Full disclosure: I don’t work out a ton. I justify this because I walk everywhere and I eat a lot of kale salads. When I do work out, it’s a quick, 20-minute run. I have friends who are bodybuilders: they are hardworking, strong, talented people who work out to see results. I admire their work ethic and dedication, as well as their physical strength, for sure. And while I have a great amount of respect for people who exercise to become muscular, I had never been able to identify with the urge to do so.

That is, of course, until it became necessary for me to try. The situation arose from my own laziness; I like to carry in all my groceries in one trip, even if that means four bags on each arm. The straw that broke my back was after one of these trips, when I finally set my bags down, and had sore arms for hours. I thought it was funny at first, but then I realized that my arms should probably be able to hold stuff without being devastated the following day. So I did something I thought I’d never do: I bought weights.

Granted, they were 5lbs, and sat next to my couch for a week before I decided to go through with it and use them. When I finally picked them up, I decided to do simple motions with them that I had seen in articles on the Internet (research always comes through). I would do those until I was sore and then stop. After a few months of having them, however, I found the glorious world that is Pilates videos on YouTube—which, to my intense satisfaction, required the small weights that I already had!

My progress includes muscle definition on my arms and the fact that I can carry all my groceries in one trip without being sore the next day. Obstacles to overcome? I have no idea what the muscle I managed to define is called, and I am still lazy enough to bring in all my groceries in one trip. I obviously still have things to learn, and weights to lift, but I did something I thought I would (read: could) never do, and that, for me, is a huge accomplishment.