The majority of my workouts lately have put a lot of focus on numbers. Hit this speed on the treadmill. Do this many squats. Bring your resistance up by this many points. Pedal at this RPM. Check how high your heart rate is.
There’s nothing wrong with this, in fact a lot of people are super motivated by numbers, being better than their last class, counting every last rep, getting competitive with classmates. For me though I’m simply not motivated by this. I think it’s has to do with the fact that I’m not a competitive person by nature and therefore don’t respond well to fitness classes that are focused on numbers and also have that competitive spirit to them.
Before work this morning I took my first Soul Cycle class in almost a year. I don’t go very often because, well moneys, but when I do get to go it feels like a treat and gives me insta dejavu to the fall after college when I was living in Los Angeles going to Soul Cycle occasionally. After all those number focused classes, it felt good to just sweat for fun. Focus on the music, the rhythm and how I was feeling, but not worry about much more. At the end of class there was nothing to prove- I was a sweaty beast, felt like I got a great workout and that was that. No numbers to look at, no other people to compare my score to.
I had a legit rockstar day at work today which I partially credit to that Soul Cycle class. Okay I’m kind of joking, but still, I do think all them endorphins and those awesome vibes I was filled with before 7AM jump started my rockstar day on the right foot.
I think a lot of us get caught up in those numbers– even I was guilty of torturing myself during half marathon training because of how fast I was or wasn’t running. It ruined the bliss I usually associated with working out. One of the reasons I love working out is because it’s my me time to kick back and “relax”– and I sometimes find myself doing the exact opposite and beating myself up because I’m not hitting certain fitness metrics I want do during the workout.
I dare you to run without thinking about what pace you’re at. Go to a spin class where you have no idea what your RPM is. Take a cardio dance class and get lost in the music. It’s totally okay to just sweat for fun and enjoy it.
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