The Power of Endorphins

Before I left Philly I was taking an awesome Urban Boot Camp class. 6am on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum (yes –the Rocky steps) we would run the stairs, do dips, push ups, lunges, suicides, sprints, bear crawls, fire hydrants, etc. It was great! I had become very bored and lazy in any workout routine and this class was just the shot I needed to get myself back in shape.

I knew that living on the ship would make it challenging to do any fitness activities. Last time I sailed I was the most physically INactive I had ever been in my entire life. My hope was that I could keep some of my momentum going from my boot camp class and start up a fitness routine immediately. Well, then, as you all know, the first month and a half of the voyage was a tour through hell so I barely had the energy to be social let alone do anything physical.

After Panama I did attempt to work out occasionally – run on the treadmill, lift some weights and do some of the exercises we did in our class. This kind of bored me and I had trouble committing to it more than every couple of days. Plus if it was rocky at all the treadmill was no place to be. So I decided to join the 7am Pilates class. I had taken Pilates before and enjoyed it. That class was good and kept me minimally active. On the way to New Zealand I began teaching a RAD class which added to my physical activity but I still felt like I was missing something.

After Australia the student who was teaching Pilates decided that with her class load she couldn’t run the class anymore. Great – what now? Well I started teaching a second RAD class, but didn’t have anymore of a plan beyond that. Then one of the students who is a Personal Trainer decided to start running a Boot Camp class at 6:45am every morning. Bingo! Just what I needed.

I’ve only been doing the class for 4 days now but WOW what a difference! I have more energy throughout the day, I love the sense of accomplishment when I have sore muscles and most importantly my attitude is more positive and my mood is far better than it has been for the entire voyage.

I think there are lots of reasons for my improved mood and attitude. We are on a longer leg which is always easier for me….lots of time to get everyone prepared for the next port and less of a crunch and cycle of crisis. I know that I will be headed home soon for a short visit which is exciting and encouraging. Being at the halfway point of this experience feels like a milestone. It’s not that I’m wishing the time away, but this type of life is intense and feels like the equivalent of running a marathon. Knowing I made it through the halfway point feels like an accomplishment – and hell if I made it this far I can do anything for 4 short months (especially considering what we’ve already been through)! All are reasons that I attribute to my improved spirits, however as I reflect on it I still think that the number one contributor is Tripsie’s boot camp class. It’s been quite shocking to me just how much my perspective on things has shifted just in the last couple of days since I started the class.

Endorphins have a powerful effect on the human body and spirit. I’ve always known that working out makes you feel better about life….research tells us that….my past experience tells me that but yet it’s still something that I have to mentally struggle to commit to time and time again.

I think the power of exercise and the effect of endorphins was particularly striking to me this time around for two reasons. One, it’s really difficult to get ANY physical activity on the ship. I’ve always been one to try and get small bits of physical activity throughout the day – take the stairs rather than the elevator, walk instead of drive. When I lived in Philly I always walked to work – what a great time to clear my head, gain perspective, get some fresh air and aim for reaching my 10,000 steps per day goal. Opportunities for even small bits of activity are few and far between on the ship. There are only about 50 steps between my cabin and my office and about 30 steps from my cabin to the dining room. Second, when you live in the same place that you work it is extremely difficult to get distance from your work or time to gain perspective on what’s happening.

Doing this boot camp class in the morning has catapulted me forward in both of those areas – already I can think more clearly and can feel my perspective shifting and my body is getting the basic physical challenge that it needs. Wow – what a difference a workout can make!