Fit2BeMyself: Diary of a Woman Seeking Wellness

Here's my pandemic/over-the-road driver body that I acquired in 2020. A lot happened last year for everybody, but I had my share of personal victories. Unfortunately, the pandemic and the time I spent on the road took away a lot of time that I would've spent dancing and strength training.  The past few weeks I've been reacquainting myself with my yoga mat (I have a cuter one now) and I'm not quite as graceful as I once was. Anything that requires me to "ground" or "root" myself throws off my balance, which, I think, is one of the reasons such asanas exist. A reminder to steady yourself. It'll all come back together soon enough, my weight and athleticism, I have the gift of muscle memory on my side, but I must say that this is the best I have felt in a long time.

It isn’t easy to stay motivated doing anything, much less sticking to a workout routine. In the spirit of keeping this short and simple today, I’ll just say that in order to keep going you must be committed, not necessarily motivated. Motivation is fleeting the same way that feelings of love and infatuation are. It is the same as any other type of relationship. If you want a really good relationship with another person, romantic or platonic, to last, you’ll have to be willing to humble yourself at times and do things you don’t necessarily want to do. You’ll have plenty of fun times, but there will also be times when you simply don’t want to be bothered. It takes effective communication. There’s some nurturing involved and ultimately you have to decide if a relationship with the other person is really what you want. The same applies to your health. Effective communication with yourself could be journaling, meditating, using a fitness or period tracking app—paying attention to yours...

March 1 was the grand re-opening of Ride Or Die Spin studio in Charlotte, NC and I was fortunate enough to be part of the first class. It was also my first time on a spin bike in about three months. Thankfully, I lived through the ride despite my fears that I would not. I didn’t get my obligatory photo in front of the sign this time around, but I’ll be back. I was just so happy to finally be back on my favorite bike in the back row by the door. My workouts are usually meditative and despite whatever instructions the instructor may give, I’m in my own world back there. But what has kept me from going to spin elsewhere? I suppose the greater focus concerning this post is mental blocks regarding working out. Ride or Die recently came under new ownership, but there was a period of several months when classes would be canceled due to low attendance. I’m not sure why the previous owner couldn’t make it work, but that’s part of the risk of running any business. All I kno...

*This post contains affiliate links. This means that if you choose to purchase any of the products I link to I may receive a small commission. I only recommend products I have personally had a positive experience with. Purchasing any of the products mentioned is completely optional. There was a time when I could hardly make it through the day without almost involuntarily falling asleep. I’d wake up morning tired and by 3 PM I'd to pull my car over into a parking lot somewhere, put the sunshade in the windshield, recline the driver seat, and set my alarm to wake me up in thirty minutes. Aside from the fact that I wasn’t and still don't always get the recommended 8 hours of sleep every night, a major player in my lack of energy was due to my weight. I still have some pounds to lose but shedding thirty made a difference. Work and motherhood are enough to tire anyone out, but I couldn’t keep functioning that way. I had to make some changes before I could...

I t’s still hard sometimes. As a matter of fact, I’ve been meaning to visit a spin studio that I’ve never visited before. I booked a spot in class through ClassPass * then canceled my reservation the day before because I was a little intimidated. However, I’m proud to say that I have made a lot of progress in overcoming my fear of group fitness classes and unfamiliar gyms. Let me explain. Gym intimidation is real. As a matter of fact, any place where you feel out of place makes you not want to go to that place at all. Pin for later! I began my fitness journey at home. In past years I always worked out at home. Or maybe I went walking around the neighborhood. I had exercise DVDs. When I lived in an apartment complex with an onsite gym, I visited that gym once. I didn’t see the gym as a fun place and I was not motivated to continue going. I felt like I did best when I took walks and followed the DVDs in my living room. As much as I enjoyed how I fel...