These past few weeks have been extremely busy for me. A phenomenal fund raiser concert, an interview on the Jordan Rich show meaning I did not get to bed until 2 am, a breakfast Rotary Club meeting two days later for which I had to get up at 5:30 am; planning two more fund raisers for my husband's Boston Marathon run; sharing my inspirational journey on More Health Less Care magazine (story on p. 26); babysitting for a dear friend so she could get her massage and also attend a birthday party and being my husband's press agent as a team of BU students want to chronicle my husband's Boston Marathon run and supporting him for the 17 mile long run last Saturday from Natick to the finish line. Throw in creating original poetry for clients of New World Greeting Cards, blogging, writing poetry and dealing with the extreme changes in temperature these past few days and a part of me wants to just crawl under the covers until Spring arrives and not do another thing.
But - despite feeling tired and achy I know that no matter what, I must put my work outs and time to attend to stretching and exercises high on my priority list. I'm not sure why we believe that it's so easy to just let the exercise go. It is counter intuitive to exercise when feeling tired yet every time I do not feel like exercising, I find that I feel so much better afterwards. Yesterday after getting up at 5:30 am, driving an hour to a Rotary meeting and giving my talk and then driving home I thought how am I ever going to work out today? I decided a power nap was in order and even though I still felt tired I knew it was imperative that I get on the recumbent bike no matter what....
This morning after a wonderful night's sleep my body was still not exactly raring to go given the intense level of activity these past two weeks and the change in my schedule, but I got out my weights, my pilates ball and blue theraband and did a core workout and strength training. I remember the words of my physical therapist at Spaulding Rehab, Allison Lamarre Poole as she discharged me from outpatient care "You're gonna keep up with all of this right because you don't want to go back to where you were." I nodded in agreement (pictured above is me Christmas 2007 as I was just beginning my strength training with Janine Hightower before I ever laced up a pair of running shoes) knowing that it takes discipline, perseverance, strength and courage to maintain a health and fitness regimen. It is important to know when to push and when to rest and often times it is a delicate balance one that we all learn along the journey. But this I do know - no matter what - I am moving forward in my health and wellness journey pushing through the times when I would rather just stay in bed or skip a workout. I am blessed to have a dream team of support on this journey especially my husband Tom.
It would be so easy to fall prey to the victim role as a wife of a marathoner but Tom and I are finding an incredible balance. Last Saturday I supported him in his 17 mile run; on Sunday we were going to go for a power walk around Castle Island so he could stretch and I could train for Hyannis. The wind was stinging off the water so we decided to head indoors to the BU Fit Rec Center. I ended up doing a tempo run for 3 miles and he was able to stretch and recover from his 17 mile run. Then we played in the pool for about 45 minutes allowing the warm water to help us both relax and recover from our runs. This Saturday I will go to a basics Vinyasa class at Sweat and Soul Yoga. We are finding ways to keep a balance as we each pursue our passions but no matter what take time to take care of ourselves mind, body and spirit!
What keeps you motivated to stay active no matter what? I'd love to hear from you.
God bless, be well and live like you were dyin'
From my heart to yours
With love,
Mary
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