FITNESS ACCORDING TO SHOPPING

Do you ever struggle with pushing yourself to workout? Ever since I can remember I have had a challenging relationship with fitness. Not that I don't like to workout, but I would rather not, if I didn't have to. For many years I have found myself falling in love with a new fitness routine, but after not seeing any dramatic results (like they show in informercials) I would get bored a few months later and dump it. 

While I did stick to a certain workout, what I noticed was that my food consumption would go up. In my mind I looked at fitness as a bank account - you deposit the calories burned to withdraw them later for frivolous eating. I always kept score - Ok, so I did Pilates for an hour, now I can have a guilt-free piece of cake. I never truly enjoyed working out for the sake of working out. 

A few months ago I decided to quit working out as my routine wasn't working out for me. Then, a few weeks ago I started to feel terrible, my back started to hurt and my monthly cramps got intense all due to lack of physical activity. Yes, I was eating well, but I still needed to move my body. 

After much consideration, I decided to commit to a 3-days a week schedule where I would workout, no matter my attitude. The first class back from the hiatus was hard and so was the second, but it was the third (today) that was the toughest and that's where I got my breakthrough that I want to share with you. What I realized  was that just like Carrie from Sex In The City who spent her income on shoes and not her home, I was spending my hard-earned benefits of exercise on foods that were as unnecessary as several pairs of Manolos a week. 

Now, there is nothing wrong with buying Manolos or eating cake, don't get me wrong, but there has to be a balance. Think about shopping - when you get your paycheck, do you spend most of it on necessary things like your mortgage and then a small percentage on fun? Think of your body as your home and your workouts as payment for its maintenance. After all, this is the only body you got and that's where you soul lives. If you want to have an awesome body, then choose to workout and look at it as your "work" to pay for the quality of your "home."

Now I am choosing to use my workouts towards sculpting a stronger body instead of eating something unnecessary. Perhaps with this new approach I will actually start seeing results and that in turn will motivate me to stick to the program. And an occasional piece of Raw Vegan Tiramisu won't hurt the progress!

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