In January/February 2010 (just after the holidays), I received a flyer in the mail from a health center called Lifepointe. I had previously completed 18 cardiac rehabilitation sessions in early fall 2009 at Lifepointe, so I knew it had a reputation for working with people in recovery. My experience had been good. I especially appreciated the focused attention from nurses and health care professionals who gently guided me through the rehab plan. They concentrated on me...what were my needs? This attitude of service seemed promising, and one to which I was not accustomed.
The spring 2010 flier described many different classes: Tai Chi, Arthritis Clinic, Cancer Recovery, Mind-Body, Group Cycling, Aquatic Aerobics, Healthy Kids, Diabetes Education, and a class called Trim & Fit. The Trim & Fit class description reads: Twelve weeks of dietary consultation, exercise and motivation! You receive a 30-minute nutrition consultation and two 45-minute specialized circuit training exercise classes each week! Get Trim & Fit by working with exercise and nutrition experts. $270 for non-members. I kept the flyer around the house for a couple of weeks, hauled it around in my work-bag, called Lifepointe to check on availability and cost, talked with a friend/colleague, talked with my husband, but didn't commit.
Though getting trim and fit is certainly a worthwhile goal, my initial mind-set was not even close. I couldn't imagine registering for the class! First, it was going to cost money, but that was not really an issue. I knew my health is worth it. Second, being morbidly obese makes walking up stairs and getting around quite difficult. I had no sense of my own capacity to "work out" or even to "get trim and fit?" Third, even though exercise had been a daily occurrence during my childhood and adolesence, there was no place to fit exercise in my current work or family life. My nine-year-old daughter goes to piano and swimming lessons outside of school, and participates in many different social activities. Both my husband and I are full-time professionals, sometimes working 50-60 hours/week with lots of travel, and an accompanying lifestyle and social commitments. The time for exercise in this schedule had been wiped off the white board a long time ago.
However, most disabling were my own emotions. The initial feelings of inadequacy and the mental pictures I conjured up were holding me back. I pictured myself as the largest person in the class, the slowest turtle, the one for whom everyone "waits." I pictured the first day; all others would be "trim and fit" and I would be "fat and fat." These "mental images" were my biggest hurdles, keeping me from getting to the first class. What would I be getting into?
Somehow though, despite all the hesitation, I registered for and showed up at Lifepointe for the first class on April 5th, 2010. Indeed its been almost 5 months since that first class, and a lot has happened in this short time. The biggest of which was this commitment to exercise for life. But that, as they say, is the rest of the story!
Submitted on Sunday, August 22, 2010
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