The other day I was at the gym, workin' on my fitness. As I mentioned in a previous post, it's time to grapple the beast of effort and turn her into a beauty.
"Slow and steady" says the horse
And slow and steady I rode.
Having not really been to the gym in several months, one look in the mirror and I said to myself
"Where shall I start?"
Basics. Start at the basics.
Knowing full well that it will not hurt to burn a few (or 500) calories, I jumped on the bike.
I hate the bike.
Not because it's hard or challenging, but because it's BORING.
As is the elliptical machine, the treadmill, the stair-master. BORING.
But I did it, and like clockwork ...
the dreaded dialogue began in my head.
I looked around at many of the "pretty" people lifting weights with their big muscles, or the dashing blond beauty running a marathon on the treadmill with her perfect little ponytail trailing in the wind.
I looked up at the Television screen to see the very studly and inspirational silver fox, Anderson Cooper, just beaming back at me with that killer smile, in that perfect "Athletic Cut" Dolce & Gabbana Suit.
Then I looked at the clock on my bike.
I had been riding for ten minutes, burned about 50 calories and had ... a very long way to go.
Then it hit me.
THIS is the problem. THIS right here. Not ME, not THEM, not IT.
This good ole human trait (which I clearly have mastered) of "What's Next" and "I want.. This ... I want That" are probably one of my biggest blockages. Constantly thinking about "What's next?" and "When?" gets me anxious and preoccupied with things that are completely out of my control.
So I stopped. I took a deep breath, looked at my reflection in the blinking Plexiglas of the console in front of me and I said "Relax". Paradoxical isn't it? Get on the exercise machine to ... Relax?
Yes. Relax, let go, and just BE.
Be in the moment of feeling what is going on between you and your body, of whatever music or tape you have on your listening device. Feel the beat, focus on the lyrics. Put your mind in a dreamland where you are happy to live for those twenty minutes. For me, I put on a little Madonna in anticipation of the big concert next month that I can't wait for. That led me to so many more amazing things, like memories of past Madonna concerts, being with people that I love, of how HARD someone like Madonna works (at 53 mind you!) to deliver her best ALWAYS.
That alone was enough to make me pedal harder.
Before I knew it, the time was up.
The next day, I went to work and found myself at various cross roads during the day, PEDALING back to that same place of "What's next?"
and again, I applied the same technique to those moments too. The results were astounding. Instead of looking at the clock wondering how much longer I was gonna be there, instead of turning to my Twitter feed, or playing Words With Friends perpetually, I opened up my computer and I began to write.
By the end of the day, I completed a project that I had been concocting in my head for the last two weeks. Then I remembered my previous post on Reinventing Comfort.
Constant Pedaling friends.
#reinventingcomfort
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