Stretching

I. HATE. STRETCHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Could I be any more specific?!?!?  I HATE HATE HATE stretching!!!

I know why you have to do it - I just hate it.  I don't mind stretching before I work out - but the after-work-out stretch is worse than the workout to me. 

This post really isn't about stretching... I just wanted to vent for a minute.  ha ha ha ha ha

It's actually about doing exercises right.  It's ESSENTIAL to follow exercises perfectly and make sure you don't cut corners.  Cutting corners is WAAAAAY worse in the long run.  If exercise is painful... wait, exercise is ALWAYS painful.  ha ha - but it shouldn't REALLY hurt.  It should stretch your muscles, pull your muscles, make you hurt in a good way... but should never rip, tear, or send shooting pain up any part of your body.  It's very important to stop IMMEDIATELY if you are hurting.

That should seem pretty obvious.  What isn't as obvious is doing an exercise the wrong way that will hurt a few days later.  Case in point... I don't have ab muscles.  They're there, but they are TINY!!  Not to mention, 3 pregnancies and 3 C-sections have really taken their toll on my already non-existent abs.  I really am not that strong when it comes to ab exercises.  I'm working on it.  Especially since I know that having a strong core helps your entire body.  You have better balance, better posture, your back won't hurt as much, etc.  A strong core helps you all the way around!

But for right now, I'm still very weak in my core.  We were doing ab workouts on Thursday after our normal step aerobics.  The combination of having already been killed on the step (we did some high intensity intervals), and not having an ab muscles, I was done!  Course I couldn't look like a wimp in front of the rest of the class, right?? :) :)  So I pushed through it, but used more of my back to twist and pull rather than my abs. 

Saturday morning, I woke up and couldn't even move.  My lower back hurt SOOOOOO bad.  I thought I was going to die.  Tony was around for about 5 minutes - so he rubbed my back for a few minutes before he had to leave.  It hurt like the dickens!!  Fortunately, it warmed my muscles up enough that I could move.  But I seriously have been paying for "showing off in the wrong way!" :)

There are 2 problems with what I did.  First, I was in a lot of pain.  But second, it COULD have been a lot worse!!  If you aren't doing stretches and workouts properly, you can severely damage your muscles.  Which then makes it so you can't work out in the future - which then makes you frustrated because you can't meet your goals - which then leads to eating more junk food to try and feel better - which then leads to more weight gain and no way to work it off......  yeah, it's a vicious cycle!!!

Note to self - to keep from severely hurting yourself in the future.... learn when to call Uncle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!