To Run or Not to Run, That is the Question

I woke up yesterday morning with no desire to run.

None. Nadda. Zilch.

I had every intention to run when I went to bed the night before, but I woke up and I just didn’t feel like. Now, had I been on a training plan for a marathon or triathlon I 100% would’ve laced up my shoes, somewhat begrudgingly, and headed out the door questioning why I pay good money to do these damn races and do all this training while others slept, blah, blah, bah.

Instead, I took Topanga to the park for a play with her ball and then came home and did some Pilates as the sunbeams streamed through my windows - it was perfect.

It’s interesting because the old me would’ve felt guilty for not working out, for not running those 5 miles and burning calories so that I could feel a little less crappier about my body. I wasn’t running because I wanted to in that scenario, I was running because I felt that I had to so that I could justify eating breakfast without guilt. So that if I ate a bit of vegan ice cream for dinner that night I wouldn’t feel like I blew my calorie budget for the day. So that I could feel like I was one step closer to not hating myself when I looked in the mirror and saw only flaws and body parts that needed to be fixed.

Because that’s what we do. We listen to the negative voice in our head who makes us feel guilty about what we eat. We bash our body because it looks the wrong way. We compare our body to an image we see in magazines or on social media. And while we know that we all come in different shapes and sizes, we still hold ourselves to the highest standard of achieving our ideal weight, our ideal “thinness”. Ditching the diet mentality is not easy, especially when you’ve grown up in a culture of diets and its all you know. Been there, lived that. But taking little baby steps to move away from diet mentality, being a little less critical of your body and respecting your body for all the good things that it does for you, brings you that much closer to a less exhausting life and one filled with food freedom.

Oh, and guess what? Later that afternoon, when I was feeling antsy and needing to do something away from my computer, I grabbed my running shoes and headed out for a run. But this time I was running because I wanted to. The sun was shining, the warm weather felt amazing on my bare legs and I was smiling the entire time. The freedom to choose is a powerful force.

Share in the comments below what movement you do that makes you feel good. Maybe its a hike in the mountains or a refreshing swim in a pool?

Are you loking to add more movement to your day, but not sure how? Click on the link below and lets talk about how I can help!