Everyone has an off season, not just dancers, performers, and athletes. During this season, which I find myself currently in, one has to be incredibly self-motivated and self-disciplined in order to stay in shape.
I won't lie, this is REALLY HARD.
I do my hour a day in the morning so that regardless of what happens during the day I at least know I had an hour of cardio. But If I'm going to be open and honest, which I strive to be with you, my readers, I'll have to admit I haven't stretched in days, I haven't been to dance class in a week, and I barely had enough energy to finish my hour. And I feel lousy about it.
Its not that I don't have a thousand excuses, good ones, like school, work, and planning a wedding! But that doesn't change the fact that my first priority is as a dancer. I should be stretching every day, going to classes as often as I can, and hitting the Gym for more that an hour so I can get back to weight training like I know I should.
Its not just us dancers, performers, and athletes. Everyone gets busy, and everyone has times when fitness just can't come first.
I stress the importance of getting in your minimum. I've talked about this before. For everyone, a minimum amount of exercise is going to vary. For me, its an hour of cardio, for others its twenty minutes of a yoga dvd, for you it might be taking stairs to get to your office. Whatever you've set as your minimum, just make sure you get that everyday and you'll at least maintain some level of fitness.
If you find yourself, like me, in a rut where you're stuck on your minimum, here are some ways you can add to it, even on the busiest day of your life:
- go five more minutes. If you're about done, and you know you've hit your minimum mark, just push through for five more minutes. In five minutes, you can burn 50 calories on the elliptical, stretch your entire lower body, or tone one more muscle group. Trust me, it will be an amazing five minutes.
- work out at your desk and/or your work station. Find a minute here, five minutes there, whatever you can get. Do calf raises at a counter, upper torso twists in a desk chair or a couple laps around he office suite/school/building instead of or on a "smoke break." Trust me it adds up.
- You're going to love this one. Finish your workout in bed. Whether this means doing some situps or controlled leg raises in your pj's as you wind down for sleep or getting romantic with your husband or wife before you call it a night, these last minute calories burned are going to make a difference.
Today, I'm determined to stretch when I get off this elliptical, run through the set, work on choreography for my class tomorrow, and take a ballet class. I'm fortunate to have a day off from work today, and I hope that I can get all of this accomplished in between homework and errands.
What do you want to accomplish today?
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