This month, we check in with several Calvary ladies to find out how they stay healthy and active. We had many submissions, so we’ll share more next month! In the meantime, seize these summer days and getcha body movin’!
ROSIE THACHER
Will power! Some think of this as a dirty word when it comes to the topic of exercise. But as one who has worked out regularly most of my life, “I will” power plays a leading role. The reason is because many days, I don’t FEEL like raising my heart rate and breaking a sweat! At times “Feeling Power” just isn’t enough. So, making a willful choice, not based on emotions, I get this body moving. What gets my heart pumping faster? As a woman standing at the border ready to cross over to her 70s, I intentionally focus on 3 aspects: cardio, strength, and flexibility/stretching. I engage in all these over the course of a week. Swimming is my primary cardio go to. In addition, my husband and I walk most evenings at a leisurely pace debriefing our day and keeping communication flowing. Twice a week I YouTube or attend a strength class, which is important for my aging bone health. Lastly, I primarily practice Yin Yoga on YouTube to keep me bendable and limber. I don’t beat myself up if I can’t fit yoga into my schedule every week. One thing is certain, “Boy, am I sorry I worked out today” has never crossed my lips. The power of “I did it” feels so good!
JENNA DAIRE
For me, exercise is community. When I moved to the East Coast after college, I knew I wanted to keep my heart healthy and my body active. I was new to formal exercise, and I didn’t want to do it alone. My work schedule determined that the only group fitness class I could join at the local YMCA was Aqua Aerobics with the ‘Silver Hairs’, as they called themselves. They were such an established, tight knit community, yet they invited me to their coffee dates, hosted me at their homes for dinner and threw me a bridal/going away shower when I moved back to Minnesota. Oh how they loved on me that year, and what a beautiful example of community they were. I have learned that I enjoy the challenge of learning something new (like aqua aerobics!), and that the community of people I exercise with matters to me as well. I currently belong to 125 LIVE, and enjoy cycling, pilates and strength classes AND the wonderful people I have met there. It would be so much harder to work out at 6:00 am if I didn’t have such a great community to share the sunrise with!
TENILLE ROUNDS
I work out at Burn Boot Camp five days/week! Burn camps give me a little bit of everything… strength training and cardio, including core, upper body, lower body, burst, plyo, metabolic conditioning, athletic conditioning, and speed & agility (my favorite). The last five years at Burn have changed my life in ways I could not have imagined, and I am thankful for the trainers and amazing community I have found there.
PAM HERMAN
I started golfing three years ago and realized what challenging sport it was. I enjoy a good challenge! We play nine holes and always walk the course. It is so peaceful and beautiful: deer running across the fareway, pretty flowers and trees everywhere and last week we saw baby geese. The exercise is great and the opportunity to enjoy God’s creation is a bonus.
WENDY SPEARY
For the past decade I have been working out, from the comfort of home, with Lindsay Brin of Mom’s Into Fitness. Lindsay loves Jesus and talks about Him being first in her life and making time for devotions and such amidst all the busyness of life. She has a refreshingly healthy outlook on fitness and nutrition that I haven’t found anywhere else and I have access to hundreds of healthy recipes through my membership. There are literally hundreds of workouts I can choose from each day, or she has specific programs I can print off a calendar for and follow without having to even think about my workout for the day. All of her workouts focus on core strength, which is especially needed after those uterine and pelvic muscles get stretched post-baby, even if your youngest baby is 42, it’s never too late! Best of all, since it’s an online membership, I can access my workouts from anywhere, with minimal equipment, so it’s easy to not miss a workout even on vacation!
LAURA KYCEK
I love working out with Beachbody. I can access the workouts anywhere at anytime. Any level of fitness can find a program that works for them. And they provide online groups to connect with, along with nutrition help.
INGRID ANSELL
I love to exercise! I feel like my body loves the fresh air, and I have more energy when I do so regularly. But don’t get me wrong – this 57 year old body doesn’t like doing it in a way that is too strenuous, or by choosing something I hate to do, and just want it to be over with! Walking is my absolute favorite way to exercise – why? Oh, the places you’ll go… I walk most nights with Steve outside after dinner when we can, and on the weekends, we choose a regional or state park, or somewhere closer in town to do a longer walk. I love that we don’t need to spend money to do it, and I can take my walking shoes with me when traveling. We see so much of God’s creation, and interesting places by walking the route, as opposed to driving it (within reason).
Since the winter forces us indoors, I do go to gym, but have purchased the right, warm-enough gear and am walking much more outdoors in winter than I used to. Additionally, my son-in-law got me excited about cross-country skiing as my new winter outdoor love.
BTW – Join other Calvary women on Thursdays at 7:30am through June and July at Bear Creek Trail, and you can walk and chat with a new or older friend – it’s the best, and doesn’t feel like exercise at all!