I'm sore, but it's worth it!

Well, I've been trying to start some kind of exercise plan for a while (oh.....like maybe, a couple of years or so?) But no matter what I think of, there's always some reason why I can't do it:

*walking/running through the neighborhood with friends-can never find someone who can go at the same time, can't do it by myself, bad about being consistent, too cold or too hot outside, have never been a fan of running.....

*do something at home/video-hard finding time to do it without kids bugging me (I have early risers), too easy to sleep in, no motivation, have never been a fan of aerobics

*Joining a community dance class-can't find a class that suits me, hard to coordinate a time to go, very limited class times, nervous about dancing again in front of others after 14 years, have a feeling that after a short time one class wouldn't be enough, want to do more, but no time, then I get depressed because of my love for dance, get mad, decide never to do it again, then get scared because I never want to hate dancing, yadda, yadda, yadda........

*diets/weight loss programs-I HATE DIETING! (and I know they don't work) Besides, I never really want to completely change the way I eat. And eating organic, masses of fruits & veggies, whole grain, all natural foods is expensive, time consuming and would require a lot of changes for not only me, but my kids and husband, too, that I'm not sure would ever go over well with them. (I know I'm gonna get a lot of arguments with this, but every family has their own eating habits and doing this would really turn my family upside down, not that they eat horribly, but, well.......later....)

I could go on, but needless to say, I know it was always some subconscious thing that made up excuses for myself not to get back in shape and lose weight. Although......there was always one thing that I loved and did a lot in college. I always worked out at the gym. It was a required class for my major and we had to log in a certain amount of hours every week to pass the class. Plus, it was very stressed by all my dance instructors as a major part of dancing. We couldn't participate in certain group recitals or pass our dance requirements without being really in shape. Working out at the gym & weight lifting did this.

Well, fast forward 14 years with a family of 5 kids and husband. And a house mortgage....and 2 cars.....and huge grocery bills......and more and more and more bills. Will and I had always talked about joining a gym, but couldn't afford it. Plus, we want to be able to spend enough time for the monthly gym bill to really pay off. So......with my cousin's help (thanks Jill!), we found a good enough deal to join a local gym. And I LOVE it! We've been going early in the morning and it feels really good to start off the day like that. I'm doing cardio stuff, plus weights. And let me say, I'm pretty sore in some unmentionable places, but places that need major fat loss and muscle toning! And even though it's been a while since I've been in a gym, it's starting to slowly come back to me.......the steady higher heart rate, the good burning of the lungs, the sweat pouring down your face, the tired feeling after a good workout (not lazy tired, but the "I-burned-some-calories-and-toned-some-muscles" tired!) The other realizations, unfortunately, are also coming like I'm not a young 20 year old anymore and my body is changing! I can't do some simple things that were so easy when I was younger. It sucks getting old! But for me, that's more of a motivator to keep going.

So....we'll see how this goes. I would love to be able to go up and down my stairs without getting out of breath, and being able to take a bike ride with my kids without getting exhausted and being able to jump on the trampoline with the kids for longer than 5 minutes! My plan at first was to workout 3-4 days a week at first, but Jill had a good point. If I'm going to spend a certain amount of money a month for a gym membership, get your money's worth. So we go every day....and it's been worth it. Will has been going in the evenings and he's loving it too. It's my goal to get back in shape and lose some weight this year, the weight as my brother says, "my spouse was not sealed to". :o) Wish me luck!