What’s Your Happy Place?

A recent survey on Air1 (a US worship music station) asked the question: “What makes you happy?”

Guess what one of the top responses was? Exercise.

And there’s good reason. We were created that way.

A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones. (Prov 17; 22)

I hope you’re moving this summer.

I’ve been spending some time in what is my happy place and trying some different things.

And crazy thought: Hey, I should try running again. it’s just a matter of having the right shoes and with all my body balancing education, I should be good to go….

(Sidebar: About 20 years ago, I did run (3 letter word for jog) up to 60 min at a time and once did 2 hours with the dog in Edmonton’s ravine trails.  Eventually my knees said, “Enough, insane one, stop it.”

The biggest thing with running is adequately stretching after, balancing muscles and having good gait and foot placement. You can get away with a lot when your younger but… I won’t finish that statement.

So what would possess me to start now?

Got a new pair of runners (expert fit from the Running Room). A lot of people my age run. There are all kinds of apps to help people do that.
So I did the app starting from square one – “never ran before.” About 3 times a week for 2 weeks, I’d walk 5 min, run 1 min, walk 1 min, rinse and repeat for a total of 20+ minutes, and the last 5 min are walking out. What’s so hard??

Well I was shocked that it wasn’t as easy as I thought.  (I told myself: “Self, you’re running some little hills and not a straightway.”)

All was good until the third week, when the app woman’s voice said “Run 2 minutes” (instead of the 1 min interval).  It didn’t help that it was 38 Celsius.

That was the last time I ran. Self voice said: “Not a fit, Nancy.”  But “Self,” I said, “At least I tried.”

I’ve come to a point in life in many areas when you try something, when it doesn’t work out, that’s ok because at least I tried.

Here’s another story. I loved the idea of paddleboarding –soooo wanted to do that since seeing people paddle board in Hawaii in 2013. So last year July 2020, we bought an 11ft 10 in, Amundson Hawaii – super stable.  I remember that day-  it super hot and first time out, I stood up on it. Glorious!

Paddle boarding is like being one with the water.

So Rick made me a little seat so I could sit  (even that was met with my resistance because I didn’t want my board being crapped up with stuff – just wanted pure board. )

But then that became ok, this is really good (which often happens with me) and I got more and more comfortable with sitting and less and less wanting to stand up.  Yes, we are out in Harrison Mills, British Columbia on the river where the Harrison meets the Chehailus and we do get wind and currents.

Like Martin Short on a Saturday Night Live skit some years ago, “I’m not a very strong swimmer. ”

This year, after doing the sitting thing for a couple of weeks, Coach Rick made me stand up on the board in the calm inlet. Honestly, I didn’t want to do it and did a whole lot of quacking, but it did become easier and I wanted to keep going.

Next step, Rick says, is falling off in deep water and getting back on. This is almost too scary for me even with a life jacket. My Self response was: “That will not be happening.”

I think the older you get, sometimes the things you do when you’re younger without out a care, are way harder.

What I’ve discovered is there are many ways to move and move forward.

Do something that gives you joy and brings your body to life and you will consistently do it. It may be hard in the beginning, but it gets easier.

It’s not about beating yourself into submission (I tried with running but obviously that didn’t work).

And it’s not joy for our own joy’s sake but for the best running of that eternal race to serve others in this earthly body.

Possess, but don’t obsess and put the perishable things into perspective.

It helps to have someone like-minded to give you good basic movement for life based on God’s best for you, to encourage you to move forward– even when you don’t feel like you can or days when you don’t even want to do it.

Someone who can see the way before you when you can’t.

“Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.” 1 Corinthians 9:25