Exercising Outside the Box

A few weeks ago I was asked if I wanted to participate in a Hockey Moms hockey program. Believe it or not, there were no criteria for inclusion. I gave it some thought, and though I have only ever skated on figure skates (a long time ago I might add) and I’m not really a team sports kind of gal, I decided to give it a try.

Every Sunday evening I now suit up in full hockey gear, and with a slight bit (OK a lot!) of apprehension get on the ice to learn the fundamentals of ice hockey with forty other hockey moms!

This is definitely outside my comfort zone and far from any exercise or fitness activity I would have ever dreamed I would be doing. It made me think a lot about how many clients, friends and colleagues I know who dread their exercise and stick with the “same old same old” routine. A big part of that can be attributed to not wanting to embarrass ourselves when we don’t have the skill set or confidence to meet our own personal expectations for performance. Understandably, no one likes to look bad in front of others or appear inadequate.

Unfortunately, this can be a limiting factor in enjoying an array of fitness experiences that could ultimately stimulate our minds as well as allow our bodies to move in new ways. We need variety, not only to keep us interested and engaged but also to prevent repetitive movement and overuse injuries to our joints and connective tissue.

At the beginning of July, I launched “Try Something New in Fitness” to encourage my clients to branch out. The response has been overwhelming. Often there’s a pause to contemplate exactly what that might be, along with a little rationalizing about why it’s not possible. But now the ideas are flowing. I’m receiving pictures of clients on horseback, kayaking, hiking, swimming, learning to ride a bike outside, and playing tennis. For most, these are activities they have never done before or had done long ago and have always wanted to participate in again.

LadyDocs very own Dr. Seidelman took my challenge and learned to Stand Up Paddle on the canal at Great Falls just this past week. We were a small group of women which made it very comfortable and supportive, and by the end of the lesson, we were all proficient at our paddle strokes and safety skills. We had a great time!

The gym and structured exercise hold great value for our health, but true wellness comes when we find that perfect activity we love – that gives us that twinge of apprehension along with the excitement that we can’t wait to do it again! I would like to extend this challenge to all of the LadyDocsCornerCafe readers and contributors to also “Try Something New in Fitness” this month. At the very least give it some thought and visualize yourself engaged in an activity you’ve always wanted to do.

If you’ve been inspired to try something new, please help to inspire others and share what you are doing by posting your activity in the Comments section!

*In the photo below, Dr. Seidelman is far left and Jody Miller is second from right.

For individual questions you may contact Jody Miller at [email protected], or (301) 299-6586