Make it fun.

Look, working out should never be a drag.  Live long enough and you figure out that dang near everything you do voluntarily can be made to be fun.

Yup, even running with a kettlebell through soft sand and on the bottom of the ocean in chilly water.  

Yea, even that.  For many people, the phrase going through their head when they work out is, "How long, O Lord, how long?"

For you and me, it's more like, "This is awesome, I think I might be too chilly to make it back to the beach, I'm pretty sure I can take one more step on my next breath hold, I love being around my buddies, did you see all those stingrays?"

See, working out isn't a chore, it's a gift, a special experience.  It's our modern way of reaching back through time and actually using our bodies.  Most of the time we plant ourselves in a chair and grow roots; the Internet, work, and writing can all get pretty darn fascinating.

The workout part of the day is when we shake it all off, share a hard experience with a good friend or two, and temporarily put on hold those things that probably don't matter as much as we worry they do.

My favorite time to work physically hard is in the early mornings.  Here in California we can pretend it's the bitter depths of winter when it dips below 60.  Brrrrr!  We get our hoodies out of the closet, blast the heater on our bare feet as we drive to the beach, and pretend we have to warm up before we run.

I meet my buddies on these morning sessions.  Sometimes it's animal style workouts, with bear crawls and crab walks, sometimes we drag out old metal beams I'd meant to make into fence posts and use them as balance beams while we knife fight with foam paint brushes.

Today we just grabbed a kettlebell and a spearfishing float, ran along the beach for a mile through soft sand then charged out into glorious Mother Ocean.  On one of the most beautiful beaches in San Diego (Coronado), we got a chance to chat as we ran, to catch up on kids, and crazy diets, and what just happened, and what'll happen next.

Between breath holds we laughed about coming up straight into someone's crotch because we didn't look before blasting off the bottom, or about avoiding the stingrays by dragging the bell in front of us, or the initial underwater screaming fright that the shadow of a dolphin can bring.

It wasn't even work, it was mostly fun and screeching laughter.

Don't get me wrong, I love hardcore solo squat rack sessions out in the backyard with just a little drizzle of rain coming down and me aiming to fire every possible muscle fiber to get the weight up.

It's just that I love these creative sessions too, maybe even more. They're nowhere near as physically hard, it's just easy swimming and walking in cold water, and the kettlebell carry is something we switch off as soon as we get tired. 

The most important part for me in any workout is whether or not I had fun.  Of course, it doesn't have to be fun to be fun.  It's just important to enjoy what's happening, no matter what activity you're involved in.

To life, my friends!

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