It's Worth the Walk, Intro

Four days ago, I completed walking 80 miles while on vacation in my home state of Pennsylvania.  I started that blog just because I enjoyed myself so much on the first day of walking and took so many pictures that I wanted to save the experience for myself and share the experience with others. 

Many people enjoyed that blog, and I found they enjoyed it for about 3 different reasons.

• People who are from "back home" and liked seeing those scenes from the old stomping grounds.
• People who are from Houston (where I now live) and enjoyed seeing pictures from the glorious Pennsylvania countryside.
• People who feel motivated or inspired by just the fact that I'm getting out and walking.

It's for that last group of people (as well as for myself) that I've decided to continue blogging.  I mean, really, if I hadn't made a blog that said I was going to walk 80 miles in 20 days, I'm sorry, but it probably wouldn't have happened!  Making that blog, setting that goal and sharing it with the world helped in a big way to keep me striving toward that goal.  I was focused!  Maybe almost annoying to some, but I was tenacious in hanging onto my determination to finish that 80 miles.  I am really happy with myself that I pulled it off.

My hope is that making THIS blog and setting goals and sharing them with you will continue to motivate me, and if it also inspired YOU, then that is fantastic.  Keeping fit in our world, ladies, is not an easy task.  We are all very, very busy people.



How busy am I?  Well, I may look now like I've got oodles of time on my hands, but come August 15th, Time for this girl is going to be a rare, hot commodity.  School.

In case you haven't heard, I teach elementary music.  My school is in Houston, I report to work by 7:30 and I'm there until at least 3:30.  I also teach 3 after-school clubs; a trumpet group, a choir, and a drumming club.  Additionally, I'm the Fine Arts Team Leader which requires some extra obligations during the month such as meetings after school.  Oh, and I'm also what they call the Campus Technology Rep....I help troubleshoot computers and I attend meetings once per month. 

At work, I am busy.

In case you haven't heard, I am the mother of 2 children.  I have a daughter who is in the marching band.  She has practice every day after school until 5:30, and then she has football games on Fridays.  If she's at band, I am either with her, or I'm in the area.  Because of the school's location in relation to our home, I don't go home until she goes home with me.  In other words, I can't leave for home any sooner than 5:30.  Also for the band, I am the Assistant Uniform Mom, so I'm getting active as a band parent as well. 

My husband and son are waiting for us to come home.  Somehow we have to get dinner.  Somehow homework has to get done.  Somehow laundry has to get done.  Somehow I have to exercise?  Really?

At home, I am busy.

Last Spring when I joined Curves, I was frustrated with fitting my schedule into the gym's schedule.  There were times that I went to the gym, and the gym was closed.  In order to make this less frustrating for me, I put their whole schedule onto a Google calendar and then loaded this calendar onto my phone.  (The calendar is linked on the left if you attend the same Curves and would like to use it.)  That worked out much better for me.  I could easily see when the gym was open in comparison to my availability.

This fall will be interesting.  When I started going to Curves, I didn't have this wicked schedule.  Marching band is only in the Fall.  There will be times that the gym will closed before I can get there. 

My plan is to go work out at a different Curves this is not far from my daughter's school.  I could go there while she is at practice.  I could walk after I get home....somehow...sometime....after dinner is eaten and homework is looked after.  It makes me tired just thinking about it, but it's really important to me, so I will work hard to make it happen, and the point of this blog is to help with the accountability factor. 

Once school starts, I will be victorious if I work out at minimum 3 times per week and meet my 12,000 steps each day.  I would love to work out 4 times per week, but I think those weeks will not be the rule, and I will not be beating myself up if I don't make 4 times.

I plan to create a blog post each Friday at least (perhaps more) and let you know how my week went with my efforts, and how my meeting with my Curves coach went.  I have a few weeks left until school starts, and I'll be letting you know how I'm doing before I go back.  I will be working my butt off until then, getting in all the walking and exercising that I can.  I'll also be able to give you an update on Friday and what weight and inches I lost since I left Texas (if any....sure praying I have!). 

So, until Friday then!