Give them roots and wings

Finally, for the first time in many years, I set a resolution to exercise regularly.

I have always disliked setting exercise resolutions.  The main reason is that I don’t like exercising and I know that I will never keep it.

This year, however, things were different.

It all started because my hubby said that Elkan would need to be able to run the 2.4km within 13 minutes – that was the standard for Secondary school students.  My boy was rather concerned.

Since hubby could not commit to being home early on weekdays to jog with him, and our weekends are already packed, the mother did what a mother would do.  She took on the responsibility of helping the son improve his fitness.

It is great fun for Elkan and Elias to go jogging together.
I enjoy jogging with them.
Although sometimes I feel kinda left out,
because they talk about their own stuff…

Hubby and I also jog occasionally after the children sleep.  It is a great time for us to have deep conversations about many things.  In any case, I really enjoy jogging with him.  He is a very encouraging partner in jogging – he always jogs at my pace, claiming that it is a good pace, and I don’t need to jog fast. He never makes me feel like I am slow or unfit.  Despite his leniency, I found myself jogging faster and for longer distances as the days go by.

Elkan diligently does his sit-ups before the run.
He said : “I like to jog with Daddy because he can teach me the proper way to warm up.
With the warm-ups, I could run much longer and faster without feeling so tired.”
So today, before our jog, he went to do his sit-ups.
(The father is becoming more and more of a hero to him, the older he gets… )

So for this year, I set a resolution to jog at least once a week with Elkan and Elias, and once a week with my hubby.

It has been a really fun January of exercising so far.  For me, I enjoy the bonding time with the children, hubby and family more than anything else.  Gaining fitness along the way is a bonus.

A few days ago we went exercising at about 7:30pm
after Samuel came back from school.
By the time we sat down for dinner, it was already 8pm. But it’s ok.

But being fit really comes in handy, like today when I had to run down the stairs because I just missed the lift, and was already late in picking Samuel up, and last week when I had to make a quick dash to the ATM to withdraw some money.  I was glad I wasn’t panting after the running! Woo Hoo!!

I think I will continue this for a long time 🙂

That’s the power of the mother’s love.  That’s the power of the family.