Well, the marathon was over a week ago. Before then, the race was a motivating factor to get out and run regularly. Now, I’m wondering: What’s next? What do I want to do now? How do I motivate myself to do something? When I used to have a gym membership, going to the gym was easy, but I don’t have that any more. Running is great, but it’s getting too cold for that.
In trying to figure out what do next, I thought about why I want to exercise. I came up with a list of general goals:
- gain strength
- increase flexibility
- lose fat
- reduce stress
- improve focus and concentration
- improve cardiovascular fitness
This is a rather daunting list of requirements! When I think about all that, I feel overwhelmed and end up doing nothing, because that’s just too much to do!
But yesterday in my yoga class, I had an epiphany: This one activity, yoga, would actually help me with four of those six goals:
- increase flexibility: There’s plenty of stretching required for yoga, no question!
- gain strength: The form of yoga that I practice is called Ashtanga Yoga. It’s one of the more vigorous forms of yoga, and many of the movements and poses do require a lot of strength.
- reduce stress: I find yoga to be very relaxing, and I know from experience that when I do get regular exercise, I sleep better and feel better all-around.
- improve focus and concentration: For me, yoga is a form of active meditation. On a good day, my full attention is on the yoga itself: my mind doesn’t wander to other thoughts. This is meditation, and research has shown that regular meditation improves the ability to concentrate.
Now I’m very inspired! I can do yoga at home, any time, in a pretty small amount of space. All I need is comfortable clothing and a yoga mat, which I have (heck, a towel would do). I was so inspired that I started today: This morning, I did 40 minutes of yoga in my kitchen before breakfast. It felt great! So, this is my new goal: daily yoga. We’ll see where it takes me.
So, what’s next for you?