Last night, after procrastinating as long as I possibly could, I finally dragged myself to the workout room and reluctantly hunted online for an exercise video. Ever hear of Jessica Smith? I’ve tried a few of her indoor walking workouts and liked them, so I scanned the titles of her videos on YouTube. One of them caught my eye: “1 Mile Walk and Talk: The Value of Simplicity.”
If you’re looking for a high-impact, intense, leaping-around, sweaty-mess workout, this ain’t it. But it was exactly what I needed last night.
Basically, the Walk and Talk series are low-key workouts, about 15 minutes and one mile long, focused on one topic. They are exactly what they sound like: Jessica talks while you walk together.
I really liked The Value of Simplicity talk. Three of my favorite points from this video are:
- Don’t do any program that doesn’t make you feel better. One size does not fit all. Find a program that helps you feel strong and healthy.
- Follow one course until success…or failure. If something is not working, let it fail, and find a new course.
- Don’t compare someone’s highlight reel to your behind-the-scenes!
I had just mentioned to my husband that I used to enjoy running. Before smart phones, before apps, before Runkeeper, before logging distance to the hundredths of a mile, I liked to just listen to my music, run, and watch the scenery and other people. I liked hunting for great new songs for my mp3 player (how archaic does that sound already?) I didn’t stress about running farther than last time, or oh my god, it took me a few extra minutes to cover that mile. I just ran until I didn’t feel like running anymore, and I called it a day.
Just like Jessica Smith said in this video, if it’s not making me feel better, find a new course. I am not going to track my distance anymore. Sadly, my mp3 player will likely stay in retirement, since my phone can offer up a stopwatch as well as music, but I am just going to run because I want to and not focus on how many miles, how fast.
I am going to take a critical look at everything I am doing and see if I need a new course. The new litmus test: is this making me feel better? If not, it’s time to let it fail and find something new!
Sweat & Sparkle 