Comfortable With Being Uncomfortable

In level one of the Yoga Meltdown video, Jillian Michaels says to "Get comfortable with being uncomfortable." My first thought to this was that I could handle being uncomfortable for 15 seconds while holding the pose. This weekend I really got to thinking abou that comment. Although she made it while doing a 15 second hold, it really had much more meaning. Of course you are uncomfortable during a workout, otherwise you wouldn't call it "work." But if you are perfectly "comfortable" afterward with no soreness or fatigue, you haven't really worked. It could also be expanded to include diet. If you never let yourself get hungry (not ravenous but a little uncomfortable) you may be over eating. A little discomfort is the brain's signal that it is time to eat. I try not to eat when I am not feeling hungry. I try to only eat until I am not hungry and if I still have that empty feeling that is not really hunger, I grab a bottle of water. I realized this weekend that I have become comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Although I started Sparking on October 19, 2009, I did not focus on exercise until January. Then it was all about the numbers. Miles, calories, minutes; it depended on the challenge I was currently involved in but it was always about the numbers. I would push myself sometimes and be sore then would slow down for a few days because I was too uncomfortable. I got comfortable with my routine. Then one of my Sparkfriends, Julie, started talking about how sore she was while doing a bootcamp program during the summer. I realized it had been a couple of months since I had felt that way. So I pushed a little bit.

Now, I have a slight soreness all of the time. It is not major, just a little "uncomfortable." You know that feeling when you have had an awesome workout and you can feel it. When my routine fails to give me that feeling, I increase the intensity or work the next level. I want to feel it. While I still pay attention to numbers, especially when participating in a challenge, it is not about the numbers but the feeling. If I am not a little sore, I know I did not work as hard as I should have. Not only have I gotten comfortable with being uncomfortable, I enjoy it!