On a typical morning I wake up anywhere between 7:30 and 8:30, today was no different. I was stirred from my sleep around 7:45 by the sound of my poor sick and pained kitten receiving eye drops courtesy of Martina before Martina headed to work. I went on my walk/jog at 9:15. What follows is everything that happened in my brain between 7:45 and 9:15, and is not atypical for any given morning these days.
8:00 am: I should get out of bed, make some breakfast, let my food settle and go for a walk.
8:01 am: Why?? I am tired. I should stay in bed. My body aches from the stress of dealing with the cat this weekend. I have earned some extra sleep. Plus, I did not exactly get a ton of sleep last night because I was constantly worried about Daisy. Plus, if I go out for a walk, my body is just going to get sore, and my knee has been feeling sore for the last few days. Just Stay in bed for a little while then get up and make a huge filling and time consuming breakfast.
There it is, isn't it? When I look at the pros and cons of working out, the cons always outweigh the pros. There are a dozen or more things I enjoy doing more than working out. I would prefer to sleep, read, watch a movie, write, play video games, watch Orange is the New Black, eat, play with kittens and a host of other things. I am too tired. I am too achy. I am too stressed. I am too busy. I am not seeing results fast enough. WHAT IS THE DAMN POINT? The cons not only out number the pros, they are louder. That pesky pain in my right knee screams like it is being stabbed with a knife. The stress pounds repeatedly on my shoulders. My sleepy eyes heavy with exhaustion. It is so hard to hear over that. Sadly, this summer, I have listened to all of the cons way too much. My work outs have been spotty at best, full of the frustrating starts and stops that someone first driving a manual car feels. I cannot get any strong momentum going.
See, I can list 10-20 cons to getting up in the morning and working out and only 1 pro: To feel better. That is it. That is the only reason to exercise. It is simple and shockingly profound, but it is the only reason. If I want to feel better, I have to exercise. If I exercise regularly, suddenly so many of those cons dissipate. The pain in my knee lessens because my knee is getting stronger. That stress lessens because I am out working it out. I am thinking through the problems. I am getting my blood flowing. That sleepiness goes away because I sleep better at night after I work out. I just feel better. In fact, every facet of my day gets better. I do not feel lazy for playing video games after a work out. I get excited to try and cook new healthy dinners. I can even focus better on a book when I exercise in the morning because all of my senses are fired!
There may be 20 loud cons, and there maybe only 1 pro, but in terms of sheer weighted volume, the pro vastly outweighs the cons. The problem is remembering that. The problem is remembering how I felt this morning after walking/jogging over 3 miles. Yes, I was beat, and sweaty, and totally unequivocally gross, but I was also refreshed and felt like I had accomplished something. I was not lazy this morning, and in turn I played video games for much less time than I would have other wise. On days where I listen to that steady pro, I am not as accepting of a lifestyle of utter laziness.
Maybe other people have other reasons for exercising but I feel like they all come back to that one truth: We want to feel better about ourselves. Sure, for some it may be more of an image thing, but that still falls under the same umbrella. For me, I just want to feel like today I am better than the man I was yesterday. And I want to make it a challenge to be a better man tomorrow than I am today.
Today's soundtrack: Tech N9ne: Something Else. It is an album that pushed me to move faster and to think harder about my fitness goals because of how wonderfully honest the lyrics are. I would not recommend the album to anyone who is not a strict lover of rap music, though.
The goal now is to listen for the pro in the sea of noise that is the con list. It feels good to be back....today.
What started as a journey for physical and emotion health has morphed into something much bigger. Here you will find musings about my health journey, my teaching job, my re-entry into the world of academia, random thoughts about the world at large, books, movies, television, and ultimately my search for sustained happiness.
Geez Mr. Hadley, you are so completely inspiring! :) I'm on a similar goal and have been since senior year during your class. In these past years I have had slip ups that have set me back, but at the end of the day that one pro just keeps whispering in my ear; "Ben, what are you doing? You know what you need to do. You know what makes you feel incredible, invincible, and proud of yourself." Last summer I was about 2 more weeks of good training from my ultimate goal, (however common it may seem, the challenge was so real in my eyes,) a six pack. Somehow I manage to slip up during the begining of my sophmore year in college and just prior to this summer I weighed 265, ( last summer weighing 195). Now I am back to 235 and dropping fast. Reading your blog Mr. Hadley has given me even more drive and I hope mine does the same for you! All those cons will dissapate the harder you push! New pros will sprout from you working so hard. It's the gate-way pro! haha, Keep pushing! - Ben Stringer
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