HAVE YOU DECIDED YOU'RE WORTH IT?

Quite a while back, I wrote an article entitled "Are You Worth It?". Here's the rerun for you. Skip down below it for some updated info:

Okay, you have kids, a house, a job, a husband, not a husband, not a house, money problems, spouse problems, health problems. In short, you're busy! Who isn't? But, who has time for that 10-30 minutes a day to walk. You do!! You're worth it!

How do you get those 30 minutes? You grab them from the rest of your life. You make yourself a priority in your own life. You put EVERYONE and everything else on hold for your walking time. Trust me when I tell you that everyone around you will get used to it. Plus, they'll like the new you who returns from your walk. You've gotten an immediate attitude adjustment (by walking), have more energy to meet the other needs of your day, and it only took a few minutes.

Should you get up a half hour early to fit in your walk? Probably not as you're probably already sleep deprived if you have the aforementioned kids, house, job, etc. I'm not a morning person, so an early morning walk would be torture for me. Late morning works in my schedule on week days and weekends allow more flexibility.

If YOU are not important enough in your own life to give yourself 10-30 minutes a day, who is? Use your lunch time to walk. You can walk indoors or outdoors because the same rules apply. All you need is the shoes and the minutes. Walking in place works fine. Walking outside is even better.

Before you KNOW it, family members, co-workers, and everyone else in your life will simply accept that you are walking right now. Everything else will wait.

Here's a quick story. My grandmother hated being a housewife and being indoors. She would use any excuse to ditch the housework and work or play outside. When I was a child, I spent summers with her in rural Arkansas where my grandfather owned a large country general store where all the family members worked. My Mamaw cooked dinner (lunch as opposed to the evening meal, supper) for all the family and whoever else was there. In the summers, that was 10-12 people at the dinner table 6 days a week. She began cooking early in the morning and quit only when As The World Turns came on TV (some of my earliest memories and I still watch it!). After dinner, she would often get a phone call from someone (who only had to feed 1 or 2 people their dinner) who would want her to go pick berries or fish. We would stop IN THE MIDDLE OF WASHING DISHES or whatever we were doing and head out to the fun activity outdoors. Mamaw would say, we can leave the work because NO ONE WILL DO IT WHILE WE'RE GONE. IT'LL BE HERE WHEN WE GET BACK. To this day, I remember her words and her attitude - and I remember picking berries in the woods and fishing in the canal as some of my fondest recollections. So - take my Mamaw's attitude for your own. No one will do your housework in your absence. It'll still be there. It'll keep while you get in your walk, especially if you have a buddy who's available to walk RIGHT THEN. Go for it!! Keep it up. You're worth it. And your family and co-workers will like the new you (who returns to work with the proper AA).

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Did that article convince you to place your needs for exercise and good health above all the 'noise' in your life?

I have several regular walking buddies. We strive every week to keep our scheduled walking dates. One friend Sally said it succinctly. I'll paraphrase. If you don't make the walk or workout a priority, it won't happen. If you allow other work, appointments, chores to mess with your scheduled walk, the walk won't happen. So, if you have a regularly scheduled walk (or other exercise), don't let other things interfere. The more consistent you are, the fewer interferences you'll experience. Those around you will learn that you'll get around to their request - shopping, a movie, chores - later. But, first you have to honor your commitment to yourself. Write your walking dates on your calendar right along with the carpools, grocery trips, soccer games, and doctor's appointments.

Go for that walk! Make it matter! Put yourself first so you'll be in good enough condition and in the right frame of mind to take care of all the other stuff you have to do in your life.


***************************Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.