I get it now

Every time I read one of those reports about a celebrity that says they work out 2 hours a day or that they lost their baby weight because they worked out 5 hours a day, I would think, "Impossible!" "Ridiculous!" "Who could possibly do that? Or want to?" And my thoughts are never about having the time to do it. Now, obviously, your average Joanne worker woman in the U.S. does not have 2-5 hours a day to exercise. But celebrities do. But I always thought, even if I had that much time, I would never, ever exercise that much.

I've seen the light.

I wish I had even 90 minutes to exercise each day. Now, of course, I could stop doing a lot of other things and only work out. I could go in the morning and again at night. I could go at 9 p.m. or some such crazy time if I had something to do after work. But that, my friends, is what we call obsession at best and addiction at worst. And that is not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about leisure. The ability to have a bit more time to walk to and from the gym instead of driving. Or to be able to go for a big, long walk around the JP pond as well as go to yoga class. That kind of thing.

I have been exercising every day for about 3 months now. This is not a long time. A lot of people have been exercising every day for 3 years or 13 years or 30 years. This is not a competition. This is about me, a relatively active person who has also been relatively sedentary for my entire life. Going to the gym every day for 3 months is an accomplishment over here in these parts. And, I am exercising smartly. I vary what I am doing, I don't forget about the value of strength training and weight work, I am trying out new machines (I have a torrid love affair going with the rowing machine and the arc trainer!). I spend between 50 and 60 minutes at the gym most days, mostly at 5:30 or 6 in the morning. I have also managed to fit in 1-2 yoga classes each week most weeks.

Every time I get going, I am just too tired. I just got out of bed, it's still dark, I didn't get to bed until after 10 p.m. The first 5 minutes of whatever I'm doing is killer. But then my heart gets going, and I begin to sweat. My legs feel strong, and the songs on my shuffle never do me wrong. And as I watch the clock, the minutes tick by, I start to get sorry that I'll have to leave soon. I stood there yesterday, holding onto a support pole in my old brewery gym doing a quad stretch and said to myself "This is why Jennifer Aniston can workout so much. Because it feels amazing." It's like drugs. Really. It is. Endorphins are powerful little buggers, living right inside of me. And finally, I've let them out to do their job.

Twelve pounds, a bunch of inches and wearing clothes that haven't fit in over 2 years are side benefits. The real value is in knowing I'm helping my health over the long term. Well, that and the high. I'll never turn down a high.