In hopes of beginning a new chapter in my health management, I recently met with a trainer. Lindsey Roy at the downtown Seattle YMCA specializes in "behavior modification". Said in another way, she is able to meet you where you are currently in your exercise and nutrition journey and make reasonable modifications that will create a sense of success and accomplishment. Turns out - this feeling is kind of addictive. It is great to be on a program that I can actually stick to!We started out by reviewing my general health and history of exercise and nutrition. We discussed what I liked and didn't and what roadblocks seem to get in the way. She also reviewed the balance (or lack there of) in my life to get a holistic picture of where the stress points are coming from and how to manage those as well.My favorite moment was when she said that I don't have to be on a weight lifting program. I've been avoiding lifting weights because I've never really been comfortable with how to do it properly and so I don't really enjoyed it. As a result, I've been avoiding the gym in general. Instead, she said to focus on doing yoga twice a week for my flexibility and strength building - one of my favorite things to do! Wow, what a concept. Next we talked about my cardio goals. Of course, I come out of the gates with a goal to run another marathon (even though I don't enjoy them) because it seems to provide the motivation I need to stay on track. She pointed out that, since I don't really enjoy it and may be prone to injury with such intense training, maybe I should consider sprint triathlons instead. I can start out by running and/or cycling twice a week and building from there. YES - I can do that and it'll actually be fun. So far, it's been inspiring and enjoyable and I'm starting to make great progress. I'll talk about the nutrition part of our conversation next time.Here's what I've learned so far:

• Start out with activities you enjoy doing! Exercise can be fun!
• Set reasonable goals and a plan that you can easily accomplish. I am doing yoga twice a week and running / cycling twice a week.
• Identify up front what the main barriers are to your plan so that you can be conscious of them and work to remove them when possible.