In our house, we don’t use the word “hate.” It’s too strong. It’s too damaging. It’s too permanent. However, if I’m being honest, there are a few things I hate.
I hate food and I hate exercise.
I have a love/hate relationship with food that goes back as long as I can remember. I don’t like to prepare food or think about food. I just want it to magically appear when I’m hungry. I’ve told the story many times about making lasagna (twice) and both times forgetting to put in the noodles. The third time I made it, my husband vomited. True story.
Food frustrates me. It takes too much of my brain power and energy. It got worse when I had kids because the doctor said I had to feed them multiple times every day. Good thing they’re so cute.
People who find out about this side of me often ask, “If you don’t cook, what do you make your kids for dinner?” Ummm…. I don’t know. There’s usually plain chicken breast in the crock pot or Saul will jump in and throw something on the grill. I have a repertoire of about 5 solid meals. If Mom’s cooking, that’s what they get.
Okay, enough about food. Onto the second thing I hate: exercise. Yes, I usually feel better after I’ve incorporated some movement into my day. Yes, I understand that I have to find something I love (rollerblading! kayaking! mountain climbing!) so that it doesn’t feel like exercise. My body’s too smart for that, people. It knows it’s exercising.
I have tried running groups and personal trainers and the buddy system. Nope. It’s just not sticking.
So now that I’ve vented about what I hate, let me tell you what I love.
I love my daughter. And she loves Disney World. She’s 13 and she wants to run the Disney half marathon in January of 2019 and she needs me to do it with her. Actually, she wants me to do it with her, which makes me feel awfully special.
I told Jordan there is no way I’m going to be able to run 13.1 miles. I’m 42 years old. My running days are far behind me. Then she reminded me that my mother ran her first FULL marathon on her 60th birthday. What can I say, I come from good genes.
Um…. okay, Jordan. I’ll do it. But I can’t do it alone. And if I’m going to ask my body to start running, then I need to start fueling it with something more substantial than protein bars and Ben & Jerry’s. You have to help me.
So off we went to the grocery store. My cart has never been healthier. See?
Next week I’ll tell you about what happened when I tried to actually cook some of that healthy food. In the meantime, I’m wondering if you want to join me?
There’s a 5K race coming up in Athens on October 15th. If you live out of town, you could run a different race and then report back with how it went!
Or if you have any favorite recipes (5 ingredients or less — I’m still learning…) maybe you’d be willing to share them with me.
With your help, we could banish that word “hate” from my vocabulary forever.
Together, this might even be fun!
