It’s taken me awhile to get to a point in my life that I have a good routine going around staying active. Through all of my growing up years up through high school, being active was just simply part of life. I was a dancer, and spent sometimes 20 hours a week at the dance studio. But like so many, college came, and that routine went away, and it took me awhile to figure out what worked for me again. I’m sharing a few Q&A’s about my active lifestyle now, including the grace I give myself in this phase of life.

When did you start getting on a consistent exercise schedule as an adult?

I think like a lot of people, in my early adulthood, I went through phases of exercising. I’d go through a phase of doing nothing at all. Followed by a phase of going to the apartment complex gym every day and doing 30 minutes of elliptical. Then there’d be another phase where I’d do nothing.

The truth was, I had never found a work-out that I really loved. I hated going to the apartment gym or even having a traditional gym membership. I felt like I didn’t fit in with the gym crowd, and spending 30 minutes on the elliptical staring off into space or listening to a podcast or music was so boring, for me.

I went through a P90-X phase in early adulthood about a year after I had moved to North Carolina and just started my big girl adult job. But again, I hated it. It didn’t really feel like me, and it was a chore to do every day.

After a couple of years in North Carolina, I made the decision to move back to KC, and at the time, I wasn’t very good about any work-out routine. I’d do some P90-X work-outs here and there. But simply to just stay in decent shape and feel active.

A few months after Nathan and I started dating, I had several friends who I had danced with growing up that were now instructing at a place called the Bar Method. I thought I’d give it a shot, because I had not been good about a regular work-out schedule or routine. I started going to ‘Bar’ in April of 2013, and I’ve never looked back. It was finally the work-out that really clicked for me, and that I absolutely loved.

That means that I didn’t consistently have a work out routine until I was 28.

Now, most mornings you can find me up for a 5:45am class at Bar Method. And it’s been that way since the fall of 2014 when I started taking class really early in the morning. I love having it out of the way, and having that chance for an hour of ‘Lauren’ time before I have to turn on the mom & wife mode. 🙂

Do you ever do anything other than Bar Method?

No. I know so many people that love mixing up their work-outs. They go for runs, they do yoga, cycling, etc. I am not one of them. I love my Bar Method work-out, and it works for me. I get my strength building, some cardio, and lots of stretching, and it’s exactly what I need right now in my life to feel healthy and active.

Do you ever diet?

Not anymore. I’ve tried diets in the past. But again, refer to answer #1, I hated them. They were a chore and not a joy, and whenever anything is a chore, invariably you give it up at some point in your life.

I try to be conscientious of my food choices, but I truly never deprive myself of whatever I’m feeling at the moment. There are times when I come out of a weekend, and think, “wow. My body feels awful because I ate melted cheese, drank wine, and nothing but carbs and pizza all weekend.” And I re-set myself on Monday and try to make better choices, and I usually feel good and back on track in a couple of days.

Do you work out on vacations or weekends?

No! I used to work out one day each weekend, but I made a choice to not do that anymore since having kids. I spend all week working, and I want to enjoy my family time with the kids on the weekends.

And I truly believe that vacations are for relaxing and doing what makes you happy. And for me, that’s giving everything a rest, including moving my body.

What exercise did you do during pregnancy?

I did Bar Method through both pregnancies. I was so thankful that I did. It helped me feel more in control of my body, and it gave me something to go back to when I was cleared for exercise after they were born.

Do you ever just sleep in?

My goodness, yes. There are days that I just slept badly the night before, and I opt out of class that morning. Anytime I’m sick, I give my body a chance to rest instead of working out. When the kids are sick and I’m not sleeping well because THEY aren’t sleeping well, you won’t find me at class either. This season of life has a lot of ebbs and flows. Sometimes I find that frustrating, but I try to remind myself that I’m going to have years where the boys aren’t home, or even when they are older and don’t need me as much anymore. And it’s just a season of life for this short window of time. Whatever I can make work while maintaining my physical and emotional health is enough for me right now.

What about showering/getting ready?  Do you wash your hair after you work out?

I’m an evening, or middle of the day when I can fit it in, shower girl. I never shower after I work out, because I truly don’t get very sweaty. (I know it’s weird, but I have never sweat much even when I’m really physically active.) If I have to get ready for an appointment or something out of the house that day, I’ll refresh my hair with some dry shampoo and curls. And then I’ll take my shower for the day generally after the boys go down in the evening. It works for me…even when I went into an office every day for work, nobody ever complained, so I must have not smelled bad. Ha!

Is your Apple Watch ever a motivator to work out?

My Apple Watch isn’t a motivator to get me to go to a work-out at Bar. If I miss my morning Bar class, I usually never go to one later in the day unless I’m taking a PTO day or something like that. It is a motivator to me to sometimes take a walk with Sawyer or the boys, especially it I’m really close to closing those rings on the AppleWatch for the day. My Type A personality loves to have those rings checked off every day, if possible.