Happy Wednesday everyone! On Monday, we talked about whether we need to change how we view exercise. When we were kids, we didn’t think of exercise as a chore. Instead, we got outside and ran, jumped, rode our bikes, and swam just for the pure joy of it.
What were some of the activities you enjoyed when you were a child? We lived out in the country, so we played outside all the time. If you lived in the city, you may have been part of the streetlight generation – when the streetlights came on, you know it was time to go inside. We didn’t have streetlights, so we went in when it got too dark to see.
As we’ve grown older, we may have stopped looking at movement as a gift and started seeing it as a chore. It may have become that thing that we just “don’t have time for” or that we have to “suffer through” in order to get the results we want.
Remembering the joy we got from our ‘play’ activities may help us start to change our feelings around exercise for the better. When we can approach physical activity with joy instead of dread, we’re much more likely to be able to stick with it.
We may not do exactly the same types of activities we did when we were children, but the things we loved then can give us some clues about the types of movement that we enjoy. And if we take a little time to look at how we feel about different types of movement, we can find things that we enjoy.
This week, let’s ask ourselves:
Rather than looking at exercise as a means to an end and engaging in things we hate to do because we think we ‘should’ let’s find things that we can actually enjoy doing. Remember, all movement helps improve our overall wellness.
What was your favorite way to play when you were a child? Do you enjoy exercise now? If so, what’s your favorite way to stay active? If not, how could you change your view of exercise? Please share!
Blessings,
~Terri
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As a child and young adult I was extremely active. I enjoyed movement, it felt amazing to keep as active as possible. But as my illness set it, it did become more of a chore, something I HAD to do instead of wanted to do. I try to remember myself how blessed I am that I still can walk and move rather freely as some are not so blessed…….GREAT question Terry!
Welcome back Wendi – I’ve missed you! Thanks for sharing. I’d say my exercise went along the same path as yours, though I’m starting to actually enjoy doing some exercise again. When we’re living with chronic pain, part of it is finding things that don’t cause our pain to worsen. After that, finding things that we actually enjoy doing can help us be more consistent. I hope you and your family are staying safe and well sweet friend!
Yes! I was going to add the same sentiment. In my case, the spinal cord damage greatly slowed me down, but the real problem is MS fatigue. 😎
This was in response to Wendi. 😎
We played cowboys and indians and built forts in the backyard with blakets over the clothes line. That’s a bit hard these days but I do have a new camera that is going to keep me busy for a long time.
Oooh, nice Melinda! I’m sure that camera will help you want to get out and about to get some fabulous shots. I look forward to seeing some of them on your blog. I’m sure playing cowboys and Indians involved a lot of running around, especially if you played the way we did. I don’t know how we survived some of our childhood games ha ha! Sending hugs your way!
I’ve not done exercise except walking for so many years I could count it on both hands but now with Osteopenia as you well know they want me to do core exercises. But as a child we just played outside all day climbing trees, skipping, walking, cycling all the things that kept us fit not like the young of today.
Thanks so much for sharing Bar! Did they also suggest that you do some exercises like heel drops for your Osteopenia? I hope you’re able to reverse some of your bone loss. We played outside all the time too. We lived out in the country, so we had woods behind our house that we played in all the time. Just think, we were staying in shape and not even thinking about it….. Those were the days! Sending hugs your way!
I love this so much! I love thinking about exercise in the context of what we enjoy and love rather than a “should”. Lately I’ve really loved going walking with my kids. As a kid, I used to love climb trees!
Thank you so much Jenny! Doing things with our kids can really put a new spin on things, can’t it? I’m sure your walks have been much more fun with them. I used to climb trees, too, and sometimes when I look back at how high I climbed, I know I’m blessed to be alive to tell about it. I guess we think we’re invincible when we’re young. 😁 Blessings to you sweet friend!
As a child we had calisthenics every morning in line up at school. It was a painful chore! So that set the mindset for “exercising” for me.
Although, I loved track events & gymnastics seeing these as a joy rather then a chore in PE. So as an adult I still see “exercise” as a chore I force myself to do.
I can’t incorporate track events or gymnastics with my current capacity but I do love walking along the waterfront so that helps 😀
Blessings,
Jennifer
Thanks so much for sharing Jennifer! Ugh…. school calisthenics! I think that ruined exercise for a lot of people. I’m glad you have such a beautiful place to walk. When we lived in Florida, I used to walk along the bay every morning, and that was the best part of my day. I hope you’re doing well sweet friend. Hugs!
Thank you Terri, I do love the water, the songs of the birds, the sun shining & the sweet fragrance of our beautiful spring blooms… 😀 bless you sweet friend!
We really need to understand the importance of exercise, when everything has become so sedentary we shall not stop moving, I too have a post on this topic
Thanks so much for reading and commenting Kajal! Exercise really is key to maintaining our quality of life throughout our lives. I’ll stop by and check out your post soon. Blessings to you!