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I share a desk with my boss, Deirdre.
Which would be horrific, if we hadn’t realised years ago that we have complementary personalities, so our day spouse status is sustainable.
Complimentary, but wildly different. Deirdre thinks in Excel, while I think in Word. She’s thin, while I am not. She’s good with money, while I am not. I like public speaking while she doesn’t. Her family exercises, while mine... not so much.
Since exercise folk and couch potato folk (although I prefer to call us readers) don’t really socialise much, sharing a desk with an exercise person has been a real eye-opener.
“What did you do this weekend?” I asked Deirds last Monday. “We hung about the house, relaxing and recharging. I read this awesome thriller, The Whisperer. It was awesome. And then the boys and I watched almost an entire series of Modern Family.”
“Well, the weather was beautiful, so Friday evening, Paul and I went for a 10k run,” she replied. “And then on Sunday, we took a hike from Rhodes Memorial to Kirstenbosch with the kids. Ja... also very happy-making and relaxing.”
And therein lies our essential difference. For Deirds, running 10km (in a row!) is relaxing. For me, lying flat on my back, occasionally drooling happily... now THAT’S relaxing.
Don’t get me wrong, I have had glimmers of the relaxing effects of a good endorphin workout, it’s just that I can’t seem to stick with it. I love exercising while I am doing it, it’s just that I am so rarely doing it.
Just this morning, I woke up a full hour before my alarm clock rang and peeked out from under my duvet at the beautiful Cape Town morning.
“I should walk the dogs. It’ll be lovely. But first, I’m just going to roll over in this warm pocket of bed glee and have one last snu...” BEEP. BEEP.
Sigh. Maybe tomorrow morning. But in the meantime...
Do you have any exercise secrets to share, Women24? Be gentle with me.
Which would be horrific, if we hadn’t realised years ago that we have complementary personalities, so our day spouse status is sustainable.
Complimentary, but wildly different. Deirdre thinks in Excel, while I think in Word. She’s thin, while I am not. She’s good with money, while I am not. I like public speaking while she doesn’t. Her family exercises, while mine... not so much.
Since exercise folk and couch potato folk (although I prefer to call us readers) don’t really socialise much, sharing a desk with an exercise person has been a real eye-opener.
“What did you do this weekend?” I asked Deirds last Monday. “We hung about the house, relaxing and recharging. I read this awesome thriller, The Whisperer. It was awesome. And then the boys and I watched almost an entire series of Modern Family.”
“Well, the weather was beautiful, so Friday evening, Paul and I went for a 10k run,” she replied. “And then on Sunday, we took a hike from Rhodes Memorial to Kirstenbosch with the kids. Ja... also very happy-making and relaxing.”
And therein lies our essential difference. For Deirds, running 10km (in a row!) is relaxing. For me, lying flat on my back, occasionally drooling happily... now THAT’S relaxing.
Don’t get me wrong, I have had glimmers of the relaxing effects of a good endorphin workout, it’s just that I can’t seem to stick with it. I love exercising while I am doing it, it’s just that I am so rarely doing it.
Just this morning, I woke up a full hour before my alarm clock rang and peeked out from under my duvet at the beautiful Cape Town morning.
“I should walk the dogs. It’ll be lovely. But first, I’m just going to roll over in this warm pocket of bed glee and have one last snu...” BEEP. BEEP.
Sigh. Maybe tomorrow morning. But in the meantime...
Do you have any exercise secrets to share, Women24? Be gentle with me.
