Back in Action

Today, I made a plan. It was time to figure out a daily schedule and to get back into a routine, and I woke up ready to do just that. I've enjoyed my days of relaxing and letting the direction of my day go wherever it wanted, but I was ready to get a bit more regimented. (Recently, a colleague who served in Afghanistan told me that I'd do well in the military. I think she might be right.) 

So, I thought of my list of things I'd like to achieve every day, and ordered them. Here they are:

1. Rest (8 hours of sleep a night is essential, especially because I haven't really built in any time for naps (although that doesn't mean naps are out of the question. But really, do you see me as a "nap" person? Not really.))
2. Read (I've got some incredible books just waiting for me to chomp chomp and digest them)
3. Meditate (one of my favorite things)
4. Exercise (morning walk/jog around my parents' neighborhood with Mom and Winston, evening workout session at Educogym with best buds Tim and Sabrina)
5. Work on the blog
6. Work on the book (yes, I'm working on a book. Yes, about all of this.)
7. Hang out with my friends, colleagues, family
8. Relax (this includes watching movies/TV, playing Lottery Scratchers, painting, cuddling with Winston)
9. Reflect (this includes maybe a little more meditation, chit chatting with God, etc.)

Pretty good plan, right? I thought so.

Today was Day 1 of enacting the plan, and it was pretty awesome. I skimped on meditation, but I'm not going to be too tough on myself about that (I'll resolve to do better tomorrow, of course). I spent a bunch of hours at OMM with my buddies, made good progress on the blog/book, and...most excitingly... 

I WENT BACK TO THE GYM!!

My workout was fantastic. My trainer and Irishman extraordinaire, Wayne, tailored my workout so each exercise was challenging but not so challenging that I had to engage my core/gut at all. I did leg extensions (oh, to feel my quads burn again was a glorious thing!), calf raises, thigh curls (for the hamstrings), bicep curls (welcome to the gun show), tricep press, bench press, and even some cable work for my inner and outer thighs. I didn't manage to break a sweat, but that's nothing new (it takes one hell of a workout to actually make me sweat -- a running joke at the gym (as in, I taunt Wayne about how easy his workouts are)). I did manage to get each set of muscles burning by the end of each set. It was a beautiful thing. I can't wait to get back in there tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, and the next...  

I can't explain how returning to Educogym filled my heart with joy, but it did. 

It's funny, some people want to totally revamp and change their lives after getting the "wake up call" known as cancer. I just want to work hard to get my awesome life back. And do it even better this time.