I call myself a runner but am I actually getting enough exercise?

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We got back from our ski trip and while Brad immediately went into full swing with work and resumed his daily running routine, I kinda collapsed in a heap.

I needed a day off to fully unpack, properly clean and generally potter around. I needed to settle and reconnect with our home.

But gently settling in looked more like "movement" and less like exercise. And it appears my body was healthier and happier when I was skiing for hours every day.

I don't think it was just being at the snow.

I think it was also that my body seems to thrive on a little more exercise than I usually do in my current day-to-day life.

If you've followed me for a while you know I go back and forth on how much exercise I do.

I try having upper body days, lower body days and core days where I'm doing high intensity, short bursts of activity using these body parts spread over one day.

I do it for a while and then I forget.

Earlier in the year I was managing 4-5 runs a week.

Then I was trying to juggle too much.

I attempted to reintroduce these (without the pressure to do a marathon again) but my tapping walks won; they feel like a higher priority.

But with my digestive system sluggish again and my energy levels not where I'd like, Brad and both found ourselves wondering the same thing:

Do I just need to do some more deliberate exercise again?

So my experiment this week will be to track all my strength-focused and mini cardio-focused sessions on my watch and see how many intensity minutes I'm actually getting.

Then I'll have a baseline to work with and I can slowly, deliberately, sustainably grow it from there. Somehow.

Wish me luck.

Photo taken post run, in a beautiful flat location near home. This was our attempt to get me moving again. Man, it was harder than I expected to jog/walk 4km in 33 minutes...

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The weather's looking good. Look forward to hearing how the experiment goes.

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It's lovely and warm; I wore a dress today! But should I really be wearing a dress in August?! Crazy! !LOL

Yes, started experimenting with some ideas today. Not going how I expected!

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...am I actually getting enough exercise?

er dunno, sounds like one of those "how long is a piece of string?" things.

Doesn't help that we are all an experiment of one, and what works for you won't necessarily be right for me and vice versa. And what is right for you now may not be right for you in the future

Sorry, this isn't very helpful is it? Lets try again...

How are you feeling Caroline?

Do you feel like you would like to do some more exercise? Do you feel like you need to do more? Does it help if you have a target to aim for, or does a target take the fun out of it? Do you need something new to try? A new skill, a new sport, a different hobby? Did you enjoy the skiing because of all the exercise, or was it exciting because it had been so long since you last skiied.

I still can't get over snow in Australia by the way, it still blows my mind!

Do you need to stop over analyzing everything and just run? ;-)

As with most of life there is no right or wrong answers to these, it's just a case of what is stimulating to you right here, right now, and going for it

you don't need to answer all these questions, just some things to consider...

So my experiment this week will be to track all my strength-focused and mini cardio-focused sessions on my watch and see how many intensity minutes I'm actually getting.

Stats can help quantify what we're feeling, and the numbers give something to track. I'd recommend journaling as well, just writing how you felt before during and after exercise can help with seeing what works, and what doesn't. Defiantly an area I need to work on as well!

I wish you luck with your tracking this week

!LUV

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Hiiiiii! Man oh man have I been struggling with Hive and kind of life! Longest delay in replying ever! Let me try now...

I said... "am I actually getting enough exercise?"

er dunno, sounds like one of those "how long is a piece of string?" things.

!LOL

Doesn't help that we are all an experiment of one, and what works for you won't necessarily be right for me and vice versa. And what is right for you now may not be right for you in the future

Agreed.

Sorry, this isn't very helpful is it? Lets try again...

=) I smiled. I appreciated this.

How are you feeling Caroline?

My body has been having a really, really tough time since coming back from the ski trip. I've struggled to do much exercise at all and sometimes a 'tapping walk' and going to work + serving my clients has been about all I've been capable of... while simultaneously wishing I was well enough to do all the things!

Do you feel like you would like to do some more exercise? Do you feel like you need to do more? Does it help if you have a target to aim for, or does a target take the fun out of it? Do you need something new to try? A new skill, a new sport, a different hobby? Did you enjoy the skiing because of all the exercise, or was it exciting because it had been so long since you last skiied.

So many questions! My answers, in exact order: Yes; changes day to day; depends on how well I'm feeling: when I'm feeling well, the former, otherwise, the latter; don't need anything new right now; nope, one day, yes, but not now: I'm already doing soooo many new things in my professional life that my brain might explode; both.

I still can't get over snow in Australia by the way, it still blows my mind!

Funny, hey? I guess because I saw snow over here for the first time as a kid I don't think it's that weird but I have always known there was much more snow in other places in the world than our lil' 'ole isolated continent down here ;)

Do you need to stop over analyzing everything and just run? ;-)

Sometiiiiiiimes, yes.

