Physical Education

Phy Ed.  Phys. Ed.  Gym.  It all means the same thing.  Torture.  I'm not sure that there were many things about school as anxiety-provoking as those two words (with the possible exception of the timed math fact quizzes.  Those really stressed me out!!!)  Even just thinking about it now causes an involuntary shudder.  (Ok, it's maybe not THAT bad, but you know what I'm saying.)  I have never been particularly athletically inclined, to put it mildly.  I really loved academic subjects (particularly English) and academic activities.  Sports- not so much.  I have never been tremendously in shape (could that be related to the aversion to physical activity?), but after four kids...well you can imagine.  I have known for a long time that I really need to do something about this, but there are just so many possible excuses, including "I don't want to!"  (Ok, it's not a very good excuse, but it was surprisingly effective.)  I have, on numerous occasions, made the determination that I was going to change this pattern and really get into a habit of working out and getting healthy.  I think there are numerous reasons that I have failed. 
First, I had the wrong motivation.  I have heard many times that if your primary motivation is to lose weight and look better, you are much more likely to fail.  Been there, done that.  I think one of the greatest problems with this singular motivation is the fact that it really does take a while to really see results.  This means that it is really easy to get discouraged and give up.  Again, been there, done that.  
Second, I have heard many, many times that you need to start slowly, especially if you are not used to a lot of physical activity.  The reasons behind this are pretty self-explanatory.  (Can we say burn-out?)  Been there, done that too.  I tend to start out really excited, do too much too soon and burn out before I have really gotten going.  
Third, like I said earlier, there are a LOT of excuses.  As a mom of 4 kids, it's easy to feel too tired, too busy, etc.  These are not great excuses, I know.  I have heard that we make time for what is important to us, and I know that is true.  If exercise was important to me, I wouldn't accept excuses and I would make time.  But it really wasn't all that important to me, and that was the problem.  
Last Saturday, I was at a meeting of our local MOPS group.  The topic of the day was style and fitness.  One of the co-coordinators of our group, Natalie, was sharing during the fitness portion.  (Now, this is a lady who had given birth to a 10-pound baby, their fourth, 3 weeks earlier and looked like she had never birthed a child, ever.)   She talked about how fitness-related resolutions are the number one type of New Year's Resolution and asked people to share ideas on how they make fitness goals work into their schedules and lives.  As a certified Zumba instructor, she then proceeded to lead us all in a short Zumba demonstration.  (That's right...3 weeks after giving birth.  It's just not right!)  :)  
As I looked at her and thought how unfair this all is, I had to face the fact that I am to blame for my current lack of fitness.  But I also came away really inspired by the ways people talked about reaching their fitness goals.  The things that really stuck with me were how people talked about having an accountability partner and getting their kids involved.  It really struck me that I have a wonderful opportunity to put this to work in our family.  
One of my greatest challenges has been trying to find the time to fit in a good workout.  Between school, taking care of and feeding kids, cleaning, laundry, etc it can be hard to carve out a time just for myself.  There is usually some time free for me in the evenings, but exercising right before bed is not really ideal.  I could also try to wake up extra early to exercise before the kids are up, but that just combines two evils and is not exactly a recipe for success.  The idea was brought up at our MOPS meeting of having your kids be your accountability partners.  All of the sudden, the proverbial light bulb went off!  Of course!  I could work out WITH the kids and they would keep me accountable!
So far, our homeschool physical education curriculum has been a little bit lacking.  Twice a month, our homeschool group meets for a shared music and gym time.  Emma also takes dance classes every week.  Timothy has decided that he also wants to try Tae Kwon Do, which I think would be really good for him, but we need to get the details in order.  That has pretty much been the extent of things, other than the running around, biking, climbing, etc that the kids do all the time.  But I could definite see a need, or at very least a good use, for something more.  
At last, I could see all of the pieces coming together.  We have several good workout videos in our home library.  I also learned at MOPS that Netflix has some workout videos.  Not a ton of them, but a nice assortment.  Between these, we should have a nice variety of options to keep us from getting bored.  
Working out with the kids would mean several things.  First of all, it would mean more gym time for our school, which is important (and it does make a difference in how the rest of our day goes).  Second, it makes it MUCH easier to fit into the schedule!  If it is part of our school day, it's easy to make time, rather than trying to carve out a separate time just for me.  Third, it makes it a lot more fun to have someone to work out with!  (Plus, it is SO cute to watch Abby trying to do yoga and salsa!)  Fourth, they really do make great accountability partners!  Every morning, they are just itching to get to our gym time and it actually makes me excited to get moving too.  We are starting out small and working our way up, just the way we are supposed to.  And although I am excited to lose some weight and feel more comfortable in my own skin, that is not my motivation.  Right now, I am motivated by the idea of spending quality time with the kids, doing things that are really good for us: body, mind and spirit.  And when I look at it like that, physical education doesn't make me want to cry anymore. :)