Kick Start a Great Habit

It’s zero degrees outside. The kids have gone to school. The house is quiet and I’m now faced with one of the hardest decisions of my life…

… Should I take off my fleecy pink checkered pajamas and put on my track pants and sweatshirt in preparation for exercise class or should I simply sit on the couch, drink tea and watch Sunrise with Mel and Kochy. See how difficult this decision is.

But then, as if my body has slipped into autopilot, the TV goes off, my exercise gear goes on and I grab my ‘I’m going to Siberia’ coat. Next thing I know I’m in my car driving in a trance to exercise class. Why? Because I have been doing this now for several weeks and I’ve formed a habit. They say if you do something consistently for more than 21 days it becomes habitual. If I could only get my husband to pick up his jocks and socks for 21 days. The possibilities are endless.

There’s also something very familiar about exercise class. I open the door and walk in; Smiling at me are my pals, Susan and Belinda. We all arrange our exercise mats, have a sip of Evian (actually, its tap water – Evian just sounds more Gwyneth Paltrow) and we get into position.

Skinny Lucy, the instructor who looks Chinese, but has a broader aussie accent than me, welcomes me warmly, before she switches the rap/funk/rock music on and puts me, Susan, Belinda and four Chinese ladies through the most grueling ‘low impact’ exercise hour of our lives. By the end we are screaming for mercy. She works our uppers, our downers, our inners and our outers and with the little energy we have left at the end of the hour, we clap, hand over our eleven bucks and head off for a latte and some Turkish bread. We walk out of that class feeling fantastic.

My decision to exercise came after my one too many attempts to pull my low rise jeans over my ever bulging tummy – the muffin syndrome. Encouraged by Susan and Belinda, I began fart lekking (which you have heard all about), which has now lead to fart lekking and exercise class. Even my eating habits have changed in line with my new found regime. Overall I have more energy, less flat days and even look forward to shopping for outfits.

For those of you thinking about exercise classes or simply getting your body moving, put on your Nike trainers and ‘just do it’. Set your alarm clock half an hour earlier. Get up and get walking. Or, grab some friends and go to exercise class or join a gym. Seriously, if you’re not happy with what you’re looking at in the mirror, exercise for 21 days and you’ll have yourself a great habit! Enjoy.


Nicki Partridge.