bellflower beauty

Relatively recently, I moved from the Boston to a really cute town outside the city. Whether for a temporary period of time, or for the long haul, I am planning to be far from the lifestyle that I grew to know and love over the past ten years or so. It was an unexpected move, and while there have been lots of benefits to the move, there are some noticeable differences in my life and daily routine.

In Boston, I lived an extremely healthy and active lifestyle. I lived in the middle of the city in a great neighborhood. I would go on long walks around the city, to the Charles River Esplanade, to meet with friends around my neighborhood and in the surrounding neighborhoods, to the Prudential Center to go shopping, around Newbury Street. I always rave about how conveniently small Boston is, and I took full advantage of living in one of the most walkable cities in the world.

Now, things are more challenging. While the town that I live in is nice and safe with great amenities and attractions nearby, it’s not nearly as walkable. There sidewalks are spotty – so even though I live near malls and shopping centers, there isn’t a very convenient path to get to those places. Also, public transportation is limited, so there’s not a super convenient way to hop on the T and go to a more walkable area. I’m sort of trapped where I live unless I drive to another destination. I am not used to such a sedentary lifestyle!

One positive aspect of my move is that we’ve moved to an apartment with a world-class fitness and wellness center on site, with additional access to its Boston location. With that said, at my own home, I can do yoga classes, pilates, run on the treadmill, play pickleball, swim, use the saunas, etc. without having to travel more than a stone’s throw from my apartment. Despite its incredibly convenient location, I am accustomed to building fitness into my daily life, rather than carving out time to visit a standard location in order to meet my fitness goals. For example, in Boston, I could naturally and effortlessly walk miles and miles every day, traveling from work to the mall to a cafe, and back to my apartment. At my new location, I would need to set aside a day and time to spend at the gym. Additionally, I loved the scenery of being able to walk in nature versus walking on a treadmill inside of a fitness center. While the gym here is beautiful, I miss fresh air and sounds of birds chirping and potentially running into friends outside spontaneously.

I think the moral of the story is that I need to adjust and create a new daily / weekly routine that fits my lifestyle. I do not plan to move back to the city anytime soon, so if I want to maintain my peace of mind and fitness, I’ll need to attend classes or figure out some other way to make a conscious effort to fit physical wellness into my lifestyle on a daily basis.

Have you experienced any lifestyle changes recently? If so, how did you adjust? Also, do you have any fitness/wellness routines that you would recommend? I’d love to hear them in the comments. xo, brandy