My youngest was up before the rest of the house the other morning (pretty much always is) and I stepped outside with my coffee, quickly realizing it was cooler outside the house than in. We’ve been in the middle of what seems like a forever heatwave here, and although I’m very well accustomed to hot, humid weather from living in FL, I am not used to not having a cool house to seek comfort in. It’s been so uncomfortable in the house, which has made it difficult to do my inside workouts. 

I asked my toddler if he wanted to go for a run, and he shouted, “YES!”. It made me chuckle because he is not a fan of sitting in the stroller, he’d much rather be running himself, so I knew he wasn’t quite realizing what that meant for him. So, I made him some breakfast to go, laced up the running sneakers, grabbed my all-time favorite baby purchase ever, my BOB stroller and took off for a run. 

I had forgotten how much I loved running, how mentally it does something different to me than my other workouts. I used to run with my oldest all the time when he was little. I even created a free mommy meet up walk/run group that met twice a week. Running with my oldest became one of my favorite times of the day. But with my second, well everything just became so much more difficult. Something about running that morning, despite the sticky weather, was extremely freeing. Listening to good music, moving my body, being in the fresh air, it almost brought tears to my eyes. It’s amazing when you’re going through some hard times how a simple rush of adrenaline can make all your emotions come pouring out. Pushing that stroller along was so liberating, and as I ran faster and faster, I began to feel stronger and more like myself than I have in weeks. 

The past two years have been such a roller coaster. I’ve stayed somewhat consistent with my fitness routine, but not as nearly as strict as I would have liked. I’ve realized through so much reflection these past 5 months, that I haven’t put my own happiness, my own health first in so long. When your mom, that alone makes that so much more difficult, but when you’re married to someone who is suffering from illness, and not taking care of himself, you spend so much time and energy wanting to get them help. 

Today, I’m recommitting to making my fitness, and wellness journey a number one. It’s time that I start putting myself first. It’s amazing how much stronger internally I feel when I’m pushing my body to do hard things. As much as I miss my home, my friends, and my normal life, I’m choosing to get back to my roots and make some goals to do the things I once loved so much when I lived in New England…. running hills, biking, hiking, and my all-time old favorite, skiing. I am looking forward to pushing my body in new ways over the course of the next year and am certain mentally it will make me stronger too.