Embracing the Sweat

I know I've talked about my love of walking/dislike of running before on this blog. If you don't remember the post or are new to the blog, you can read the post here. I just don't think I have a runners body...at all. But I'm determined to try to become a runner. Yes, i know there are plenty of other ways to get cardio exercise in, and yes, I do some of those regularly. But I'm not giving up on my dream of running.

That being said, on Tuesday night I was at the gym for a 75 minute Hatha Yoga Class (AMAZING, by the way!). After class, I saw the track with all the pretty ellipticals, treadmills, bikes, and stair step machines in the middle of it. I haven't done much running lately, so I decided to give it another shot. What resulted from this quick decision was 4 miles of running and walking, back and forth. Because I ran on the track, I was able to make sure that I split my 4 miles into exactly even halves, giving me a 2 mile walk and 2 mile run. It was WONDERFUL. I know, right? Coming from the mouth of the girl who hates running. I KNOW. But I really did love it. I don't know if I'll ever be the type of person who will write "I went out for an easy 5 mile run" on this blog, and I'm ok with that. I'm choosing to live in the shades of gray in exercise instead of clinging to all or nothing types of thoughts. After these 4 miles, I dutifully foam rolled, and found that when I woke up yesterday, I wasn't even too sore at all. Success on all accounts? I think so.

So where does sweating come in to my run? I was a dancer until college (read: lots of hours of sweating), which I loved. But then I got to college, and my work outs centered around our gym. For some reason, I panicked about the idea of sweating in front of people I didn't know too well. What resulted was me wearing 1 of 2 shirts that didn't really show sweat, and not pushing myself the way I could've. Trust me, I feel a little pathetic even admitting that. Hey- I have a fear of sweat.

I've had enough of it and I'm no longer going to embrace my fear of sweat. Instead, I'm embracing the sweat and working out in WHAT I want in the WAY I want and at the INTENSITY that I want. What's a little sweat going to do, anyways?

Are you afraid of anything at the gym? What has this fear kept you from doing?