Making Exercise About You

During a dynamic conversation with two of my very cool mommy friends, the subject of exercise came up. One friend said that she had been focusing on other things for a while and needed to get back to her body.

She also pointed out that she didn’t want to start working out again because she was feeling like she had to change her body or the way it looked. “I just need to be able to keep up with my little girl,” she said, “and to give it to my husband good every once in a while!” (Which I think is a rather honest and hilarious reason to exercise!). Another friend of mine, a very passionate Pilates and yoga instructor, mentioned how refreshing it was to hear someone want to exercise just to feel strong and energetic. “It’s amazing,” she pointed out, “how the press never suggests working out just to feel good.

They suggest, making your body tighter, more fit, to make your heart and lungs stronger, to fit into a bathing suit better, to avoid osteoporosis and many other reasons.”

I started thinking through the plethora of exercise inspired writing I see on twitter each day and realized how true my friend’s comment really was. “What people don’t realize,” she continued on, “is that nine times out of ten, if you just leave your apartment, walk around the block and simply move, you will just feel better—no matter what is going on in your body or mind!”

It’s kind of profound when you stop and think about it. We have a million reasons why we should get up and move our body, but perhaps the most simple and compelling reason is likely the last reason we actually get up and do it. What does it take to actually understand that when we get our blood pumping and our muscles moving that our chemistry just changes? That nice cocktail of feel good hormones kick in and our entire mood can transform.

I can attest to this. After way too many nights of broken sleep with my son, my body aches of exhaustion, my vision feels cloudy and nothing sounds more appealing than a date with the couch. But when I force myself to hit a spin class or a yoga class, it’s pretty amazing how I feel my body and state of mind shift. I go from totally lethargic to far more energized, from powerless to powerful and all it took was some movement.

So the next time a workout feels like an impossible task, remind yourself of the very best and most important reason to get up and go. You will feel happier, better, more energized and more like YOU. And what better reason is there than that?

Randi Zinn

Randi Zinn is the founder of Beyond Mom and randizinn.com. Born from her own experience of motherhood, and the desire for a more connected community, Beyond Mom offers mixers, events and retreats for forward-thinking New York moms. She encourages moms to cultivate a life “Beyond Mom”—one that embraces the gifts of motherhood but expresses all that they are as individuals: creators, businesswomen, thinkers, friends and so much more. Randi has partnered with Comptoir Des Cottoniers, SoulCycle, Mio Skincare, TOWN Real Estate, The Mother Company, Body Conceptions and IntenSati. Her writing has appeared in FitBump, Epoch Times and Well Rounded NY. She is a certified yoga instructor through Laughing Lotus NY and has taught since 2008.