Make It Work

People always tell me that working out is awesome, that I will come to love it, that there will come a time when I start to look forward to the workouts. That I will crave the workout.

I understand that they believe this, and that maybe, for them it is true.

But let me also say this:

THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN.

There are things in life that I do truly look forward to. Here are some of them:

Happy hour

Friday afternoon

Vacation

Starbucks Pumpkin Lattes

Here are things I do not look forward to, ever:

Lunges

Lifting weights

Having people look at me while I move my uncoordinated self through a series of organized, maniacal dance moves

Any activity that involves an overly chipper person reminding me to breathe

Look, I get that exercise is good for you. I GET IT. But don’t tell me that I’ll come to love it, because I won’t.  That’s not how I’m wired. I’m not trying to be negative, I’m just being honest. Some of us really look forward  to jogging, and some of us can’t wait to have a refreshing nap.  You can guess which group I belong to.

As I said, though, I get that exercise is important.

So I have to trick myself into it.

You might be wondering how that is possible. Well, it’s like this: I like to shop. I like shoes, I like outfits, and I like tshirts. So, I told myself that if I would work out, if I’d give this whole exercise thing a shot, then I could buy myself some cute things.

I might not ever look forward to exercise, but I ALWAYS look forward to new shoes.

Like these:

Laugh all you want, if you feel you must, but these shoes and I will be running about 20 miles this week. This is up from 0 miles a couple of weeks ago.

I still don’t crave or look forward to the workout. I don’t have to. I don’t have to convince myself that I love something in order to do it. I just have to convince myself that there are things that make it worth it. Like being healthier, feeling better, and of course, the promise of new workout wear.

You know, fun shoes DO make everything better.