5 Reasons I’ve Grown To Love Fitness (Spoiler: Vanity ISN’T Number One)

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I’m coming up on my ‘anniversary’ of being a regular “gym-goer”. Or, worker-outer? Does this make me a #fitmom? What’s the term for someone who never thought they’d like to work out, but now, actually looks forward to it?  I don’t even know, I just know over the last year, I’ve seen a lot of changes in myself and I’ve really started to love working out, which is something I NEVER thought I’d say.

Sweat grosses me out and I love my comfort zone (it’s my favorite place to be). These days, however, I wake up excited to hit the gym and I’m really proud of myself for all the hard work I’ve done. As I reflected on the things that have kept me coming back to the gym on the regular, I realized way more than just my body has changed.  There are several other reasons I’ve grown to enjoy this fitness journey. 

Here are the top 5 reasons I’ve grown to love fitness.

1. Bye, Stress. 
Y’all, these classes wear a girl out! When things with H are stressful or I’m feeling overwhelmed, the gym is a big source of release. Endorphins, anyone?! I can get deep in my own head about things and build up situations to be way bigger mountains than they really are, so having something else to focus on helps me keep things in perspective. Getting distracted by whatever class I’m in helps me forget about things for a bit and once I’m finished, my original stressor is way less overwhelming. And it has become fun for me to go, so I’m in a better mood to tackle things at home.

2. Love To Sleep (& Eat) 
Before I got involved at the gym, some part of me was hurting pretty much all the time and I slept like crap. It’s the mom-curse to always be exhausted, but mom running on fumes isn’t good for anybody. Since I’ve gotten more active, I’m sleeping better and I have way more energy during the day. Let’s be clear: I’m still ready to pass out by 8PM, but I’m a lot more productive when I don’t need to crash in the middle of the day.

I have also started eating better. When I’ve had a good workout I am that much more motivated to eat better. And eating better makes me stronger which leads to better results in the gym, so I look forward to going more and challenging myself. And around and around we go. It all starts to feed on itself (see what I did there),  and now I’m proud when I make healthy choices instead of wishing I had ordered pizza instead. I’m still a pizza-holic and have yet to meet a French fry I didn’t like, but now because I’m making healthier choices overall, I’m not kicking myself afterwards either.

 

3. Social Time
I feel like for moms (especially moms of littles), it’s so important to maintain adult relationships, and also challenging at times. Our time in the parenting mailroom if you will can be so isolating. We give, give, give all day and for a long time, and at certain ages it’s a one way relationship. Our days are spent talking about/thinking about/obsessing about our kids and I’ve come to realize I need some time out of that bubble.  

I’m hilarious, but if I’m not joking about stinky feet I don’t get so much as a giggle from my kid. I need somebody over 4 ft tall to appreciate my dazzling Bravo-centric humor & sparkling wit. My gym time has afforded me the opportunity to meet new people. I get a little bit of socializing every day, plus it gives me some extra accountability for when I’m trying to talk myself out of going. When I miss a day, I know I’m going to get a text from somebody checking to see where I am. I think it’s so important for moms to have that social outlet and finding a gym routine has done that for me. And because it’s healthy and good for me, I don’t feel nearly as guilty spending the time and money on myself.

4. Mental Break
Somebody else is in charge. I am a fitness class kind of girl. A) The machines scare me and I have no idea what to do with them. B) I need somebody else to make the decisions. In my mom life, I make 1,002 decisions a day about everything from what’s for dinner (and is it terrible to serve frozen chicken nuggets AGAIN?), to when to take the dog to the groomer, to which load of laundry really can’t wait any longer. If I’m going to the gym, I need it to be easy. I don’t want to have to make any more decisions or plan a workout. I’m tapped out on my decision-making ability and I know I’m not alone! Finding classes that I love has been crucial for me to stick with it and to finally see the results that I never would have found if I tried to work out on my own.

5. Confidence
I was NOT happy with how I looked when I first started going to the gym. I weighed as much as I did when I was 9 months pregnant and none of my clothes were fitting. I was embarrassed that I had gotten so out of shape and was taking such awful care of myself. To be honest, I was also really intimidated to start going to a gym. I was afraid that everybody there would look like fitness models and would judge me for how far away from that I looked. I also hate to push myself out of my comfort zone (my fav place to be, remember??). I was certain that I would look ridiculous, weak, and completely out of my element. But I didn’t experience any of that AT ALL. Completely unfounded fear. Everyone was so nice and they are great about giving suggestions on different ways to do exercises that are right for YOUR body/fitness level. As a newbie, I wasn’t treated any differently from the members who were fitness-pros. 

It took a little while to stop being self-conscious, but I knew that I was on the right track and that was the best motivation I could have. Ultimately, the confidence boost in how I feel about myself, and my confidence that I belong in that gym as much as the next person, has been a huge win for me. 

All we can do is start SOMEWHERE. We are responsible for everyone and everything else, but it’s so important to make the time for us too! It’s not always like flipping a light switch. I had been a member for a couple of months before I started to change up my eating habits and then I really started to see an outward change, but I felt the inner changes pretty quickly. It is hard to stay motivated when life gets in the way, but finding the reasons to stick with it can make all the difference.

Need a gym buddy but don’t know who to call? Message me and we’ll go together! If you want to follow along with more of my craziness, check out my bio below. I’m here as proof that fitness has a place in your mom life.

 

Make sure you tag us on insta @destin30amoms in your gym adventures so we can support you along the way! 

 

2 COMMENTS

  1. I’m a Grand Fitness member and lover, too. (I took my first spin class just this morning and saw Naomi two bikes over!) I’ve really enjoyed the HIIT, spin, and FIRE classes I’ve taken (challenging but not overwhelming) and I, too, appreciate the mental break from planning my own workouts. The schedule offers classes throughout the day (read: nap schedule friendly), and that there are 30-minute classes that offer a quick sweat session and the perfect amount of time for my son to be in Grand Fitness’ child care, which is also fantastic. (Shoutouts to Aurora and Carmen, who keep my mini happy and entertained!)

  2. It was great to see you the other day! How did you like your first spin class?? Sarah is a great teacher! You should join me for Turbo Kick one day!

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