The Gym

This week's big accomplishment has been re-joining the gym. I was always a regular gym-goer before I had Hunter, but I cancelled my membership when I went on maternity leave, largely because my gym is right across the street from my office, so I knew it was unlikely that I'd make it there much while I was off. While I was off, most of my physical activity consisted of going for walks with Hunter and Miley (our dog).

I made the decision to re-join the gym this month and go on my lunch hour at work 3-4 days a week. This was a difficult decision for a couple of reasons:

1. I'm really anal about my gym time. If I'm going to run, I feel like I need to run at least 5km. I can't make it to the gym, change, run 5km, change, and make it back to the office in an hour. I might be able to some day, but not currently. If I'm going to do a class, I feel like I need to attend the full (hour-long) class, which again means I'm extending my lunch break. I've been spending the last few months (seriously) changing my thinking on this. Considering that my current physical activity level is almost zero, going to the gym and exercising for even half an hour is better than what I'm doing now. And something is better than nothing. Am I going to get in super killer shape doing a half-hour of exercise each day? No, probably not... but let's face it... I probably wasn't going to get in super killer shape anyway. So, this week, I started back it. So far, I've completed a 30 minute run on the treadmill and 40 minutes of weights. It's a start! I'm taking tomorrow off but will be back at it on Thursday with some more cardio.

2. I enjoy my lunch breaks. I like sitting in the lunch room at work, socializing with my colleagues, and relaxing for an hour. It's hard to give this up completely, which is why I'm only planning on doing 3-4 days a week at the gym. It will still give me 1-2 days in the lunch room. I will say, though, that I usually go back to my office after these types of lunch breaks feeling a lot more lethargic than when I left. When I come back from the gym, I have more energy and a sharper mind to get through the rest of the work day. That's a big perk!

3. I don't particularly enjoy coming back to work post-gym with a bright red face, feeling sweaty, and having messy hair. Well, I have messy hair half the time anyway (I have a toddler, what can I say!), so I think I may as well just give up on that. But the bright red face and the sweat can be nasty. There's nothing I can really do about this. I'm one of those people who just has to look at the gym to start sweating. I'm just accepting it in the name of fitness and living with it... and packing a towel, some baby wipes, face powder, and a stick of deodorant.

Overall, even though I'm only two days in, I feel better. I'm glad I'm getting active again, and I'm okay with the level that I'm at. A big part of becoming a mother, and more recently a working mother, has been to figure out balance. I can't do it all, so I need to do what's practical and achievable. This is it.