A Tale of Two Exercises

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​Everyone worries about getting in their steps to keep their wristband happy. I on the other hand get all kinds of exercise at work, at least mentally. For example, just the other day I jumped at the chance to take on more work. There was a new project and I told my boss I would run with it and take all the steps necessary to get it done. There were all kinds of planning meetings that resulted in a lot of action items.  Conveniently, most of them were assigned to me. So, once I did a burpee (excuse me) I got into warrior position and prepared to attack the work at hand.

I did some heavy lifting to get things done. I worked most nights and became exhausted. It didn’t help that I was always running at the mouth and my mind was racing. Even tired, I thought I was strong enough to hold a thought, but even that was too much for me. I felt like I was walking on edge; in fact, I was run ragged. I had hit my plateau. Luckily, my strength training paid off and I found an energy reserve I didn’t know I had. I pulled myself together and was able to bounce back and keep going.

Suddenly I was no longer running on empty. Instead, I was walking on sunshine. (Can you hear it?) I was invigorated and felt like I could run a marathon because I was on the home stretch. In fact, I wanted to sprint to the finish. The end of the project was in sight and I was proud of what I had achieved. I had learned the power of inner strength and perseverance. I felt good about myself because I had risen to the challenge and succeeded.

To reward myself, I took a few days off work to cool down from my workout. I looked in the mirror and held my head high. I liked the newfound confidence in the woman that looked back at me. 

You may ask yourself what this story is about. Is it about a woman who tries new things by challenging herself at work? Is it about someone who pushes herself to work out, even when she is tired, so that she can get into better shape? The answer is “Yes”. It's about both. Trying new things to exercise your mind and body can have the same result…a newfound confidence.

There is more than one way to get out of shape. Take the time to move outside your comfort zone. You may be surprised by how much you achieve.