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"What I really want to know," she said, turning to me, "is how on earth you find the time to do all the exercise. How do you fit it all in?"
It's a really good question, with a very simple, if not a satisfying, answer. I don't. I don't fit it all in. I don't even have very good excuses for not fitting it all in - I don't, after all, have kids or other dependents to look after. I'm lazy as hell when it comes to stuff around the house - it's pretty much the "bare minimum" I can get away with to keep things hygienic and not TOO stressful when I finally do have to get around to dealing with them. I don't work incredibly long hours at my job. I don't have huge demands on my time, at this point in my life, from anything I don't choose to accept.
And even with the incredibly limited responsibilities and time-sinks I have in my life, I can't do it all. And when I finally get my butt into gear and get exercising the way I love to (which is, I'll freely admit, *a lot*), I can't keep doing all of the few things that I was doing before. Something's gotta give. So I let it. I read less. I watch fewer DVDs. I see less of my friends (or at least, I did last time I started on an exercise kick... this time around I've had about 2-3 years of being a hermit, so it's less of an issue). And, gods help me, I sleep less. It becomes a tradeoff for me. I only get one shot at using a given chunk of time. So it ends up coming down to the question of how do I want to use it to do myself the most long-term good? And when I'm on an exercise kick the way I am now, the answer to that question is almost always "by moving my body".
It's really easy to let that get out of balance. Y'know the juggling metaphor where all the parts of your life are balls you have to juggle, and some you can afford to drop and just pick back up again, and some you can't because they'll break? Part of me suspects I'm actually heading in the direction of out-of-balance exercising at the moment, and that I should probably dial it back a bit - not because I'm on the verge of injuring myself or overtraining or anything, but because I can feel myself dropping balls that I could be juggling instead of exercising... and some of those balls may well be breakables ones I don't want to allow myself to shatter.
But damnit, I *like* moving this much. I *like* feeling all strong and active and mobile. I *like* taking all this time out for me. I guess the question is whether it's sustainable, and whether the endorphin rush I get and the fact that I feel good about all the activity IS actually a valid tradeoff for the long-term consequences of dropping any balls.
So I'm curious: how do you attempt to balance the "right" amount of exercise in your life with everything else that you have going on? Do you wish you could do more? Worry you're doing too much? Or are you pretty much happy with where you are right now?
4 comments:
Thanks for visiting my blog:) I should exercise more. I have even less time-sinks, as you put it, than you do, since I don't have a job. My kids are old enough not to get in the way of exercise. I just have excuses and laziness. That said, I pretty much do something every day. But, my husband, who also does not have a job, and I have asked ourselves why we are not putting in more hours since we have the time. We should be taking advantage and be in the best shape of our lives!
Hi Karen - thanks so much for commenting! I don't know... 90 miles in found days sounds like a pretty impressive amount to me, but I get that we're all individuals with different goals, so one person's "WOW!" is another person's "meh"
To be honest, I'm really glad to discover I'm *NOT* the only one whose reasons/excuses aren't along the lines of "I'm the primary carer for my sick relative" or "I have to raise and homeschool my five kids" or "I have to work 3 jobs to meet the bills". When I read blogs from superwomen who are in those circumstances and STILL manage to do marathon or triathlon training I'm inspired... but I also feel very flawed by comparison.
Knowing that there are at least a few other folk out there like me whose main battle really is in the mind is... well, let's not beat around the bush... it's a relief!
Great answer kechara!
I think you've hit the nail on the read with the word balance... To be honest, exercise is what usually goes when something else raises its ugly head. Mainly because I seem to end up in the mindset of 'this chore needs to be done' or 'I need to do this for X'. So I guess it's about constantly re-balancing in order to find what it perfect on any particular day while at the same time being mindful of the consequences :)
@Orannia - I seem to be really split personality when it comes to exercise and stress: either I let it go completely, or I throw myself headlong into it. I swear, Billy Joel's "Extremes" (http://www.metrolyrics.com/i-go-to-extremes-lyrics-billy-joel.html) could have been WRITTEN for me sometimes.
*Deep breath* - I think you're absolutely right about rebalancing each day, or whenever you realise you're out of balance. I guess part of growing up is learning to recognise that you're out of balance sooner and sooner each time. Or that's how it seems to me :-)
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