My great-grandma made this scary witch...

In general, I don’t like fear as a motivator.  I prefer positive, encouraging things.  However, since it is Halloween, here is a list of scary things that keep me exercising.

• Death.  That would be the big one.  Doing cardio helps prolong life by keeping my heart and lungs healthy.

• Depression.  Moving, especially moving outside, boosts mood.

• Dementia.  Exercise is good for the brain.  Since I intend to live a long time, I would like to do that living independently and with my faculties intact, thank you very much.

• Bears.  In the unlikely event that I ever encounter bears, it is my goal to make a valiant effort to run away.  Practice will help with that.  Please do not tell me that running away is not the right answer for evading bears.  I need faith, no matter how misguided.

Bad decisions, good stories

It is news to no one that we sometimes make bad decisions.  That’s just life.  We are not perfect and, if we were, we would have no stories to tell, which would be pretty darn awful.

Good stories come out of what we do after we make bad decisions.  When we realize that we are lost, or that we shouldn’t have said that thing, or had that third drink, or sat on the couch for an entire week and we decide to do something about it, we move into the protagonist space.  We have an obstacle and we get to overcome it.  Sure, the obstacle may not look like a dragon or a mountain.  Maybe our personal monster looks like a pair of too-tight jeans or a pile of empty soda cans.  No matter what it looks like, the way to win is to start working.

Step one might be as simple as standing up.  Maybe we make a call to a friend.  Maybe we go for a walk.  If we don’t know what step one is, we can ask.

I’m here for goal-setting and non-couch-sitting if anyone needs me!

Monday Workout: On balance...

We continue to work on balance this week, this time in the form of single leg squats and round lunges.  Asymmetric and direction-changing exercises help us cope with real life, which does not always happen evenly and rectilinearly!  Three rounds.

mountain climbers	30
1 leg squats	20
round lunges	10
kb swings	30
kb twists	20
kb 8s or overyets	10
plyojacks/jacks/mod jacks	30
skullcrushers	20
pretty princesses	10