Distraction is…Uh…What Was I Talking About?

I bet this very post is distracting you from work right now, isn’t it?

As I write this, my boyfriend is perched on the edge of the couch with a head set on, staring at his ridiculously expensive monitor purchased solely for his Xbox playing, talking on his headset to a friend who is playing the game with him, halfway across town. He has a camera so they can see each other. The incessant clicking of Guitar Hero is all I can hear right now.

He has a great personality, I promise.

Even the time we set aside to relax and focus on our bodies has been infiltrated by the technology bug.

I’m guilty of this. I can’t get through a 30 minute cardio workout without my beloved Ipod. Fortunately, I seem to be at the lower end of the spectrum. Everyone around me is usually so strapped to Ipods, body bugs, heart rate monitors, with their magazines in hand and TVs in their face. The fire alarm could go off and no one would notice. Talk about burning calories. Ha! ….ahem.

It made me wonder if I could get through my typical workout with no distractions at all. I knew my strength training wouldn’t be a problem, but cardio would be difficult. In general, I lose interest in things pretty easily, so I thought it would be a good personal challenge to work out with nothing. Just me and thoughts. God help me.

Ideally, running outside would be the best atmosphere for my little experiment, but due to the lovely summer Seattle has blessed us with, I was forced to take it to the gym.

I hopped onto the elliptical, sans technology. Granted, the gym was playing music, albeit very quietly, and the whole place is lined with TVs, but never anything that interests me. I averted my eyes and got to work.

Along the way, I learned a few things.

0-5 minutes

This is where I began to zone in. I grew bored of bellyaching to myself and began to pay attention to my heart beat. I then focused on propelling my right hand forward for a few revolutions, then my left.

Minutes 15-20

More than half way done. This isn’t so bad. I begin to sweat. I like to sweat, it makes me feel like I am working hard. Nice beads of sweat. I focus on my breath and fall into a rhythm.

Minutes 20-30

I’m in the zone, not really thinking of much of anything. My brain isn’t racing anymore and I just enjoy the feeling of my body working hard, taking pride in the fact that right at this very second, I am doing something for myself that will be invaluable down the road: improving my health.

In the end, I guess it didn’t make much of a difference. 30 minutes of cardio is 30 minutes of cardio, no matter how preoccupied you are. I did however feel good that I accomplished what I was set out to do, and got some time to clear my head.

And now I must beat my boyfriend with his plastic guitar.