I woke up this morning sore and stiff. My back, my hip and my neck ached and didn’t want to move. If I had not known better I would have been sure I was 80 or so. After stiffly standing up and hobbling around for a minute I started stretching. Slowly my muscles started to loosen and the pain lessened. I am not 80. I am 33 years old. Evidently, no one told my muscles.

As I was stretching my mind flashed back to my husbands words a few years ago. If you want to lose weight and you want to get active you need to do it now! Once you turn thirty your body will start to change, it will get harder! I know, I know, I would grumble, feeling irritated at him. I had tried to get healthier I would think. It’s just not easy for me like it is for him.

Well, guess what? He was right! It did get harder! I should have started exercising regularly back then. If I had I would be writing a different blog post today.

So, maybe, I should feel depressed and despondent about missing my golden opportunity to get healthy and give up?

Um, no that would be silly. Why? Because we each have today. We can regret our past bad choices, we can make great plans for the future but plan to start tomorrow or we can get out of bed, time on our running shoes and do something!

I remember a quote on the wall at the job I had in college.

“When it hurts more to not change then to change you will change”

The clients there had big problems, heroin addiction, alcoholism, homelessness. Still, the simple phrase is equally true when struggling with our more day to day struggles.

We, each one of us, can be healthier. We can be active. It may be hard but we can do it!

This week I met a man who has been paralyzed for 19 years. He plays wheelchair rugby. He rolls around the neighborhood daily. He is healthy. So, seeing as how my legs work, what’s my excuse?

I don’t have one. So today, I’m going to play soccer with my family for a couple of hours. I’m going to do my planks and work on my arms.

I’m going to choose to be active today.

How about you? Isn’t it a good day to move?

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