The Movement Challenge – I’m Going to Move My Body Through Space Everyday
I do not wish to grow old gracefully. I am going to grow old kicking and screaming as hard as I can. This is not to say that I don’t see the value of being old. In fact, I very much do. I know that I am much smarter than I was a decade ago. I am more confident in my looks. I can only assume that as I age, my wisdom and confidence will continue to grow with me. However, my body betrays me. Despite being a Health Coach and knowing the value of moving every day, I haven’t exercised regularly since February. And my body is telling me it is unhappy the best way it can. Through pain. I hurt every morning upon waking. On top of that, I aggravated an old back injury a few weeks ago. Usually the pain would last 24-48 hours. After a week of back pain, I made a pledge. I made it for me, for my family, and, to hopefully, serve as an inspiration to others in the same boat. It goes as follows:
I will exercise, in some way, every single day through the month of July. It might not be an hour, it might only be 10 minutes some days, but I will move every single day.
Today is Day 8 of my movement challenge, and I am happy with the way things are going. Because of my back and overall sloth, I have spent the first week doing functional movement and rehab as prescribed by my favorite Chiro. I realized that if I jumped back into my perceived fitness level (awesome, obviously) I was going to wind up with a much greater injury then just low back pain. So I’m jumping rope, doing glute bridges, bear crawls, planks, foam roll and abs. Some days I pick up the kettle bells. Not a lot. Just enough. This week I’m going to amp up a bit, run a little faster, swing the bells.
This is not an easy pledge to keep. Despite it only being a week, I am TIRED. In order to get the time to work out, I have been waking up earlier then usual. Some days I just want to sleep. On July 4th I took advantage of the baby’s nap time, with a nap of my own. But this is the trap we all fall into. We say there isn’t enough time. I’m too tired. I have errands to run. Then one day we wake up, old and arthritic, thinking we should have tended to ourselves better.
People come to me because they want to eat better, feel better about themselves, make better choices. But what they aren’t willing to do is sacrifice the time to do it. I realized with my lack of exercise that I was guilty of this as well. I didn’t want to give up on my sleep, or my TV time, or my night out with the girls. I kept thinking that I was in good enough shape that none of it mattered.
Well guess what? It does matter. And very much so. We put our bodies through a lot. And each year, our bones, muscles, organs are a year older as well. Simply put, what bounced back at 22 is going to take a heck of a lot longer to bounce back at 37. So I’m putting on my gloves and getting in the ring with Age. But I’m no longer training by picturing the abs of Britney or the legs of Gwyneth as my motivation. I’m thinking about Jack LaLanne doing a full work out with a chair. When I saw the video, he was in his 80′s. I couldn’t do half the stuff he was doing. But I will. Eventually. He moved every day of his life and it showed. Clear in mind, body and high in energy and spirit. I aspire to that today, tomorrow and decades from now. This is my pledge. I will move every day the month of July. I invite you to follow my progress on Facebook, hold me accountable, support me. In turn, I will support you in your endeavor. If it’s 10 minutes or an hour, move every day. Your body will thank you.
To continue the conversation, I offer a free Health Consultation. Please visit me at www.roslynwellness.com or email me at courtney@roslynwellness.com. You can also follow on Facebook or Twitter.
Moving your body everyday, at least 20 minutes a day, is an integral part of feeling good & looking great. And it’s a key component to our Ageless Diet Lifestyle™. Join us at Happiness Series & Courtney at Roslyn Wellness & do this Movement Challenge for the month of August.
