About sixteen years ago our family received a membership to our local recreation center as a Christmas gift. I had asked for the gift, so it wasn’t unwanted. I had big plans to get up early and hit the gym before I had to take Jon to daycare and then get to work. I was going to start my shiny, sparkly, brand new routine and stick to it! We went in early January to get our membership ID cards and then we never went back. I’m not kidding! Not one day in the entire 365 days of that year did we step foot back in that recreation center. What happened to my grand plan? I have no idea. It was not until several years later that exercise became a daily part of my routine, my life. I can’t change the past, so I will not dwell on what could have been, but I can move forward. I wanted to share this with you because I want you to know that I have been there. I struggled to make exercise a part of my routine just like many of you do. Many days it is still a struggle.
Reminder: Breathe. Stay calm. Be kind to yourself. The new year is just a few days away. For many, this means a giant upheaval of stagnant routines by diving headfirst into new fitness and nutrition programs. While change is necessary to change, it is important to not adopt too many new things at once. When we do that, things become overwhelming and then we quit. And when we quit, we don’t just quit one or two of the new routines. We quit them all. Trust me when I say there is nothing magic about January 1st. Any day or any month can be the time that you make the choice to take that first step. You can read more about getting a jump-start on the new year in my last newsletter.
