I hereby invite you to dance with me!
Every day I am going to put on some music and dance at least fifteen minutes.
Why Dance?
Modern Overlad Paralysis
Good things come in small stages. If you want to make a positive change in your life, I have learned that feeling overwhelmed because there is just TOO MUCH that is wrong isn't going to help! Ever get paralyzed by thinking oh, I have to vacuum the floor, but first I have to move those boxes, and the laundry, and then I'd better put the laundry away first (or I'm a bad person, because good people put their laundry away right away), and the bird cage needs cleaning, and oh, that stack of books next to the bed should be put away but first I need to move the boxes in front of the bookshelf first and I REALLY ought to vacuum!
I call it orbiting. I orbit around the house trying to get stuff done but everywhere I look I get pulled in a different direction. It seems like there is something urgent in EVERY direction! And I can bustle around from room to room and at the end of two hours have gotten little to nothing done. (Yes, ADD a little!)
Of course your particular overload LOAD might not be house cleaning,it might be getting taxes done, or figuring out where to move, or managing children, or trying to figure out how to survive in general. But no matter the source, at some point you have to TAKE A STEP. And you know what? You can only take one step at a time!
I have gained about 40 lbs over the years since I was young and in shape. Plus I'm flabby from being unable to exercise since I was anemic (and undiagnosed and untreated) for at least three years. That's also how my house got into such a mess. I could barely walk, never mind clean up.
Be that as it may, I want to lose weight and feel better about my body, which I think will help me tackle each of those items on my MASSIVE To-Do List.
The easiest way for me to lose weight is to not make a big deal out of it. And I love to dance! In the past, I have lost weight by dancing, and by golly I'm going to do it again!
Are you with me?
This is ONE step. It's not buying expensive diet food. It's not paying for a gym membership that you aren't going to use. It's doing something for yourself because it's fun and could help you feel better, and might even make you a little bit healthier.
I find that when I take one step like this it tends to snowball. I'm already making an effort to eat better. My particular body chemistry seems to do best on meat and vegetables and very few carbohydrates. So I'm slowly going in that direction again.
But YOU don't have to. You can eat whatever you want to. Whatever works for you is FINE with me!
So here's my plan: put on some music every morning before work and dance for at least fifteen minutes. I'm starting slowly, because I have asthma (and anemia) and so need to work up to longer, and faster dancing.
No matter how far back behind the eight ball you are, I bet you can take one tiny step to feeling better and happier. No mobility? Put on your favorite music and conduct it with wild arm swings! Sing along at the top of your lungs! Head bang! Whatever strikes your fancy as long as you are having fun, that's what matters.
Some of us might want to lose weight. Some of us might want to get our muscles in a little bit better tone. Some of us might just need to take a fifteen minute break once a day to do something enjoyable.
Whatever your goal is, it is perfect.
Let's Support Each Other
Let's share what music we play, and what other things we are doing to help ourselves feel happier and healthier.
We can share our successes and failures, and create a community of support. It's so much easier to deal with the feeling that Everything Is Just Too Much if you have someone to talk to about it!
I am starting a Facebook group called Dance With Me! We could all keep posting on this blog, but a Facebook group is geared toward keeping people in touch, it has better software than a blog.
Oh, and by the way, dancing is FREE!
