the light turned on

Okay, folks. Not too long ago I complained about how we are on our phones ALL the time and how it's really just terrible. Well, since then, I have been consistently turning my phone off about an hour before bed and I don't know if there is a correlation or if I'm just crazy, but I have actually been waking up feeling less groggy. Everyone already says not to take your phone into your bedroom, so why not take it a step further and turn your phone all the way off before you go to bed. You use it as an alarm? Buy a cheap alarm clock. I am pretty sure mine was like $5.00 from Ikea. This leads me to a quick little complaint I have about the gym that will unlikely ever be resolved to my satisfaction and then I'll write about the light that turned on in me (and I'm hoping it doesn't burn out like it always does).

To everyone at the gym: Get off your damn phone. While you are exercising: stop texting, stop tweeting, stop FACETIMING, stop calling, stop facebooking, stop instagramming. Just stop. Not only are you being rude and disrespectful to the people around you who might get this one hour a day to themselves and not to mention the person you're on the phone with and obviously not giving your full attention, you're also being rude and disrespectful to yourself. Give yourself some time without a screen in front of your face, please. There is nothing worse than being on a treadmill next to someone talking on their cell phone. If you don't have time in the day for yourself where you aren't on the phone, maybe you need to put less on your plate. Oh, I thought of something worse. Someone on a weight machine, resting, just texting away or checking out their Instagram feed. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Power down and do your workout. I understand people use their phones for music cause no one really has an iPod anymore (I do.) but that's fine - put your phone on airplane if you don't use a music app that requires data. Need data? Put your phone on Do Not Disturb so that you're not getting messages through interrupting you. It's simple, really. If I owned a gym, I would literally make you check your phone at the door. Or make the walls of the building so thick, you couldn't use your phone inside. Rant, over.

Now to the good stuff.

Recently, a friend of mine posted this video from an online fitness coach (+Mike Vacanti .. wow I love Google Plus, I can literally find anyone) on her Facebook, which I shared and said:  "I don't usually post much on here but I had to this time. this. this is why I pursued a degree in kinesiology. It's not about having a hot body. It's about living. Plain and simple. And I wish people would get that. I'm grateful my mom was a physically active woman and I'm glad my dad is a physically active man, setting an example for not only his family but also his peers. get out there and move, people." I could literally go on forever. I loved this because exercise has become a fad. It seems as if a very low percentage of people are actually exercising for the health benefits (such as higher self-esteem, lowered stress, stronger bones and muscles, increased energy, continued independent living later in life etc) and simply because they can take a selfie looking good in a mirror with their abs and a pair of lululemon pants that gets them a million likes on Instagram. Seriously?

Recently, I have been seeing a physiotherapist for problems with my back and shoulder. In high school, that was my dream. I wanted to be a sports physiotherapist. Nothing was as cool to me, as being the one responsible for these incredible bodies. Well, university was hard. I got my degree in kinesiology and nearly four years later, I have nothing to show for it. I'm not using my degree in the slightest and it is upsetting to me. So back to where I was going ... Talking with my physio about what I am doing now (programming at a community centre) and what I wanted to do originally (physio, health promotion) reminded me not only that I'm not using my degree in a way I want to, but also that I'm not completely useless. Over the past few years I have considered doing my CSEP (Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology) certifications as well as possibly earning a diploma in pedorthics but I haven't quite gone through with anything. I couldn't tell you why I haven't made any moves, maybe I'm just scared of looking stupid because I've been out of school for a while (not to mention, I wasn't exactly an A student). It's also easy to say I feel like everyone and their dog is taking weekend courses to become personal trainers and have peoples health right in their sweaty little hands - so who is going to show me any respect just because I have a degree? It's great that there are so many people who are in the same mind as me and want to get people moving, don't get me wrong! So long story short, I'm biting the bullet. I am studying to challenge an exam (without taking the course, cause I have a degree.. finally, it's coming in handy) to allow me to take fitness instructing classes. (Something I probably should have done while I was in school, but better late than never.) I am finally realizing that my secret passion for making people exercise (literally made my coworker lunge to the bathroom today and watched security cams to make sure she actually did it) should be put to use. I got a kin degree because I want people to exercise so that they can improve their quality of life and maintain a long life. Not because I want to give everyone and their dog a hot body. That's unrealistic. Every single body is made to do amazing things, but we need to take care of ourselves to be able to do these things. I want people to stop sitting on their phones all day looking at Instagram accounts with photos of 'motivational' pictures of stereotypically athletic, "hot" looking bodies. You have only one body and what you do to it is up to you. Make the best of YOUR body, and stop dreaming about having someone else's.

I am rambling on and on, sorry (Just another reason I should really not procrastinate, and actually work on these posts over several days instead of one night) I just really want people to exercise, and enjoy it and reap the benefits, that's all. So I'm going to go re-learn my whole degree in one paperback textbook that I bought from Kijiji so I can write an exam in two weeks.

Wish me luck and I'll keep you updated!

dream big dreams, be reckless
-L