There was a time when I first started working out (and likely during my C25K training) where I couldn’t stand the treadmill. There was NOTHING more annoying than watching time tick down on that darn thing. It felt like when have a leaky faucet and you hear that drip… Chinese water torture, if you will!
Well… lately, I’ve been loving it!
I’ve been on a roll for the past few weeks… rocking that treadmill every single day (or close to it.)
Now, I wish I could say that I’d been highly motivated and just so darn excited to get on the treadmill every day because I love the burn of working out and I love to sweat.
But… I don’t like to lie to my readers.
What’s been getting me on the treadmill every day (and twice on Sundays?)
BOOKS
Yes… Books! I’ve been spending 30-60 minutes every single day on the treadmill READING. I read via eBook, and I take my iPad with me every day. I use the Nook app and blow up the FONT to HUGE (AKA BLIND because I am) size and get my walk on!
The past three books I’ve read have been via this method, and I’ve become that girl at the gym. You know me, I’m the one who laughs out loud… and walks with a big smile on my face. I’m also the one that gasps from time to time when I read something I like. Yep, I’m practically singing out loud to my iPod…. but it’s getting me to the gym consistently, and I’m loving it!
There’s also some days where I’m just not ready to get off the treadmill. I just want to read one more chapter… I just want to see what the character is going to do next, and before I know it, I’m walking an extra 30 minutes.
Here are a few of the books I’ve read recently. I tend to pick books that will bring me growth… and I usually pick books like this one when I’m struggling and need inspiration.
I read Women Food and God by Geneen Roth, and found it to be mostly about food rather than women and God. Or maybe that’s where I focused. Geneen challenged the way we eat and why we eat. She challenges her clients to consider that “Eat to Live” attitude that I wrote about a few days ago. I’d like to read more by Geneen, and to read it in paperback where I can take better notes.
150 Pounds by Kate Rockland was definitely a shift from Women Food and God… I chose this book because it’s about two bloggers! I knew I could relate to their journey to wellness. Shoshanna is an overweight blogger who encourages women to be proud of their bodies, regardless of size, and Alexis is the infamous “Skinny Bitch” blogger who writes that being overweight is disgusting. She and Shoshanna go head to head on Oprah… and create quite the stir within each of them. The books switches back and forth between the lives of these two ladies… and eventually their paths cross again, after dramatic transformations take place.
I loved this one. To me, it was just an easy fun read… and their blogging habits, while vastly different than mine, were highly relatable.
If you’re looking for a light, fun read, check 150 Pounds out!
Right now, I’m reading my all-time favorite book – Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. Re-reading to be exact. I have this book on audiobook and used to listen to it during my long drives in Montana, and I have it in paperback from my first time through. I also have the DVD. Oh, and I now have it on eBook, so I can enjoy it at the gym.
You could say… I’m a fan!
Tonight, I finished the first part of the story: EAT. If you’re not familiar with Eat Pray Love, I’m happy to tell you a little more about it. It’s based upon the true story of Elizabeth Gilbert as she travels to Italy (EAT), India (PRAY), and Indonesia (LOVE.) She spends an entire year abroad, indulging in each of the practices used to describe each country.
I absolutely adore the EAT chapters. Maybe because it includes Italy’s decadent eats… but also because I believe that it could have very easily been called BELIEVE. During this first part, Liz makes herself BELIEVE that she deserves to be happy again. As she travels through Italy eating gelato, pizza, and speaking that beautiful language… we see Liz bloom once again. It’s powerful.
I warn you, I’ll probably talk more about Eat Pray Love this month as I dig deeper into the story. It’s nearly impossible not to talk about something when you find it to be so moving. If you’ve never read it, pick up a copy… and keep me posted on how you like it.
While it’s a little hard to read and do yoga, I am thrilled to get back to the gym tomorrow to start the second part of the story… and just thankful that I have this new motivation!
Do you read when you’re on the treadmill? Most people have a playlist, but do you have any books I should add to my booklist?
[…] Next stop: India! The birthplace of yoga… here we learned about visits to the ashrams, the Taj Mahal, and most memorably, we went on a sensory journey. While we were firmly planted in downward dog, Shelly described the many many different scents we’d experience on an Indian street…. everything from cow to the most delicious curries ever made. She took us to the peaceful pockets of India that I long to visit from my studies of Elizabeth Gilbert’s work Eat Pray Love. […]