Aerobics and the Uncoordinated Girl

I almost always preface the heart of the matter with a statement, group of statements or story that usually seems a little disconnected at first. You can take this at face value. I personally am of the opinion that it is because I am a woman and as such am inherently interested in details. I am also a bit of a writer- or at least very much a reader and as such I am inherently interested in the history of a story, so here goes... I have always harbored a secret dream-wish. I have always wished that I were a dancer. In my dream-wish I am tall, slender, and graceful. I have a stage presence that captivates audiences and at the end of my dance people stand and applaud my effort. Now in real life, I am five feet-two inches tall on a "tall day". I am not slender- I have been working for a little over 3 months and am proud to report that I have lost 28 1/2 pounds, but I am not now nor will I ever be slender as a dancer is slender. I have grown-up girl curves, and I really am trying to wear them proudly. I could say that I am not graceful, but that wouldn't quite do my lack of grace justice. My husband, whom I love more than life, and loves me the same in return has actually said to me before, "Babe, I swear, if I were you I'd be scared to get out of bed in the morning." EVERY SINGLE MORNING I trip over my keyboard stand. It sits beside my bed; it has for the last 8 months, and every single morning I trip over it. I am constantly stubbing my toe, slipping, or coming face to face with the floor. It's sad, really. Now, as for the stage presence thing, I do sing. I love to lead worship. Singing is my soul's dance. It is my truest act of worship. Singing. Not in a church setting all the time, but I believe (and I don't want to get off subject too far here) that when a person uses his/her talents to glorify God it is the truest and most pure act of worship that person can perform...and it has nothing to do with music. But that is a different blog for a different day.
Now, with all of that being said- I have lost twenty-eight and one-half pounds since the beginning of July. I have been working very hard and been very diligent. There are a few things that I have learned and I'd like to share them. They are work-out tips for the "Uncoordinated Girls", of whom I am the chiefest.
1. Don't try an organized class in a gym. I work at a gym and have access to all of the classes I want to take. I took a class once that a friend of mine was teaching. It was a class with the plastic step where you step up and down, up and down, up and down in various patterns, tempos, and levels of difficulty. It was the first time I'd ever tried something like that (and, in my defense was just getting over a horrible chest cold), so I chose to participate in the BACK of the room. Inside 10 minutes I was panting, sweating, giggling (which was even worse 'cause I didn't know anyone else in the class besides my friend who was teaching), and so hopelessly confused that I left without putting my equipment away. I've never tried another class, but I'm pretty sure that "step" is not for me.
2. Be careful on treadmills. I got an iPod shuffle for my birthday last year, and I love using it while I work-out. Not long ago I was inspired to use that hour on the treadmill to really focus and pray and just spend some time in silent worship. OK...two problems here. The first is that I am a worship leader and for me music is the medium through which I enter into fellowship with God. The second is that I generally have trouble walking on the floor without tripping over nothing. I have a theory that it's because the size of my feet is disproportionate to my height. I wear a size 7 1/2 shoe. That's pretty big feet for a girl who's only 5'2". One day I was listening to my iPod, walking along at 3.9 miles an hour on a 3% incline, and a really great song came on, so I closed my eyes and started to enjoy the beat and the melody and the power of the words. And then (I know it had to be God), I opened my eyes just before I flew off the back of the treadmill. Classic.
3. Try Pilates- I feel that it's the "I'm-know-I'm-never-gonna-be-a-dancer-so-I'll-do-something-that-at-least-makes-me-feel-graceful" work-out. I enjoy pilates, and do it regularly (about 3-4 times a week). I feel like I'm cheating from time to time. I feel graceful, coordinated, strong, capable...Like my dream-wish has finally come true.

And then I walk home and trip over the bottom porch step.