Well, I told my husband yesterday that I insisted that we rearrange our schedules so that I would have a regular time to exercise. I didn’t have much luck finding another mom in the neighborhood that was willing to swap child care duties with me so that we could each go to the YMCA. So, dh said that if I wanted to get up early when he does to get the older kids to school, I could go to the YMCA first thing in the morning while he tended to the kids. That way, I could still get back home before his office hours began.
His other suggestion was for me to do it over the lunch hour and that he would get Sarah down for her nap (which usually follows lunch) but I thought that would not allow for flexibility should a business call come in before Sarah is sleeping. So, I decided that mornings were a “go”.
I wasn’t wild about the idea of getting up at 5:15 in the morning, but I did manage to do so today. I was out the door before 6am, small bowl of dry cereal in hand to eat on the way, and returned from the YMCA a little after 7am. It has been a long while since I really exercised there. A few times since starting this journey I took Sarah in a stroller ride around the indoor walking track, but with her in tow never got the opportunity to do anything more than that.
I began on the treadmill, a little slow at first, but gradually worked my way up to 4.0 on the speed and 8.0 on the incline. By the time I reached those settings, I only had about 10 minutes before the cool-down cycle kicked in. (The machines at the Y are programmed to stop after 30 minutes to give other patrons the opportunity to use the machines without waiting too long.)
At the end of the 30 minutes, I was pleasantly fatigued but not pooped. I could have kept going, but was anxious to do one of the weight machines for lower back. The last few days I’ve actually had some strain in my lower back and this machine at the Y always seemed to help it in the past. While waiting for that machine to be available, I walked one lap around the track.
I cranked the weight stack all the way up by putting the pin in the lowest possible hole. My back is very strong! (Wish I could say the same for my knees and left arm!) After 10 reps my back was already feeling a bit better.
Wanting to take full advantage of the time I had planned to spend there, I walked toward the row of elliptical machines. The last time I had used these, I remembered how much greater a workout I had than the treadmill, so I set a reachable goal of 10 minutes on it. When four minutes had elapsed, I was already tired and had my heart rate in the 140s, but I pushed myself harder, determined to make it the full 10 minutes. I did, and at the end, I had reached a heart rate of 153.
I left the Y happy, sweaty, and inspired. Secretly, I also wondered if I would be able to maintain this schedule — the early mornings and all. I’ll try. I’m definitely NOT a morning person!
