Must I?

What I know about exercise:
1. It's good for my health.
2. I have to do it.
3. It sucks (and I hate that word, so I do not use it lightly)!

What makes exercise easier better:
1. Treadmill desk, computer.
2. Fan on high speed.
3. Pool.
4. Nothing else.

I've exercised all my life---even when I didn't realize I was doing it. As a kid, we left the house in the morning and were gone all day. We rode our bikes all over tarnation. We hiked our "incredible journeys" through the woods. We walked far away to get to Burger Chef (ahem, remember that Chrissy?---my cousin who wasn't quite as active as me---told her it was just down the street---she believed me). We climbed trees, we dug our own swimming pool, we dug underground tunnels---all this while playing zillions of "run-around" type games---baseball, football, red rover, etc. Y'all see where I'm going with this. The fact is we are just not as active as we were as kids (and don't get me started on kids today and their inactivity).

Even as an adult, I've exercised. I've walked millions of miles---early morning, I've taken aerobics classes, Jazzercised, dancercised, Curves, worked out at the "Y," had a personal trainer, done water aerobics, bowled, played softball and racket ball (when that was the thing). I've been pretty consistent with my activity level---with lulls here and there. I've always said, we have gotten our money's worth with our soon to be 20 year old treadmill. I wish there was some sort of mileage counter on it to see how many miles we've put on it. (Side note: we're in the process of remodeling our rec room and are incorporating the tread mill in to the decor).

Enter Steph's Eads Family Fitness Challenge. She designed it to get all of us moving. It has really worked---ironically only for the adults!! The kids dropped out pretty early with the exception of Jordan who is helping to carry team Greco. All of us adults are moving more. There's been plenty of "smack" talk---most recently---it's not fair that team Mindy & Justin are in Disney---raising the question---should the activity count if it's fun? 

That brings me to my point. I've never gotten to the point where I thought, "Oh, sweating like a pig, being hotter than hell and suffering with chafing and shin splints is so much fun!" I don't really know what endorphins are, but I don't think they've ever kicked in. I do not know where the "zone" is and therefore have never reached that nirvana. It's just plain hard work. It's not fun. I hate it. There, I've said it.

But, I'll keep doing it. Because I must.