For A Change Of Scenery

Tired of walking the same old path, trail, street, track, or room?  To keep you motivated, you might need a change of scenery.

A couple of weeks ago during a period of rotten weather, a friend and I moved our walk to one of the big box hardware stores.  We walked with purpose around the perimeter of the store.  By time, the distance was about 1/5 mile per lap.  We usually walk for about 45 minutes.

No one questioned us.  No one told us to get out of the way or just get out!  It was a nice variation on the theme of walking indoors.  The timing was in the crazy Christmas shopping weeks, so the mall was just not a suitable place to walk - much less park. 

The hardware store worked for us.  Other places might work for you too.  How about your local grocery store or Walmart?  Maybe there's an office building near you where you can walk all the floors, including the stairs if you've worked up to that level.  Stairs are a great way to ramp up your walking work-out, but it can take some time to build up the endurance for that.

I typically take the stairs up the two flights to my office and I almost always walk down them at least once each work day.  I always hold the handrail - and I advise you to do the same - as a fall could be very serious. 

Any building that has halls and that you have access to can be the change of scenery you might be needing.  As you drive around your neighborhood, scope out potential walking venues.  Then, when the weather turns bad (or just too hot and humid), you'll already have a plan in place.  That removes one of the barriers we throw up for ourselves.  All we need is legs, floors, and motivation.

Please post suggestions for other places you might be interested in walking inside.  That will help others find their own walking venues.



*************************** 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.

Kris and I walked in the rain today!  At first we thought we'd walk outside.  Then it looked rainy, so we decided to meet at a large store to walk.  Then, the sun came out and we agreed to meet at the highschool track.  Oops!  A baseball game was being played on the football field (where the track is), so we adjusted once again and decided to meet at a park near our homes.  Then, we started walking - and - it stared sprinkling on us.  We only walked a little over two miles as I had a busy afternoon planned and I was tired of being wet.  Then I dropped the dog at home, changed from wet clothing to dry and hit the road again - where, of course, it never rained another drop all day!

Oh well.  We got in a walk, decompressed from our busy weeks, and reenergized ourselves for the upcoming week.  If things work out for us at our jobs, we'll meet again to walk tomorrow morning.  Fingers crossed...............


*************************** 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.

TV Walking

If you've been reading my blog for very long, you know that I'm a proponent of walking in place in front of the television if that is your only option for walking.  I've written before, and told a lot of people, that if you walk only during the commercials for a one hour show, you'll have gotten in 20 minutes of walking.

Well, that's old news.  With the cost of ad time increasing for all television programs, if you walk during the commercials, you'll get in 28 minutes!  That's a huge percentage increase.  Plus, you really won't even notice the difference.

So, if you're struggling with pain, or trying to find time to walk, or are just starting out on this journey with us, turn on the TV and go walking.  Walk during the commercials.  Walk in place in front of the TV or stroll around your house. 

When that gets comfortable, ramp up your activity level by including some knee lifts and a couple cans of soup, one in each hand.  Do that only for one of the commercial breaks when it's a new activity for you.  Then, each week, increase the amount of knee lifts you do.  Use the soup cans as light weights to do arm curls.  Tuck your elbows against your body and lift those cans up and down while you're walking.

When you're even farther along, begin lifting the cans a bit by moving your elbows away from your body and lifting the cans in front of you up to your shoulder level.

If you get comfortable with this regimen, you're a WINNER!  You'll begin to feel better, have more energy and less pain - and it hasn't cost you a thing except maybe a little sweat.  You can even do it with your husband/wife/kid/roommate/dog in the room as you don't need to make any noise.

It's all about taking advantage of what's available to you and making the most of it.  You (and me too) are worth this little investment.  You'll feel better - and your life will magically improve.  Check the guarantee at the bottom of this page - and see if you can prove me wrong!


*************************** 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.

Bad Dogs - an Update

Sophie and Amber, those two bad, barking dogs I made friends with on Valentine's Day, are now good friends.  I look forward to passing their yard often.  Initially, I'm greeted with their usual barks - until they see it's me or hear my voice.  Then, they settle right down, rush to the fence, and wait to be petted.

I had what turned out to be an inspired idea to take a little treat for each dog.  I put a handful of Cheerios in my pocket and meted them out one at a time to each dog.  Since mine own dog is immune to the joys of Cheerios, there was no canine jealousy.  For our first few quiet visits, the dogs, Amber and Sophie, continue to growl and bark at my dog, Lizzie.  I ignored that and focused on sweet talk and treats then ear rubs.

How do I know the dogs' names?  Someone had written their names on their collars in permanent marker!  Good enough for me.  They answer to those names and recognize me every time I see them.  The fence line along the back of their yard where the sidewalk runs is long and overgrown.  There are a couple of areas where the dogs have kept the vegetation at bay.  We meet at each of these areas as I walk the fence line.  The dogs lean against the fence for me to pet them - hard to do through chain link fencing.  Now, they stand on their hind legs to reach my hands so I can nuzzle them behind their ears, tickle their throats, and offer a small treat.

I actually look forward to visiting 'the girls' these days.  When I tell them to stop barking, they do so immediately.  They are always outside - in all kinds of weather which doesn't please me - and seem a bit neglected.  But, they are friendly and loving, eager to be petted, eager to please.  I'd take them home if I could.  Walking past them is a little treat for me now.



*************************** 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.

A Cure For Cancer?

Right now I'm watching a newsflash on TV describing how exercise actually prevents colon and breast cancer!  It prevents the first occurrence and diminishes the likelihood of the spread of the initial cancer if exercise is started after that initial diagnosis.

We already knew that regular exercise can lower blood pressure, improve cardiac health, end restless leg syndrome and night leg cramps, and improve mental and emotional well being.  This ain't rocket science!

Now, we are getting hard scientific data to support what many of us, including physicians, already knew from our own first hand experience.  There is, in fact, absolutely no downside to very low or no impact exercise like walking.  It can't hurt you and may well keep you from getting a big bad disease like cancer.



*************************** 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.