Fit is the New Black
With each day that passes, I continue to become more established into a routine. Despite my fairly smoothe adjustment into my new surroundings, the emotional fluctuations are limitless. Within any given hour, I can go from being so happy having talked with my family, to utter sadness realizing that I am not at home with them. That often turns into anger at myself for being the one that put us in this situation. It's almost an hourly cycle. Those that I have grown to trust here, insist that this emotional turbulence is normal for the first 3-4 months. Regardless, I refuse to wait that long. I continually work towards channeling all of these emotions,so instead of them hindering my abilities, they serve as fuel to achieve more.
My answer to all of this has been FITNESS. I have been on an aggressive fitness regimen since the day I walked in. As I have honed in on my weekly fitness schedule, I have developed a plan where I exercise 3 times per day. Aside from the obvious physical and health benefits, it has been my single best answer to controlling these unpredictable emotions. When I first got here, I was working out every morning for almost 2 hours. I remember the high that I got from it with surging endorphans and rushes of adrenaline. I would feel stronger and healthier immediately, but more importantly, I would overall be happier and feel accomplished. It was during this post-workout "rush" where I don't experience those fluctuations in emotions. I still think about all the challenges that my family and I face, but my thought process is much clearer, and the uncontrollable emotions completely dissipate for a few hours after the workout. Ah ha! That is the answer. If that rush of positive vibes lasted for a few hours, then I should be exercising multiple times a daily to keep those positive juices flowing all day long.
So that is what I have done. I start each morning with a run around the track or an hour on the elliptical. Around midday, I would meet up with a couple friends (that are already in top notch physical condition) to do an explosive hour of interval training or circuit training for lean muscle build. Then again after dinner, I would do another hour on the elliptical or a brisk walk around the track. This routine has unquestionably helped. This endorphan rush now seems to last the entire day. I am able to think clearly, tackle my emotions objectively, really allow myself to self-reflect, and establish long term goals I can work towards.
Here is my fitness update 27 days in:
Weight loss: -13.5 pounds
Running: At surrender, I could only run 2 laps (3 laps is a mile). As of yesterday, I was able to do 18 laps nonstop, totaling a 6 mile run in exactly 60 minutes.
Strength: At surrender, I was unable to do a single pull-up, and now I up to 3. My max push-up count at surrender was 16, as of yesterday it has ballooned to 64. I have even started learning how to do a hand stand!
All in all, I am incredibly pleased with my results thus far. And more importantly, I love how it has helped me focus mentally. "Fit" is all I plan to wear from here on out.
