Michael: That First Mile

The sunburst yellow
And burnt orange jester’s crown
Must make a bee buzz.

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Today is my 500th day in a row of exercising for at least 30 minutes. My goal is 1,000. In my last 1,000 days I’ve missed two days of exercise. But that doesn’t mean I wake up in the morning, jump into my running shorts, fling open the door and sprint outside whistling, “Good Day, Sunshine or Always Look on the Bright Side of Life.” Even here in Volcan, where “out the door” is quite beautiful.

Sometimes I’m just not feeling it and would rather just daydream, goof on the net, or put my feet up and read a book. So how do I coax myself to get moving when my feather weight running slippers feel more like lead boots?

For one, I’ve made a commitment and have a program and schedule. I don’t have to get up and wonder if I’m going to work out or what I’m going to do. Doing it of course is another matter, but knowing in advance what’s on the menu takes the mental anguish out of thinking up what to do everyday in an impromptu fashion. It also helps, over time, to reinforce the habit of exercise.

It’s also paid off. I’ve been healthy, active, and competitive now for just about my entire life. Even before I started this 1,000 day pledge, I didn’t pencil in many off days, so replacing them with light days wasn’t such a big leap.

I’ve made a commitment to another person and that helps. Kimme and I start out our running workouts together. So even if I don’t feel like it, I don’t want to disappoint her or take her down with me just because I’m feeling lazy.

But there still are those mornings where I’m just dragging and don’t feel up to it. Getting dressed and out the door is step number one. After that I’ll walk at least the first 5 minutes. Walking is easy, and now I’m already 5 minutes away from home. When I start to jog I’ll tell myself to take the first mile as easy as I can. Keep my head up and just move forward without worrying about any expectations I have for today’s workout. That first mile or so can sometimes be a real killer, but once my body’s been given the time to adapt, I’ve kept my head up and have been given some time outside to take in the light and my surroundings, my mood has usually significantly improved and I’m feeling both mentally and physically more engaged and prepared to focus on my workout.

On the rare occasion that I’ve had to deal with an injury and it would be unwise to continue a run, I’ll turn around and do some upper body work and stretching. Why not, I’ve already broken a light sweat and am dressed for exercise.

Once in a great while, I do just end up grinding it out. But those workouts are the exception, and even they have their mood lifting benefits. They reinforce my belief that I can push through those down moments until I can link back into that consistent flow of positive energy moving gives me.

For the most part, exercise is a joy and I feel very fortunate to get outside and do it everyday. But it’s also become a habit like brushing my teeth. It’s not something I always do with the same verve every time out, but I know it’ll get done.