Spring Funk

Mother Nature does not seem to be cooperating with me this Spring! Colorado has always had wacky, unpredictable weather (as those of you who were out here in December and experienced our wonderful 60 degree days may have noticed), but this is just plain silly! Snowy rain one day, then 70 the next. And the wind, whew! Recess duty has been quite the adventure as we all try not to get blown away.

But what Mother Nature really seems to be hindering is my recent attempt to get back into outdoor exercise. For a variety of reasons (they really are wonderful excuses), I have allowed myself over the past few years to become more and more inactive. Where I once used to be out running, hiking or biking nearly constantly, I now spend more time sitting on the couch reading or in my computer chair playing games or reading. While I love reading, I have noticed that the lack of exercise has also partnered with a downturn in my moods. Whereas I once used to be consistently perky and energetic, I find myself now to be irritable and grouchy. My poor students now know when I am approaching "Feisty Ladybug" status, as I call it. Then again, my lower moods could be a result of intense stress levels and an unhappy, negative work environment. But, whatever the cause, exercise has always helped me to get out of it.

And, with our family history of anxiety and depression, my grumpier moods have given me pause. Why am I really so blue? So grumpy and grouchy? As some of you may know and some of you probably don't, all of my experiences with Mom have given me a VERY great fear of suffering a mental illness myself. Consequently, I tend to overreact to even the most normal of grouchy or low moments and send myself off into a spiral. The silver lining behind all of this is that I now realize I have sent myself into these low, blue moods and can therefore raise myself out of them.

This gets me back to my original topic, Mother Nature and her wind are making it very hard to exercise outdoors! Has anyone else noticed that starting to get back into exercise is like climbing Mt. Everest barefoot, in one day and without oxygen? It's tough! So, I have set myself some small, very attainable goals - run twice a week for a mile at a time. My plan is to do that for a few weeks and then increase my mileage while also adding in one day of cycling. Hopefully, by the end of the summer I will be running twice a week for a few miles at a time AND cycling twice a week. I was going to try and train for a triathalon or other event, but felt like I just want to exercise for ME, to make ME happy and healthy. And I like that goal.

Today, the weather is cooperating, slightly. It's warm out, but nice and windy. Hopefully I will make it down the street without getting blown away. Wish me luck!