A Nordictrack Right in Front of Me

A Nordictrack, is a very unique way to get someone back on track. Track? The question could be assembled in a way of, what do you mean by track? Sure, a Nordictrack does have a track, duh, you walk on it, run on it, climb hills on it, or just stand on it. What about if a Nordictrack could heal you, meaning mentally and physically?

My First Discovery of the Nordictrack.....

At this point, if any of you have read my first story, called “Never Saw It Coming”, you would know that I am the single, 46- year-old mother of two young adult children. My son is up north attending school in the state that we are from, living at

his dad’s home and he is doing just fine. My daughter is living at home with me, finishing her senior year at a nearby university. Which in return, you would know that we are living in the lower level of my parents' home, due to unforeseen financial issues due to choices made in life and Covid-19. With all that being said, I believe we are all caught up in my life’s storyline.

We had moved into my parents' home at the end of June 2020, trying to adjust and settle in this new way of life. Due to just totally being depressed and down and out, I gained a lot of weight. Duh, there was a pandemic going on, and everyone’s life was turned upside down, of coarse everyone in the world was going to gain weight, I guess I thought I would join in.

One day in August 2020, there was a fateful knock at the door. As I peered out of the front door, and walked around the corner, there were my parents standing in the garage looking at a large box. As the UPS delivery person drove away, I pondered: "what was in the large box? I turned myself away from the driveway, and looked at my parents, and said, “Wow, that’s a big box, what did you get?”. My Mom smiling, said, “We just bought a Nordictrack, since the gyms are closed, and due to Covid-19 health regulations, the company won’t put it together for you, so that means your dad has to.” As she said those words, she looked at my dad and laughed. What was his response you ask? “Great, another project that she has me doing,”

As my 72-year-old dad struggled for about a week putting that massive machine together, it finally came to fruition. There it stood, on a soft-pad landing, in the garage waiting to be used. For months, I would look through the garage window, telling myself, yep, I will get on that thing. You all just wait and see; I am going to be awesome on that machine! I will regain my pride and my well-being, and I will be a rock star once again! I could feel my inner-self tugging and saying “Hey, look fatty, stop eating your cupcakes, and drinking your Coca-Cola and move your butt.” “You are better than this, and you totally deserve to look and feel your best.”. Guess what? I just could not do it. The Nordictrack sat in the Garage from the end of August 2020 – December 2020. I never got on that machine one time, sure I would go out to the garage to grab a Coca-Cola from the spare refrigerator, and I would stop to inspect the machine, but never used the machine. Sure, I helped my mom get the internet out there in the garage and I programmed the machine, but yet, never got on that machine.

A Fateful Day Arises, Once Again I Never Saw Coming!

As I am sitting in the recliner downstairs in the lower level where I live, eating freshly made popcorn and enjoying my Coca-Cola, watching a great movie on Netflix, thinking about mine and the kids’ Orlando vacation that was coming up in three weeks. I thought: “hmmm, ok so this is the beginning of December, and I have three weeks before we go on our trip, maybe I can slim down a little so I won’t be left behind by my kids as we are walking the parks.” I probably should get on that Nordictrack, but its all the way out in the garage.” So, as I always do, I kick back in the recliner just thinking about other alternatives to lose weight instead of having to get on that machine!

As I am about to drift off into nap-land, I hear my mom’s voice yelling down the stairs, “Hey, your dad is going to move that Nordictrack downstairs in that open space we got by the kitchen area.” “I need you to get up and help your dad, for some crazy reason, he is going to walk it down the hill, and around to the back door.” Well, you can imagine, my eyes popped wide open, and I yelled back, “Ok.” I sat up out of the recliner, grabbed my tennis shoes that happened to be by the recliner, and walked up the stairs into the garage.

“Hey, what are you doing in here”, my dad said, as I enter the garage. I said, “Well, mom just told me that you are thinking about walking this huge machine down this wet hill and I figured I better come in here to help you before you hurt yourself.” As you can imagine, my dad chuckles, then he proceeds to fold the track up and leans it up so the wheels are ready to go, and he starts pushing it down the hill.

“Woah, Woah, hey, get in front of me and hold on to this machine, this hill is wet and I am afraid it’s going to slip right out of my hands.” He said to me. I said “What?” “You want me to get in front of this machine, hold it while you are walking it down, so that means I am walking backwards trying to guide you on a wet, slippery hill, so if this machine gets away from you, it will run me over?” Go ahead and start laughing now folks: My dad said “Yep.”. I asked him, “how much does this machine weigh?” He chuckles and says, “500 pounds.” I said “What?” “Are you kidding me?” “That is just freaking awesome, glad I could help you on a Sunday to meet my own death down a crazy wet hill with a 500-pound machine that just ran my ass over!” What was my dad’s response to me? He chuckles, and said “Yep, that is how you are going down.” Awesome! What an awesome response to get from the old man!

Well, we make it down the hill, unharmed, I survived the moments of pushing it through the French doors, as my knuckles are scrapping against the brink of the house, yelling at my parents to get out of my way, and finally landing it once again on the soft padding that my mom was able to lay down on the floor, that once was in the garage.

Destiny Was Standing in Front of Me, I Could Hear My Name Being Called!

