Falling in Love With Fitness:
By: Kyra Oeffler
Tags: Fitness, Fitnessmotivation, Journey, Workout

Doing it for ME

I think I can speak for all of us when I say that 2020 was not a fan favorite for everyone. It completely shifted our lives around and did a complete 180 on what we thought would be a normal year. Being sent home from college 3 months early was not something I expected to happen and it impacted my mental and physical health a lot. Normally I would be in the gym 3 times a week and playing pick up 2 times a week for basketball but that plan went out the window the minute we were forced out. It was at that point every unhealthy habit I had picked up over the year, came back to me from March until August. I was staying up until 5 am, sleeping until 12, and eating less than two meals a day but filling up that space with every snack in sight. By no means am I a healthy-eater to begin with but I definitely gained the so-called “quarantine 15”. I was ashamed of it and not being able to see friends really sunk me back into a bad mental state that of which hadn’t been reached in 3 years.

I tried working out with my sister and stepdad but I would always end up in a breakdown, hating the way I felt and never seeing a positive outlook. My relationship with fitness has never been love/hate it’s always been just hate. I would find any excuses not to do it and didn’t enjoy it at all. Friends were my distraction from my own detrimental thoughts and a way to feel good. I tried to feel good and put off that I was feeling the best that I have ever felt. You would have thought I was on cloud nine.

It was all a lie.

Cut to late July/early August, I had just received word that we were going to be able to start practicing in October for basketball and I needed to get my act together quick. I started doing core workouts almost everyday and counting calories but that quickly ended after a small camping trip disrupted that flow and I never looked back.

College had since started back up and I am running almost every day because of basketball and trying to balance school, my physical health, and my mental health while trying to not obtain COVID was a lot. Again, it may have seemed like I was having the best time but I am a master at hiding things. I wasn’t happy with my grades, working out, and again, fighting off the potential for COVID.

Well… come late October… I am COVID positive.

Surprisingly, my time with COVID didn’t hurt my mental health at all but all the “hard work” I put in to be in shape was gone. Which in turn, hurt my mental health. I was so over being at school, I wanted the semester to be over, my grades were not what I wanted them to be and I couldn’t practice because COVID had left my heart a little weak after attacking my body.

Thanksgiving was now coming up and that meant going home. I knew that this also meant I needed to figure out a way to get in shape again to help my health and my heart gain its strength.

So for the first time in my life.. I joined a gym.

On my first day there I had no clue what I was doing. I did some arms and some legs and maybe a core workout and that was it. In that same week, I went 2 more times and started figuring things out more. I saw some old friends I knew and honestly realized no one was watching me or cared what I was doing. It was strange, I had never had this feeling of, “I can’t wait to go to the gym!”, it has never happened for me. I sat down that weekend and came up with a 4-week plan, watched different Youtube videos, and researched different exercises to build the perfect routine.

I am now on week 2 and I go to the gym 5/7 days of the week and love every day. I realized every time that I had to work out before that… it was never for me. For once, I was doing this for me and to feel good about myself. I look in the mirror and see someone on their way to looking how they want to look but just for themself. I see someone who is on their way to being mentally healthy again because they have found a new distraction and a new way to challenge themself.

I feel free. I have fallen in love with researching new exercises, joining fitness groups on Instagram, and following TikTok fitness accounts for guidance and motivation. I am not afraid of being in the gym and I enjoy buying new equipment and outfits to wear while there.

2020 has been a hell of a ride. I started off not knowing where my life was going to end up and I do hope 2021 is significantly better just like the rest of us. I still have a long ways to go, however, I am grateful for my newfound love and I am prepared and excited to take this new journey and make it into something great.

I will end with this. Being afraid is normal and you are not the only one feeling this way. But, taking the first step whether it’s joining the gym, going for a walk, or doing anything that YOU consider fitness is amazing and you are doing great already. I am no fitness or motivational coach but I have some things I want to share, some things I have learned. Everyone is different and everyone’s journey and relationship with fitness or health are different. But do what makes YOU happy, do what makes YOU feel healthy.

Do it for YOU