"Getting there is half the fun!"

This is one of my favorite quotes of all time.  Its from one of my favorite movies of all time....National Lampoon's Vacation :)  I often reflect on this quote when I am about 2 hours into a 3 hour bike ride or 8 miles into a 10 mile run.  I even think about it 85 minutes into a hard 90 minute Power Yoga class.  I think about this quote when I begin to question my own sanity when I am out killing it in a workout and my mind and body are screaming to stop!!!! But the main reason that I think about it is because its the training that produces the results on race day and its the training that produces the results in terms of weight loss and getting fit.  You see its the "getting there" that matters most.  Learning to enjoy the training so we can do our best when its GO time is key when it comes to making a healthy lifestyle change. You simply have to learn to find the fun in your training or you'll never stick with it. I remember when I made the commitment to stop smoking and start training for my first 5k at little less that 3 years ago.  I was in pretty decent shape at this point (except for the smoking thing obviously) so I went and and forced myself through 3 miles of running.  I literally thought I was going to die during that first run, but 3 times a week I would go out and make that run until I could push a little faster, a little further.  Then race day came around and I was a nervous wreck not knowing what to expect, but the group energy was incredible.  I felt like a part of something so healthy and so exciting.  Running with 300 other people and feeling that surge at the start of the race had me hooked. After the race was over, I proved to myself that I could do it.  I proved that I could make a goal that initially seemed out of reach for me and then through the "getting there" process, I could achieve it! It had been a couple of years since I had lost all the weight I've lost so I needed a reminder of what achieving a fitness goal felt like.  At this point I had an awakinging.  You see all the misery I went through during the first part of my 5k training was in hindsight such a wonderful experience.  I reminded myself of how tough I can be and how amazing that the human body is!  I began to realize that I was healing the damage that smoking caused to my lungs and at this point, I fell in love with training and the "getting there" part of my journey to health and fitness!  So if you're just getting started with an exercise routine, or even if you're pushing to the next level.....start focusing on the "getting there" part of your own journey and learn to enjoy it!!!!  It's the most important part of living a fit life....for life!