I’m not sure what exactly came over me, but I made banana bread today. This isn’t really major news, but maybe if I tell you that I used the trio of long-frozen, brown bananas buried beneath boxes of frozen pizza in our freezer you will agree with me that this is actually something worth mentioning.
Does anyone else do this? I can’t be the only one who optimistically places overripe bananas in the freezer, for that loaf of banana bread I’ll make any day now. Maybe even tomorrow!
This isn’t the first time I’ve actually followed through with the banana bread plan. But I have thrown out too many bunches of bananas over the years when I’ve cleared out our freezer drawers. It all just seemed like too much of a production when I spotted those brown-black bananas hidden beneath bags of peas and carrots, pizza rolls and chicken breasts, as much as I didn’t want to waste them.
But yesterday, as I was going through my cookbooks in search of something relatively easy to make for our Friday dinner, I came across a recipe for “After-school banana bread” and not only did it look super easy to make, it sounded very good and comforting. And wouldn’t you know, I had both too-ripe bananas in the freezer and a few in the pantry that had seen better days and were likely destined for a stay alongside our ice trays.
Last night I left the cookbook splayed open to the page with the recipe, leaving it out on the counter. I’d make the bread today, which was forecasted to be less like an August beach day and more like a chilly, mid-fall one.
It’s raining now, though Mother Nature can’t seem to make up her mind today. It’s been coming down on and off all day, with brief moments of the sun peeking through the overcast sky. Another reason the banana bread made sense.
But before the bread-making and puppy-cuddling and couch-with-a-book-lounging, I willed my tired body and mind to get up and bike to my Saturday morning Pilates class, about an 8-mile ride one way. The rain hadn’t started yet when I left my driveway, so I couldn’t use the weather as an excuse to just drive in.
I’m always glad, once I get rolling, that I’ve made this choice. The rush of riding downhill from our house to the paved trail wakes me up, and navigating the pathway and then city streets to get to the studio on the west side leaves me feeling alive and strong. The older I get, the more I treasure the freedom of riding a bicycle—and the ability to do so.
And though my longtime Pilates practice sometimes feels more challenging than ever as I get older (proving to me that sticking with it is more important than ever, too), I’m equally as invigorated after each session as I am when I’ve rode my bike for double-digit miles in one day.
Also helping my mindset about moving my body: I happen to be feeling especially motivated lately. So much so that I shared an endorphin-fueled post on Instagram, which is something I once did a lot of but have not done in recent time. This one was about a mid-week run I experienced on one of my favorite local trails, the Vasa Pathway.
Motivation—to move our bodies, to make banana bread on a Saturday afternoon, to continue to work on your novel-in-progress—can be a tricky thing, especially in midlife, I am just going to go ahead and say. I’m sure there’s plenty of science behind this (for any age we find ourselves probably, but come on, MIDLIFE), and if I was writing a longer piece for you all today, I might just spend some time researching and thinking about how it intersects with my own life right now, and how we all can learn a thing or two about getting and staying motivated.
I’ve written about my motivation—its ebb and flow, and the amazing places it’s taken me—quite extensively in the past.
But I’m trying not to think too hard about it right now. Or wonder why exactly I’m feeling a surge of energy around moving my body. I’m just trying to embrace it and run with it, literally.
I’m sure I’ll have more thoughts about this as the days pass and as my motivation (I hope) sticks around. Maybe not worrying too much about whether it will stay, or what all I am going to do with it, are the very ways I will remain inspired.
How motivated are you feeling these days? How does this play out in your everyday life?
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Off to eat some banana bread.
Until next time,
Heather
It’s amazing what those endorphins do to our brain! I love the idea of doing an “endorphin fueled post”, trying to capture that feeling while it’s briefly in your hand. I remember someone telling me once that motivation doesn’t come before your endeavor, it’s what comes during - creating energy creates more energy. Happy trails🚴🏃♀️