t feel like it by the time that workout rolls around, more often than not it doesn’t happen.
Fortunately the number on the scale hasn’t been screaming in my face and has remained pretty static, even somehow going down a pound after Hawaii. But I just hate knowing my overall fitness level is deteriorating even if my weight isn’t creeping up.
So that brings us to tonight. I got more stressing news at work today, and I’d finally had it. I needed a release. Maybe that’s been part of the problem lately, why everything has seemed so much more overwhelming than usual – I haven’t had my regular heart-pounding outlet to release my inner tension. Which could also, in turn, be why I’ve been feeling more sluggish and blah than normal.
Now get ready for this… I actually got off my lazy butt and went for a run after work. OUTSIDE again! It was even pretty much dark out, since I didn’t get started until 5:30! Here, I’ll help you up from the floor since I know you just passed out from shock. Sorry about that.
Remember my no-running-outdoors-unless-it’s-above-50-degrees rule? Totally broke it tonight. It was 38 on the temperature tower on my way home from work (and still light out! that definitely helped my motivation), but for some reason it didn’t even phase me. The run felt great. I just did my shortest route, since it’s been almost 2 months since my last jog, and I didn’t even take music. Just me and my breath, hitting the pavement.
Does that ever happen to you? You take a decent hiatus between runs and that first one back feels awesome? Now I know if I continued running outside I’d have to slow down a bit again before getting back up to speed without injury, but still. Tonight felt fantastic.
Here are the run stats – I ran 1.44 miles in 12:56, for a 9:00/mile pace. I’ll take it. Especially since for the first time in a long time I looked in the mirror after my shower tonight and saw a glimmer of the abs I was so happy to show off on my Mom Sexy day instead of a 2-pack with some mush underneath it. Maybe it was the post-workout endorphins finally coming back, or maybe it was because my little abs/push-ups routine I have been diligent about keeping up at least 4-5 times per week might actually be doing something, even with my lack of cardio exercise. But it was good to see nonetheless.
And I felt a little stress melt away with each step of the run, too. My mouth stung from the cold air, but my head was thanking me with each block. Ahh… Now if I can just get back to an exercise routine with which I can stick. I’m planning on cleaning up my road bike on the trainer in the basement and getting back on that next week after work 2 nights. Because although I love my dates with Jillian, I really hate getting up early.
How about you guys? Anyone else already giving up on their New Year’s exercise resolution, or is it just me? Well, actually I didn’t really give up on a resolution, since I don’t make them, but I just fell off the exercise wagon period. Hopefully I’ll get back on a little more permanently this time.