There it stood, in its perfect form, I could not ignore it. I had to walk by it every day. I investigated it, I talked to it, I made promises to it, I also told it – it was a drag and in my way. How dare you come down here in the lower level where I live, demanding that I use your services! I also thought about that machine every day, wondering about possibilities in my life. How would this machine better my life? Could it better my life? Those are the questions that lingered with me for three weeks before we went on our trip.

December 23. 2020 rolls around and we have made our way to Florida! We spent from December 23rd – January 2, 2021, in Orlando, Florida! On December 29, 2020, we made our way to the coast, to take in the ocean views. As we were standing on the beach, with our jeans on, and toes in the sand, I was watching how the water was going in and out of the shoreline. Standing there, looking at the Ocean, how big, how mighty it was, with the sun on my skin as it shines bright in the sky. I had tears coming to my eyes. I took in a deep breath and realized there was more to this little world of mine. I needed freedom!

I had discovered within myself, standing there on the beach, I was unhappy, not just unhappy, but sad and depressed with my life. How am I going to change? The new year is coming up, how do I change the rest of my life? 2020 hit me so hard, that I lost myself in a downward spiral. What do I do now, with myself? I must change, I have to be better than I am right now because I am better than I am right now. This isn’t me; this isn’t the person of whom I really am. It hit me: I have to make some “grown-up” decisions if I was going to stay in this game called life. I have not been living, I have only been in survival mode, and that needs to change.

Embracing My Destiny, One Changed Act at a Time!

We got home on January 2, 2021, and I felt my heart just sink. I went into my bedroom, pulled out my mid-size whiteboard, grabbed my black erase marker, and took stock in my life. My first item up for bid was: What changes do you want to see for yourself? Wow! My board lit up my whole life! I want my whole life to change! It needs to start changing today! I decided, I did not want this extra weight on my body, I decided I should cut down on my sugar intake, I decided I need a change of scenery, I do not like living in a state where it is cold and snow! I have lived here all my life, and all my life, I have hated the winter months! I need a change in my job!

As I stood back and looked at my board, and reviewed what I had written on it, the decision had been made, it was clear: Invest in myself! I needed to invest in myself because my worth is so much more than what I have come to realize about myself. I did not allow self-worth! I did not care and love myself, because I was too busy caring about everyone else’s needs and wants, that I never-ever was living for myself. The moments that I would speak futuristic things in my life, trust me when I say, my family let me know that I was just a dreamer. Well, that was wrong, that wasn’t dreaming, it was speaking life into reality, and I have now found myself standing on solid ground ready to embrace what I wrote on my whiteboard.

I walked out of my bedroom and walked over to the Nordictrack. I properly introduced myself, and I acknowledged and said to the machine: “You have been waiting for me to come around to realize how much I really do need you.” Thank God it did not answer back! But what I spoke to that machine was the absolute truth. Destiny had been waiting for me to embrace the first part of my journey, which was my health, in all aspects, my mental and physical health. I embraced the machine and embraced knowing that it could help heal me!

What Does the Nordictrack Do For Me?

It has only been three weeks since the New Year has rung in, but it has been a good three weeks of self-discovery! The Nordictrack is a great machine, I would say that everyone should get one. You are just not walking on it to count your steps, or your calories, or how many miles you walked that day. It is so much more than that! The Nordictrack takes you on a journey, and while you are walking on that journey, be it through the nice computer screen that it has on it, you can walk anywhere. You can walk through Italy, or Austria, or the hills of California. The possibilities are endless, and once you feel strong enough, you can get a coach who puts workouts together for you. The first step though is to walk the journey!

Once I started on the Nordictrack, I had experienced self-awareness, and my mood began to change, I was happy. When you become happy and love yourself, you even change your eating habits. I happened to embrace Keto, with one cheat day a week. I now found purpose in this life! The Nordictrack helped heal me not only physically, but mentally. Sorry folks, I can’t make this story up. The picture that is posted at the heading of this story is the Nordictrack that is in the lower level where I live and the recliner that I barely sit in anymore, is right in front of it.

What Do I Want as My End Result?

I want a good, happy, healthy life! It is what I always wanted, but was always afraid to embrace it, regarding what others would think of me. I do not care anymore! It is not their life that I am living but living my own life! I no longer feel that I need to share with anyone or justify to anyone what I am going to do with my life via plans on anything from weight loss to a career change.

I will however share this with all of you the dear people out there searching for themselves: Go on the journey! Get on the Nordictrack and watch the screen take you to beautiful places that you have never been to and dream! Dream Big! Exercise 5 days a week, get on an eating plan that works for you, be it cutting back on certain foods or things, to embracing Keto. Check-in with yourself mentally. Ask yourself the question: Are You Happy? Get the whiteboard out, or your laptop and make a list of what you want. So, what is your takeaway from reading this? Let me list it out for you:

1. Exercise, be it on a Nordictrack or a treadmill to get you started.

2. Eat right, embracing the right diet plan for you.

3. Evaluate your life, what changes do you want to make.

4. Dream, and I mean Dream Big!

Make 2021 the best year ever! As a matter of fact, make it the best year that you have ever had! Make sure to embrace the journey and dream big! I know that I sure plan on taking this journey, embracing destiny, and dreaming big! I am doing this for ME!