How has exercise improved your life?

Well, for more of my life than not I was generally fairly fit - just an active person who had physical jobs and active hobbies.

Then, I got the dreaded professional desk job. My days were long, stress was high(er), and my activity was minimal.

I was getting into the motorcycle racing thing though, and I got to a point where my fitness (or better, lack thereof) was holding me back - I was too weak, and got tired too easily, to go any faster. I decided to make fitness a priority.

I won't lie - it pretty much sucked. I was so out of shape I couldn't jog for so much as 5 minutes. But, I decided to "embrace the suck" and push through anyways. Eventually made some great progress and even started to somewhat enjoy the workouts.

Few bumps along the way (mostly my badly broken leg that set me back the better part of 2 years with life-long limitations), but I'm about back to where I was when that happened, and my racing is getting back on track as well.

Exercise is also key for helping me lose weight - it's slow (since to me my fitness is more important), but I've had a general, overall, slow loss, and exercise let's me eat enough where I at least feel like my meals are "meals." As an otherwise inactive 40+ female, eating to lose weight without exercise means little to no food LOL - and darn it, I like to eat!

Like someone else, I honestly can't say that I "love" working out or getting up for the gym every day. I do it because of what it allows me to do - and is a very important key to the next steps.

I am going through a stressful time this past month.

I walked into my yoga studio Friday and unconsciously heaved a big noisy sigh. Everyone looked up. All I could think to say was “It’s my safe space sigh.”

That pretty much sums it up for me. Excercise represents freedom from worry, sunshine, fresh air, bird and cricket song, focus, smelly mats, sweat, satisfaction at job accomplished, and - most of all - the opportunity to just simply be me, and not what people who do not respect me project onto me.

I am more confident and happier. I take risks and push myself. It has led to world travel and making friends in every corner of the planet.

I joined a global group called "My Peak Challenge (MPC)" a few years ago. It started me on a journey to better overall health, mentally and physically. I met local Peakers who challenged me to do things I had never done before...like running a half marathon, hiking the Scottish Highlands, and participating in Highland Games. I have made friends from all over including Scotland, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Columbia, Australia, Japan, and England.

It has also changed my self title from "overweight" to "athlete". After an accident led to dozens of surgeries and weight gain, I was immobile and constantly in pain. I joined MPC and made small changes until finally one day, I didn't hurt. Then, I started making big changes. As noted before, I was challenged by one of my Peaker friends to participate in a Highland Games competition (there may have been whisky involved). I had never thrown in my life...not high school track, nothing. My son had been a high school thrower and had some contacts. I got in touch with his old throw coach to get some pointers. He had never participated in or watched a Highland Games so we kind of learned the sport together. I had to practice with high school and college kids because that was the only time he had available. Here I am 51 practicing stone throwing and hammer throws with teenagers. Turns out, I didn't suck. I did pretty well in my first competition. I thought it was going to be a one and done challenge but I really like it! I keep practicing and keep showing up at competitions. The kids still like trying out my weird implements and continue to cheer me on. One day, one of them gave me a compliment about my progress. I joked it off and made a comment about how I'd be happier if I could improve how I look in a kilt. One of the boys (who is also a friend of my sons) said something that changed my mindset. He said, "Stop doing that to yourself! You see a person in the mirror that doesn't look the way you want. I see a thrower. I see an athlete." Imagine that! A teenager saw me as an athlete. ME!!! I didn't expect wisdom from a 19 year old but thank you to Matt Brady, UConn thrower for teaching me a life lesson. I am an athlete.

I think that all too often, people just have a very myopic view of "exercise" and what "exercise" is and what you're "supposed" to do...and I was certainly in that boat years ago trying to force myself to do certain things because that's what I though you were "supposed" to do.

I tried for many months to be a runner because I saw healthy and fit people out running and I thought that's what you were supposed to do. I spent months going to the gym and droning away on a treadmill or stationary bike or elliptical because I thought that's what you were supposed to do. I tried jumping around my living room to some workout DVDs...group boot camp classes, etc...because I thought that's what you're supposed to do. I didn't enjoy any of that and it was nothing but a chore.

One day, pretty much out of the blue I was sitting around bored at the house and decided to dust off my old jalopy of a bike that had been sitting in the garage and I just went for a ride on a whim. It was fun, and I wasn't thinking about it in terms of "exercise" or a "workout"...I was just out on a ride having fun. A couple weekends later my wife and I saw a flyer for a local bike and wine tasting tour and just thought that sounded fun...it was. That's about the time I dumped the stationary cardio equipment and running and just started riding my bike...a lot.

I enjoyed it so much that I decided to invest in a nice bicycle which enhanced my enjoyment even more...it was a CX bike and I bought it because I live in a somewhat rural area with mixed terrain and figured that was my best bet. Shortly after my dad passed from complications of type II I signed up for the Tour de Cure and put some slicks on my cross bike and started training road. I liked it so much that a couple years later I invested in a nice carbon road bike. More recently I purchased a mountain bike and have been hitting that mountain trails in the foothills of the Sandias on weekends and having a blast.

Over the last 6 to 7 years I've engaged in a number of physical activities from hiking to rock climbing to kayaking, etc and I rarely think of these things as "exercise"...it's just me being out there and living life and enjoying the great outdoors. To that end, regular physical activity has given me the level of fitness necessary to do these things that I always thought would be fun, but I was too out of shape to really do and enjoy.

I hit the weight room 2x per week, and that's about the only thing I do that I consciously think of as "exercise" or a "workout"...everything else is just hella fun.