Foot forward

I woke up this morning, opened my eyes and felt an overwhelming craving rise up in me. For exercise. EXERCISE! Even crazier than the craving is that I gave in to it and went for workout. Before I had coffee. BEFORE COFFEE!

What the hell is wrong with me?

Sure, I'm a healthy living editor. But as I have said many (many, many) times, that doesn't stop me from writing about flat abs while digging into a bag of Doritos.

OK, that's an exaggeration. I really don't write about flat abs.

Although I am active and try my very best to practice yoga every day, many mornings that mostly involves removing the small child doing Downward Dog underneath me and responding in a Zen-like manner to him barking, "The lady said keep your booty down, Mommy! Not up like your booty is, Mommy!" 

Since my life has been flooding with time, stress and trying very hard not to sob, I've been working out a lot more. I started a fabulous shimmy fitness class that is serving as my introduction to belly dance and is working my hips, abs and lack of coordination like crazy. I've also been walking laps around the park near my house, drowning out the fast-forwarded thoughts with the hardest, loudest music I can find on my iPod into my ear buds while I watch softball players, parents, kids and a whole host of homeless folks in the field and at the playground. 

That exercise is fueling me. Of course, I have always known this is how working out works. But this time, it has helped soothe the thoughts in my head and slowly heal my heart while helping me sleep better, release tension in my shoulders and unfurl some of the stress. When the thoughts start spinning, when I feel the pang of loneliness, I'm taking it as my cue to get into my running shoes and get moving.

I don't have any big agenda other than to feel better. I don't have any goals or great ideas about how to keep the motivation going. I just know that this morning I woke up wanting to work out first thing. And that simultaneous race of blood in my veins and ease of worries in my mind was the perfect way to start my day.

Just in case you also want to moving, kittens:

Here are some other ways I'm taking good care as my heart heals.

Here is a bit about the shoes I am loving to walk -- not teeter -- in.

And here is a a little something-something about pole dancing in the Olympics (possibly the best way to train yourself out of a broken heart evahhhh).