Vita Abundantior -- A Health Analysis

I've been thinking about my health and my body quite a bit in the last few weeks. Not in a bad way, as I've never been one to constantly put myself down or criticize myself (although, as with most women, I think every now in then it's inside of the norm), but more as an analysis of where I am, where I want to be, and how to get there.

Last week I went to the batting cages with the softball team that I'll be playing on for the summer. I haven't played fast-pitch softball in almost two years, though we played about 6 months of slow-pitch in Syracuse. So while I know I'm not super fit for softball, I wasn't expecting to see how weak I felt. I felt like my swing was still pretty good and I was making decent contact with the ball by the end of the evening, but I just felt like I had so little power. In my arms, my hips, and my core.

Then today I want for a run. I've been running a few times since we've been in Colorado and I've felt pretty good on each run, but today my legs just felt heavy. Again, my hips felt weak. So, I started to think about why this might be happening and how I can change things up so I feel stronger.

My conclusion is that, while I am doing more daily active things (like riding my bike to work, hiking once a week), I'm doing less intensive exercise. In college I was a two season athlete with a workout plan for the summer. After I graduated I was dating a college athlete and was still in the mindset of exercising almost every day. In DC I discovered yoga and we joined a gym, which I was adamant about working into our weekly schedule. I also did a lot of walking in DC. And then in Syracuse, I went to spinning and yoga weekly, I ran a couple of races, and I played on softball and kickball teams.

Part of what I was so excited about with our move to Colorado was the active lifestyle mindset of most people who live here. Here biking as a means of transportation is common, people take their three year olds and their dogs on hikes, and families hang out a parks with their kids. As far as vita abundantior goes, I feel like we've done a great job of taking advantage of the opportunities to be active and outside in Denver. But what I think has fallen by the wayside is my attention to overall core strength and fitness. And as a soon to be 28-year old who would like to start a family in the next year or two, its really important to me to be fit and in shape before I get pregnant so I can continue that lifestyle during the pregnancy.

If we had the opportunity to hike four or five times a week I think the fitness would take care of itself, but the fact is, we're happy if we get to fit one hike in per week because of our work schedules. So I need to form a plan to make sure that my overall needs are met, while still making sure that we embrace the Colorado mindset. A good balance is what I need and here are my short term plans for achieving it:

1) I've signed up for two months of sunrise vinyasa yoga classes at the Denver Botanic Gardens. As an employee, I get to go for free, so I'm taking advantage of the opportunity, even though the classes start at 7am.

 2) I'm going to start doing some basic lifting and core exercises each evening while we're watching TV at night.

3) I currently work four days a week and have three off, so I'm going to go for a run, for however long I'm feeling, for two of those days.

4) Weekly bike rides, hiking trips, and organized sports should help round out my week. This fall, I hope to add volleyball to the repertoire.

 I'm really excited to get back to yoga, and perhaps when I get a full time job, I can find a spinning studio to join too. I'll report back on progress as the summer goes along.