I said: "So my experiment this week will be to track all my strength-focused and mini cardio-focused sessions on my watch and see how many intensity minutes I'm actually getting."

And think I managed to do this just one day before my body went into a temporary melt down.

I wish you luck with your tracking this week

Thank you !LUV I'm glad I'm reading this now because I'm hopeful that I'm over the worst of this thing and I can start to do more actual exercise again. I managed to drag myself through a 33-minute hilly AF parkrun this morning so that's a start.

Hope you are moving well, brother. x

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Hiiiiii! Man oh man have I been struggling with Hive and kind of life! Longest delay in replying ever!

Hello :-) yeah i get the hive thing, I frequently fall in and fall out of it... you are usually super efficient at replying, I was starting to wonder or worry that I had over stepped the mark in some way!

Oh and sorry for the million questions, I didn't expect you to answer all of them, just trying to prompt you to think about some stuff you might not have considered.

You mentioned these two answers:

My body has been having a really, really tough time since coming back from the ski trip. I've struggled to do much exercise at all and sometimes a 'tapping walk' and going to work + serving my clients has been about all I've been capable of... while simultaneously wishing I was well enough to do all the things!

one day, yes, but not now: I'm already doing soooo many new things in my professional life that my brain might explode

Sometimes there is a lot going on, and we just can't do all of it, all of the time. Sometimes we just need to focus on the bits that need to be done. Something that I've learnt in literally the past couple of months is that there is only so much stress the body can cope with, and the body can't differentiate between different types of stress.

At the moment, I'm trying to do stuff at work, chores at home, build up exercising again, give my partner the attention she deserves, and start a new (home learning) course in accountancy. I simply can not get it all done, so all I can do is decide which is most important and deal with the rest later on. And if I don't find a way to prioritize, then that leads to feeling completely overwhelmed to the point where I can't bring myself to do anything!

So if work is super important to you right now, then I guess that take s priority... especially if circumstances have changed, or if you need to so things that are new to you. But then trying to do things/activities for your benefit is important too, just gotta find a way to manage that balancing act

I don't have an answer for that by the way, I'm still trying to work that out!

I'm hopeful that I'm over the worst of this thing and I can start to do more actual exercise again.

That's good to hear :-)

Hope you are moving well, brother. x

er I am for the most part, thank you. It's helped that I've had time off work last week, so feeling pretty relaxed. That will change next week of course, but for now it's all good.

!LUV

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Hi! Delayed reply again...

you are usually super efficient at replying, I was starting to wonder or worry that I had over stepped the mark in some way!

Definitely not. Please feel 100% safe to be your quirky, helpful, inquisitive self. If you ask me a million questions and I'm tired when I see it I'll just take a while to come back to it when I can reply properly. But the sheer fact that you're thoughtful means I'm really not ever worried about you being an asshole. Just be you. If I disappear for chunks or even ever miss a comment from you for some reason please assume it has nothing to do with your awesome self and everything to do with some other factor in my life pulling me attention and energy elsewhere.

Oh and sorry for the million questions, I didn't expect you to answer all of them, just trying to prompt you to think about some stuff you might not have considered.

Again, no worries. I can tell you that I do tend to find a lot of questions tiring. I think my brain struggles to respond and respond and respond like others are designed to. (I'm a Projector in Human Design, if you know anything about this system). But you can ask questions. Maybe just think of the one or two you think are the most important or the most helpful for me to consider. I'm happy to and then also more likely to actually ponder them rather than feel overwhelmed.

Something that I've learnt in literally the past couple of months is that there is only so much stress the body can cope with, and the body can't differentiate between different types of stress.

Agreed. This is something I learned a while ago: stress is just stress to the body, no matter the input or specific type.

At the moment, I'm trying to do stuff at work, chores at home, build up exercising again, give my partner the attention she deserves, and start a new (home learning) course in accountancy. I simply can not get it all done, so all I can do is decide which is most important and deal with the rest later on. And if I don't find a way to prioritize, then that leads to feeling completely overwhelmed to the point where I can't bring myself to do anything!

Sounds like a lot. I'd be tired if I was trying to do all of that too!

Glad you had a week off work. And hope the running is continuing to go okay.

!LUV !LOL !ALIVE

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Definitely not. Please feel 100% safe to be your quirky, helpful, inquisitive self

❤️

Although I will also make a note to rein it in a little lol. I guess I just have a habit of overdoing it with eveything (running, working, eating... and commenting/messaging too). And that goes with really long comments too... I dunno how to stop writing.

Yes, Running is very slow, but currently feeling pretty positive about it... :-)

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And that goes with really long comments too...

I dunno how to stop writing.

!LOL I genuinely laughed out loud when I read this.

Yes, Running is very slow, but currently feeling pretty positive about it... :-)

Glad you're running. This is good.

!LUV

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