Rhythm and Blues

It seems to happen to me around this time every year…the proverbial winter blues.

It never fails, the once crisp white snow deteriorates into messy brown sludge; my car throws on its winter coat of salt; the jovial snowmen wilt into old age; and my spirits fall along with the mercury in the thermometer.

Often during these bitter months, my will power succumbs to the cold weather and my drive to work out pales in comparison to my desire to curl up on the couch under my fleece blanket.

Mother Nature has flexed her muscles this winter and I, until recently, was letting her win.

Last week, as I was debating whether or not I wanted to work out, I realized that I was fighting a losing battle with my self. I found myself justifying, quite successfully, skipping my workout that day. The sub-zero temperatures simply made it too cold to run outside; the gym is always packed on Mondays (on top of that, I couldn’t fathom the thought of another endless mile to no-where on the treadmill); and, I have done every work out DVD that I own so many times that I can repeat them from memory and, therefore, they can not possibly be doing me any good.

All good reasons, right? I thought so…until, I realized that I had used the same excuses to avoid working out every day that week. I knew from experience that I was on a very slippery slope. If I let myself off the hook every time it was cold outside, I knew that I would soon accept 60-degree temperatures as unbearable conditions and my only form of exercise would be in the form of laps from the couch to the refrigerator.

I needed something new and refreshing. Something to spice up my routine and get me out of this slump I had fallen into.

That afternoon, I decided that I would try out a series featured on FitTV called “All-Star Workouts”. The series rotates trainers and exercise routines. This was just what I needed! I wasn’t sure what the workout would be, but I knew it would be something new and the opportunity to complete it from the comfort and warmth of my home made it difficult to find any legitimate reasons to back out! As the hour approached, I actually found myself growing excited.

Finally, I was ready for my workout. Today’s feature… “Hip Hop Dance”. Let’s just say my excitement ended there. I had to double check to be sure I was on the right channel. Yes, I was about to work out hip hop style.

Now, for those of you who don’t know me, I’m that person who, when forced to showcase my dancing skills in public, breaks out the stereotypical 80’s dance moves (the sprinkler, shopping cart, etc.) to mask my lack of rhythmic skill. I am not the worst dancer, I can keep the beat, but I am certainly not going to win any dance contests!

How bad could this be? I could certainly catch on. At least I thought so until the instructor started going through a dance routine that, I swear, is featured in the latest Britney Spears video. How was this ever going to work?!

I started out very reserved, most likely out of complete embarrassment. Then it hit me…I was home, alone. After a few moments of reassuring myself that no one was watching and there were no hidden cameras filming this for You Tube, I let down my guard. I put everything I had into that workout. I was completely out of step and made up many of my own moves, but it was a good work out and, most importantly, I was having fun! I can’t tell you how hard I laughed at myself! The session lasted only an hour, but I remained positive and upbeat the rest of the day. I had worked out both my body and spirit.

I’m not sure that I will keep hip hop dance in regular rotation, but I now know that I have to incorporate and embrace new and different things into my exercise routine in order to keep me out the rut brought on by the winter blues.