Outside Our (Workout) Comfort Zones
Please sing the title of this blog post to the tune of Brad Paisley’s “Southern Comfort Zone” – it’s a wonderful country song and a fabulous play on words. Country haters, please give it a chance. Plus Brad is a sexy man. Right Kelly?
Speaking of my mom…she went to her FIRST yoga class yesterday! My mom is a true runner – she’d live and breathe it every day if she could. Unfortunately her knee has been giving her problems yesterday, and aside from spinning and some weights she hasn’t felt like she’s had a lot of cross-training options that she can really enjoy. Her friend recommended a yoga class specifically designed for athletes at Glastonbury’s Mission Fitness – and at only $5 for a drop-in visit, my mom had to head over yesterday to try it out.
Me and mom after a spin class we took together on Sunday morning! I got her that top for Christmas!
Verdict? She was pleasantly surprised by how difficult the class was, and said that if she’d had the yoga knowledge to allow her to know at least the basic modification of each move, she’d have had “the workout of her life”! She definitely wasn’t used to being the beginner in a workout, but I reminded her that she was a beginning runner/spinner too at one point, and allowing ourselves to get stuck in comparison traps doesn’t do anything to move us FORWARD in building experience!
My mom’s such a big support system to me when it comes to feeling inadequate about food/exercise, so it meant a lot to me to be able to share with her some of the lessons I’ve learned about keeping the ego in check and staying true to the self and the individual’s end goals. In fact, she may be going back as early as TODAY, so I guess our conversation helped! Her journey reminds me a lot of my running blend Sarah‘s – I know she recently tried yoga while experimenting with workouts different from running, and was impressed by what a hard workout it was!
GO MOM!
Speaking of going outside our workout comfort zones…at my request, my beloved Meg wrote a very special post today about being okay with doing LESS cardio. The title even uses alliteration! I highly recommend anyone who’s ever felt guilt over skipping a cardio session go check it out. I myself am still struggling with using exercise as a crutch. Though I may not be overexercising like I did at my lowest point, at times I feel like I’m staying at the gym longer than I’d want to or choosing a “harder” workout simply out of obligation.
Just because I love you Mr. StepMill doesn’t mean I always want to be around you!
Yesterday I went to Group Power and said to myself as I parked my car that I would NOT bring a magazine into the gym with me because I would NOT hop on the StepMill afterward. Nope, I was going to get back in the car and go home and shoot down my ego by reminding myself that doing a Group Power class is still heart-pumping and something to be proud of. And it was mentally uncomfortable, but I DID it! The timing of my accomplishment couldn’t be more perfect given the fact that Meg published her post today.
Yoga poses like this make me feel JUST as proud as completing a spin class!
I’m happy that this journey in recovery has equipped me with tools I can use to help others – like my mom – because everyone struggles with going outside of his or her comfort zone, be it in the gym, at a restaurant, at work, even at home.
What comfort zones do you struggle to get out of?
Have you ever been able to use your own lessons learned to help others?
Country music…love or hate? Because I rarely meet anyone with an in-between!
