neuroticism...and how it keeps us in shape

exercise has always been a sporadic ordeal for me; i'll admit that i succumb to fads with enough eagerness to convince myself each time that i have finally found the solution to my physical slothfulness. in 2003 i spent a summer at the gym with a rotating cardio/weights routine; in 2004 my friend amy and i succumbed to tae bo long enough to start an exercise group at our church; in 2005 i wasted a fortune on the "dance dance revolution" game and dance pads; in 2006 sarah and i wore out our rollerblades on the minneapolis greenway; in 2007 i discovered the elliptical machine; in 2008 we bought ice skates and for a few short months practiced our hockey stops on the flooded local park; and in 2009 i reinvented myself as a backpacker. my emerging philosophy is that exercise fads can be acceptable as long as a new one begins as soon as the old one fades out. and as long as zumba is never on the list.



this year, being too cheap to invest in new equipment, we're back to the basics - jogging - and are, as usual, finding it difficult to remain consistent. the one thing that keeps my running shoes in semi-regular use is this city map and my compulsion to have explored every street, avenue, lane and terrace on it by the time we return to the states. before we go running i plan a route that will allow us to gain at least one new block and greedily mark new gains in black pen upon our return. i've even drawn a little house (top right) to mark our home and a little house with a steeple (top center) to mark our church. on the left of the map is hagley park, a massive section of green space that's as large as the entire city center. at the moment my longest runs will only take me to hagley park and back, but i'm sure it would be a lovely exercise spot for those with the appropriate endurance.



-rachel



personal updates: no job yet but still looking, big youth leadership conference at church this weekend that bryan and i are nervous about (everyone's way behind on the prep but no one else seems to notice!), both of us are speaking in church this month (10 min each), bryan's doing a fantastic job planning a family BBQ event for his internship, and i'm growing restless for another good hike