Exercise Blues

I don't mind physical activity.  I enjoy hiking and running around with my students on the playground.  I like walking the dogs and rollerskating.  Things like that, I really do enjoy; but, only when I don't have to do them on a schedule.

As soon as I try to set up some sort of workout program or schedule for myself, I start to hate whatever exercise I'm doing.  It becomes the bane of my existence and I'll last about a week before I become horribly resentful that I have to do this stupid workout and take time out of my day that could be spent cleaning, cooking, or reading.  I become like a toddler in the "no" phase.   A few days after the resentful phase kicks in, I stop the workouts cold turkey.  Who needs stupid workouts anyway.  It's so much easier to be lazy anyway. 



Thankfully, I've found one exercise that I'm able to stick with and that I can actually stand.  Last summer I started running with the Couch to 5K plan and by the end of it, I was running 30 minutes a few days a week.  I could have continued indefinitely if it weren't for my work schedule becoming topsey turvey.   My schedule made it so that I couldn't run in the evenings anymore and I went to work so early that it would have still been dark when I would have had to run.  As a result, I went on a three month workout leave of abscence.

But oh happy day and Snoopy dance!  I don't go into work until 9:30 now and I have time to run again.  I had to start from scratch to get my lungs used to the cold morning air, but it's so nice to be running again.  This time around I'm bringing one of my pups with me.  She's crazy, like couch-cushions-are-delicious crazy or licking-my-bed-in-the-same-spot-for-minutes crazy, and running has seemed to help her out a lot. 

Now we can both enjoy getting out exercise, mellowing out, and exploring the world around us.  It's a nice feeling.  Unlike the times she sees a cat and suddenly I'm doing twice my original pace.  Those are not good times.