While I have always been aware my nonexistent fitness, with my twenties nearing a close it was a rude awakening that my body is beginning to slow down. I fully admit that a strong part of me wants to gets into better shape for my milestone birthday next year. A better me to start a new decade. Also, I have to admit that there are some shallow reasons behind it in case we decided to visit Tahiti next year or decide on some other location to celebrate. Then, again I had this in mind when another big event took place.
I can honestly say that the last time I was even half way in shape was in college. See my Alma mater - UCLA (Bruins represent!) - was built on a hill or should I say a series of hills. Getting anywhere around campus involved lots of slanted walkways or stairs. Really there was no way to avoid it. My first route to class included a steep hill that had me and my roommate at the time having to stop at the top to regain our composure (we were so sad) and keep in mind we hadn’t even hit north campus yet! After each walk, I had to give myself time to sit, rehydrate and clean myself up a bit so I didn’t look like I just came from the gym although technically I came from nature’s gym. Needless to say, it was the best workout I ever did because it was necessary (how else was I going to get to class?) and it was free... sort of. I hadn’t even noticed the amount of weight I had lost until my first visit home for Thanksgiving where I could suddenly button up a coat (that never really fit) all the way. I celebrated this feat with mental somersaults while my Mother looked at me like I was insane.
Everything was great. My stamina was building so the hill wasn’t as strenuous plus I could suddenly wear button down shirts without a gap. Then, I met the man who would become my husband, and as college acquaintance accurately pointed out: Boyfriends make you fat. I went to my future-in-law’s house every single weekend and attended birthday parties which seemed to have taken place every other weekend. Ate lots of delicious homemade grub: carne asada, al pastor (oh my goodness), macaroni salad, tamales, ugh. UGH! Then, thanks to Mister J who lived on the top of hill his first year, I also started to make use of my campus' rideshare programs and learned little shortcuts around campus. All of that plus the requisite dates involving food lead to my subsequent weight gain which was about 60 pounds. Yup, I’m giving you numbers to hold myself accountable. The funny thing is that when I was lighter, I had this goal to hit the weight that’s been on my driver’s license since I was high school. Actually that number was a wishful guess since we didn’t have a scale at home. Confession: it's still on my license 13 years later.
And there is my mini fitness bio.
It's funny to me that this year, I've made some big changes and managed to get out of my comfort zone for certain things while others have remained dormant. Now, I'm thinking about trying out a spin studio that opened in my neighborhood and walking around the some of the hilly areas nearby, you know to recapture that magic. Then I want to finished it all up with a Bar Method class (I haven't forgotten about you) once a week to stretch out the muscles. I don't want to diet. In my opinion, it's not realistic unless you plan on following it for the rest of your life. Plus, I love food. I want to get fit. I want to feel good and have looking better as a nice perk. Ultimately, I want whatever soreness I feel as an indicator that I did something right for my body. Not a passive aggressive reminder of what I haven’t done. So there’s my musing to get fit from here on out.
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| Image and arrangement by me |
P.S. This arrangement is old. You can see the original post here. I found more pictures and figured oh why not? Naturally, I remember why I never posted the overhead shot (hint: not swept floor).
