Exercise and Me, a love-hate relationship

I accept 2013 appears to be a massive learning year for me. Once you begin to slow down and notice things around you there are plenty of opportunities to observe and learn from rather than to respond to. Yesterday I literally sat back and listened to a fantastically beautiful, natural, caring and clever woman telling me that despite her looking A star she can still find flaws with herself. 'It is about toning up' she tells me, because she knows she is not fat in the slightest and she just desires to feel happier with herself.

It was a slap in the face for me. The urge to respond and tell her she is perfect the way she is simmered inside of me - and yes, I did chip in a little and said she didn't have to lose any inches AT ALL. Instead of trying to argue and get the message through to her I decided to accept that I pretty much know this talk. I do it to myself fairly frequently and as the end of my 'time out' from bootcamp approaches it dawns on me how quickly I tend to get sucked into this way of thinking. 'I just want to tone up a bit', yet if I tone up a bit there are still those Giselle Buendchen's and Miranda Kerr's out there who are FLAWLESS (at least in my media distorted view of a perfect female body) and remind me that unless I get a new body I will NEVER look like them.

Does that mean I will NEVER look perfect? Perhaps I will never look like them, but that is not what exercising and eating well ought to be about. When I start finding the flaws on my body and wanting to 'correct' them all I do is not accepting what is. As long as I am running (or burpeeing or planking) after an illusion how can I EVER feel happy? Why can't I feel happy now and do the exercise for fun? The aim I set myself for 2013 is to do the exercise because I enjoy the feel of getting sweaty, being outdoors and having a banter with the group! Luckily Chris Hipsey(http://www.planbfitnesscamps.com/) is quite moderate in his thinking for a personal trainer and fun too, yet there is somewhat a pressure for him to show results. The best result is though that we are smiling and laughing and joking around as well as getting fit.

I am fed up listening to others and myself freaking out over eating cheese or indeed arch enemy No 1 of a superslim physique - chocolate. I get it, it is not great for my body when I eat it. But actually it is much much much worse for me to beat myself up over having some every now and then (and a lot of it if I am having a stressful time - I know now that when I do stuff my face with chocolate that I am in desperate need for down time and it is a way my body tells me to slow down and fast!).

With that thought I begin my '19-day-drop' exercise regime, leaving out the mega-strict food plan that makes me paranoid of eating, trying to ENJOY the 19 days of exercising hard without dropping weight but having fun with it!

Ready for burpees, press up's and renegate rows,
Your Urban Yogi

by Phil Clegg