I went to bed last night with the intention of waking up today and going on a run. It’s 9:30 am, and I’m in my pajamas with no intention of lacing up.
To be fair, yesterday I decided to do run/sprint intervals on a treadmill, which is notorious for leaving me with sore shins the next day. Because the only route I know in Albany is nothing but hills, I need to listen to my body and not pound pavement today. It sounds like an excuse, and maybe it is, but last time I didn’t listen, it was miserable.
So, now what. I sat in bed for over an hour, discussing what my plan was for the day with myself. Go to the gym? Find a new place to run? Lay here some more? I ended up on Pinterest.
I found an article titled “A Celebrity Trainer Shares a Tip That Helped Her Lose 30 Pounds.” I’ve read a ton of them before, they all involve strange foods that I’ve never heard of, or miserable workouts. I’m not looking to lose 30 pounds in 5 days, which is what a lot of these articles claim to provide.
This one was different. It wasn’t revolutionary, but suddenly motivated me (first, to write this post). Her tip was simple: 3 miles or 30 minutes every day. Every day, I have 30 minutes, even when I claim I don’t. I’ve made excuses before, and with October kicking off tomorrow, and just about 1 month until the Disney Wine and Dine Half, here’s a great new challenge for me.
Now that I have a FitBit, it’s easier than ever to track everything I do, including active minutes (read my review here!). My “main goal” used to be burning 2,700 calories/day, but I’m switching it. If I’m going to be serious about this challenge, I need to buckle down and focus on 3o minutes.
Right now, right here, I am going to challenge myself (and you, readers.) to be active for 30 minutes or 3 miles each day. I have a calendar on my fridge reminding me what types of workout I plan to do each day for my half marathon training, and always write down my exercise. That’s a good start. In October, I also want to:
- Drink 64 oz of water/day
- Drink at least 3 cups of green tea/day
- Start each morning with planking or crunches
- Do yoga before bed
My 30 active minutes don’t have to be running. They can be an intense walk, workout video, biking, or a class at the gym. This is a challenge for a reason, but I’m determined to complete it. I’ll be blogging about my progress, as I always do, but if you’re more about graphs and pictures than reading, you can check out my FitBit profile. I’m relying on you, readers, to help keep me going!