What's Your "Why?"

Last week I met a friend in Providence to see Jillian Michael's "Maximize Your Life Tour." It was broken down into three main sections: nutrition, exercise, and mentality. While most of the information was a refresher for me, there were a few things that stuck out - the biggest of which was to figure out WHY I want to make a change now. Jillian argued that humans are creatures of habit, and I would have to agree. I typically eat similar foods for months at a time, swapping a meal out here or there, but always for another extended period of time; it is comforting and I am lazy. While I can only do so much right now, my goal this summer is to try cooking a new dish at least once a week, if not twice. This may not seem like a huge deal, but it will take a lot of planning and prep. I don't cook nearly as much as I used to and when I do, it is typically easy things like eggs or various grilled cheeses. I need to get into the habit of cooking 3 big meals a week so I have variety but also don't waste food. I digress.

Back to the WHY. My second blog post spoke to my WHY, but I want to delve a little deeper into it.

1. I don't always make myself a priority: I loved that Jillian mentioned this is an issue for a lot of people (mostly women), because I see it in myself all the time. I left everything I knew behind to learn more about myself and grow into the person I want to be. Not that I want to be selfish, but I want to be able to make decisions. I am frequently nonchalant about decisions like dinner, movies, games, etc. and I do not want to be anymore. Why should I pay $12 for a crappy movie I have no desire to see? What is wrong with going to a movie by myself if no one wants to see a movie with me? I am not sure if I will ever be the person who sees movies alone, but it's because I am CHEAP and movies are NOT. While I want to be accommodating to others, it shouldn't be at my expense. Part of making myself a priority is by working out on a regular basis. While I know 7 days a week is optimal to build the habit, I know it may not always be realistic. On the days I cannot work out, I just have to watch what I eat.
2. It is still pretty freaking cold here. Just yesterday my boyfriend made fun of me for wearing a winter jacket when it was mid-50's out. It was just a habit and by the time we were done shopping, I had it unzipped because I was so warm. That could have also been due to my losing my wallet in Target and freaking out until I found it (a huge THANK YOU to the customer/associate who returned it without taking any money). But, the cold and rain/snow does not help my motivation for working out. However, I can also feel myself turning into my mother (which wouldn't be a bad thing!) because when I am laying down and being lazy, I think about how I should be doing some simple workout. My mom used to do small things on vacation or in the kitchen while she was waiting around and we used to make fun of her, but now I want to! I know I will get crazy looks though if and when I start breaking out into random moves.
3. These past two weeks I've worked out sporadically and my back is screaming at me. It is just more proof that I need to exercise regularly if it means curbing back pain. 
4.  and 5. My drive for a PhD in Public Health and Nutrition hasn't changed, but it is scary thinking about moving and starting over AGAIN and being a broke student again. More on that later.

All of these are great reasons as to why I want to get into better shape, but they're somewhat superficial. Granted, wanting to make myself a priority is important and making sure my back doesn't bring me to tears, but more than anything, I want to develop good behaviors while I can because I know as I become more busy, I will stop focusing on myself. If I develop a consistent behavior I will be more likely to maintain it as I get older. It is well known that it is harder to loose weight as you age and I want to develop healthy habits so I don't let my health get out of control. That, above all, is my WHY.

Today: Les Mills PUMP which I LOVE because it is only 30 minutes and I can do it at night without disturbing my neighbors. The frustrating thing is they take too much time in between each set to explain things. I wish there was a "new to class" and a regular version. I find myself getting bored in between sets. My muscles hurt really bad the first two days, but now I don't feel it as much! The challenge group also starts soon so I am super excited!