Fitness Goals? Me? Really?

Ok, yes, I had decided to get off the couch and get my body moving. Yes, I started walking and doing a few strength training exercises with the dumbbells every few days or so. Yes, I even managed to get through a couple Wii Active workouts, but I'd be the first to emphatically tell you that I don't really have any fitness goals, per say. Fitness actually scares me. The words, the actions, the culture. Even fit people intimidate me a bit.

I know that I vowed that 2010 would be the first year of the rest of my healthy living life, but the thought of getting regular exercise for anything other than a calorie burn or muscle building to speed up my metabolism was completely foreign to me. I've never been any good at, or enjoyed, any form of exercise other than dancing in the clubs in college, swimming and maybe some biking when I was in high school before I could get around by car.

Now, I'll be 42 years old this summer and I actually just inadvertently set some fitness goals for myself. Just for the fun of it!!!

I realized this tonight when I found myself going for a bike ride. Not because I had calories to burn since I had already done an intense half hour interval workout today, but because I WANTED to. I just had some extra energy, it was nice out and I realized I wanted to "condition" myself to do longer bike rides with DH this summer. (Never thought I would use the word "condition". Isn't that a fitness term??)

So, I started thinking about all the things DH and I have been excitedly talking about doing together this summer and fall and I realized that I really need to purposefully work at increasing my strength and endurance to enjoy all these activities together. DH is 49 years old and puts me to shame. He's quite fit and strong and I'm done with slowing him down. He's so wonderful and encouraging, patient and tolerant of my uncoordinated and lummox-like floundering but I want to become a fun fitness partner for him.

I've been joining him and the kids playing street hockey games lately and find myself getting into it. Having fun! Playing!

I love the outdoors. I love to swim, I love boating, I love dancing, biking and hiking and walking. I want to do all these things and do them well without feeling like my red, sweaty head is going to pop off from the pressure, my heart pounding out of my chest or my lungs about to explode. I want to keep up. I want to go canoeing on the river from our town's new revitalized river front. I want to go biking along the St. Lawrence River trails. I want to go hiking in the mountains at the cottage. I want to swim across the lake and back any time I want at any speed I want. I want to bike into town and play tennis and bike home again. I want to play street hockey and soccer with my kids without feeling like I'm being "humoured". I want to dance with my BFF's without looking like I should be in the back of an ambulance.

So, I guess that's my epiphany for today. I'm pretty pumped to have come to this realization. I feel like I'm getting closer to becoming truly healthy; not just a few pounds lighter. So I guess I'd better get serious about my "training" if I'm going to meet these new goals!