I had an epiphany at Zumba last night. Ok actually I had a few epiphanies!
Let me start by saying that I have a rather large gap of time between work and my zumba class on Monday nights. Enough time to go home....for 20 minutes (but would I leave home to go back out?) There is nothing between work and zumba...it's countryside. So I end up going to the parking lot and sitting there reading or napping for the hour and a half. It wasn't too bad in the summer or early fall. But let me tell you, last night I got COLD and I realized that I couldn't do that too much longer. It left me wondering how to deal with that time.
Welcome epiphany number one! I would drive by zumba and go the extra 10 minutes and go to the gym! I could get to the gym by 4:15-4:20. I would have an hour at the gym.....If I left by 5:15 I would have MORE than plenty time to get back by 5:30 which would leave me a half hour before class to rest and shoot the breeze with my com-padres. Brilliant!
Yes, the thought of doing a workout at the gym and then immediately following it up with a zumba class did make me step back for a few seconds (minutes?) and think. But I quickly decided that of course I could do it. I could do a lighter workout at the gym for that hour. I'm not sure I would want to run for the whole hour but maybe a ride on the exercise bike? Walk on the treadmill? Something less vigorous for sure. Why not? Our bodies are capable of a whole lot more than we give them credit for. As I squatted, lunged, jumped and danced my way through the class, my mind was going a mile a minute. Why? Epiphany number two!!!!
My second epiphany was this? If I run in the morning there is nothing to keep me from doing a lighter workout in the evening. If I'm paying for the gym, why not immerse myself in it fully. I'm usually awake by 6AM. I usually lay around being a bum until such a time that I am required to get up to get ready for work (a few hours sometimes) or until it is do or die time...meaning I have to go run right then and there or risk not having time to complete it and shower before working. (And yes, my coworkers usually appreciate when I shower before work). So get my butt out of bed and to the gym. (On run days if it is nice definitely run outside!) But why can't I swing by the gym some evenings and pick up a second little workout? I'm not saying to go and do anything outrageous and crazy and hurt myself....but why not?
You see.....a few weeks back I drew a line in the sand and said I was going to lose a set amount of weight before Christmas. It was a lofty goal of 25 pounds in something like 10 weeks. I have 6 weeks and about 18 pounds left to lose to make that goal. YIKES! I better get cracking!
So last night before turning off the light and calling it a night, I set my alarm for 6AM. I knew running outside would be iffy because they were calling for rain....but not worries, the gym is just a few minutes away. I woke up and boy did I NOT want to go. I was feeling miserable and sorry for myself (yeah yeah yeah...shush up...I'm allowed those days...the cycle affects it somewhat too!). But after just a few minutes in bed I drug myself up and got ready to run. I had checked the weather and it looked like I would have a window until about 8AM to avoid the rain.....I was running on the roads! WOO HOOO! I made it upstairs and looked outside....drizzling. Hmmmm...I don't mind running in the rain when it's 80 or 90 degrees outside...but when the temp is 40 degrees? When I have access to a treadmill? I changed my plans and went to the gym.
I had set a plan of 3 miles. I started and ran the first two miles at my normal pace. I so wanted to stop when I hit the two mile mark. In fact, I actually slowed to a walk and had almost mostly decided to call it quits, or at the bare minimum walk out the last mile. But then I started to think about how long it would take to walk that mile. I also started to think about how I had set a 3 mile goal. So after just a tenth of a mile of walking I cranked it back up to my running pace. The minutes were dragging. And then I had another wonderful epiphany!!! If I run faster, I can get the torture over with that much quicker! So I cranked up the speed even further! One more time I cranked it up further. Admittedly, I would run at my fast clip one or two tenths of a mile and then I would have to back it down a bit....but after just a few seconds of respite, I would crank it back up. I wanted to be DONE! And done I was.....after a little bit of sweat and torture. But ok, I can see how this will be to my advantage to push myself faster to get it done with as I have to fall back on treadmill runs!