Building A New Me


I started a workout program this week. Of course I started yesterday, a Monday. I think there is some kind of mental game we play with ourselves about starting things on Mondays. I remember getting a job one time and they wanted me to start on a Thursday. I thought I was going to go into convulsions over it. Thursday!?! You can't start a job on a Thursday, it will mess up my biological clock. I survived it okay, I guess.

So I started this exercise/diet thing. I was very fired up about it LAST WEEK about starting it. Because of my impending nuptials, I thought it would be beneficial to look the part. It is bad enough that my bride to be is considerably younger than me. She is thin - with no effort, also. She thinks I look fine the way I am, but I think she is crazy. That would explain why she would want to marry me in the first place. Putting that in perspective, I guess getting into shape is the least of my worries, but I digress.

After two days of this getting up an hour earlier than usual and lifting weights and/or running, I can honestly report that I am not getting any immediate gratification. It is a double whammy. First of all, getting up earlier just stinks. I never get to bed early so it takes its toll right away. It wouldn't be so bad if I was getting up early for something I was looking forward to - say a fishing trip. Nope, I am getting up early to be miserable. I think it is better to get up early just to watch a movie rather than the masochistic ritual I subject myself to.

I will now expose a piece of propaganda that has been passed around for a long time. The people who are saying that if you get up and exercise in the morning will give you more energy during the day are LYING! I feel miserable, sore and tired. I know that it seems that I have too small a sample size to state this. However, a year or so ago, I got up everyday and ran a couple of miles before work. I was absolutely tired EVERY DAY at work. No energy. It is a scam. If anyone thinks that they should start this kind of thing because they want more energy during the day, they are better off getting up early to watch a movie about getting fit than to actually run down their motor before starting their day.

I know that it seems like I am not going to last with this program of mine. I truthfully had doubts this morning till I ran across this little gem from my daily devotions:

"Many of us suffer from the morbid tendency to be instant "out of season." The season does not refer to time, but to us - 'Be instant in season, out of season," whether we feel like it or not. If we do only what we feel inclined to do, some of us would do nothing forever and ever. There are unemployables in the spiritual domain, spiritually decrepit people, who refuse to do anything unless they are supernaturally inspired. The proof that we are rightly related to God is that we do our best whether we feel inspired or not."

I will continue, if not for me, for my fiancee. If that doesn't do it, I know there is a bigger reason.