MIX IT UP

Getting bored with just walking?

Do you have a Walkman or Ipod? If not, you might consider getting one. Off label models of the older styles of Walkman radio and disc players can be obtained for about $10. Older Ipod and similar MP3 players can be found on sale for a fraction of the price of the newest models. If you have a teen, borrow one. Share one with a friend or your significant other (SO).

Other things to do to vary your walk. Simply walk at a different location. Pick a new park or a new mall, a new street or a new TV show. Walk with different friends.

Another idea is to vary your speed. Walk as fast as you can for 2 minutes, then resume your normal pace. Or walk really fast for two driveways, for the length of a commercial, or for the duration of one song on your radio. Resuming your regular stride will make it feel s l o w.

Throw in some upper body movements. Okay, I EVEN DO THIS OUTSIDE. I'm pretty daring when it comes to this stuff. I sing along with my Ipod outside at the top of my lungs and I swing my arms around when the mood strikes me. If I were younger and more flexible, I'd skip down the street to some songs. But, since I'm older and less flexible, I'll just throw in some jumping-jack like movements with my arms, some upper body twists, some march type movements with knees higher than usual. I'll make my stride longer for a few steps or tip toe around dog-doo for a few feet. Any or all of these things may be just enough to take the 'routine' out of your routine and make it special for the day.

Whatever you do, just do it. Keep moving. Walk, talk, sing, think, dream, walk, walk, walk....

FUN FACTS ON WALKING - WICKI IT!

One of my major sources for information on the internet is www.wikipedia.org. Are you familiar with it? If not, you should be.

I hadn't thought to check wikipedia for information on walking, but today when I googled something about walking, a link to wikipedia popped up. So, I clicked on it and quickly read the brief article there on walking. It's pretty interesting - and amusing. Maybe tell you more about walking than you ever cared to know.

So, walk your fingers on over to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walking and see what they've written. You won't be sorry. And, you'll have learned that one thing (or twelve) that you're supposed to learn every day!


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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.

MORE ON GETTING THE BORING OUT...

If you find your walking routine becoming, well, routine, find a way to spice it up. Chose a destination - real or imaginary. Set a goal of miles, time, or driveways. Count the number of red cars or brown squirrels that you see. Try to see 3 more tomorrow than today. Of course, adding a friend - a walkandtalk buddy to your routine almost always takes the boredom out.

Here's a thought. If you have no walking friends available but you have a cellphone, set up a walkandtalk date with someone. Both of you can walk and talk or you can walk and talk while your friend does laundry or rides a stationary bike.
Beware of the Boring Walk! As I wrote earlier, there are some ways to assure you don't get into a rut and lose your joy in walking - or lose your motivation or momentum. It can be done!

Remember that you need to keep your Attitude positive. You might need an AA. How do you get that AOG (Attitude of Gratitude)? You adjust your Attitude (Attitude Adjustment). Don't forget to write down that one thing each day for which you are grateful. If all else fails, try to find one thing on your walk for which you are grateful - a sunny day, crisp autumn leaves, bunnies and squirrels, puddles to walk around (means no draught, right?), toddlers at the playground (or being grateful that you no longer have to wipe runny noses of toddlers)! If you look, you'll find things for which you are grateful. Write down one each day.

So, no excuses for being either a bored walker or a boring blogger. If you want to read about some aspect of walking that I haven't covered, have a suggestion of some other nature (remember to be kind), or a comment, please feel free to post it here. I'd also be happy to have people post their gratitude lists here. How cool would that be???


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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.

BORING WALK, BORING WALKER, BORING BLOG?

I hope I'm not a boring blogger. I love to write and have been writing all my life. I love to walk and have been a real 'walker' for the past 10 years. I did quite a bit of research about walking blogs before deciding to write my own. Why did I make this decision? All the other walking blogs I could find are either:

1. designed for marathoners and other aggressive walkers - OR -
   
2. dry recaps of the 'right' way to walk and shoe reviews.

This blog will not be particularly informative for the marathoners. You know, those folks who participate in the Walk for this and the Walk for that. Nothing wrong with those charity and awareness-raising events, but that's not what I'm about. Locally, I'm a supporter of the Susan B. Komen Walk for the Cure (Breast Cancer) although I've not walked with them. Six AM (start time) is just too early for me to work up enthusiasm for much of anything. Not my style.

As for walking style - well, I guess there's a right way and many wrong ways to walk. At least, that's what I gather from some of the other blogs. I think (and I'm not a medical professional) that the RIGHT way for me to walk is the way I have walked since I passed the toddler stage. One foot in front of the other, arms swinging at my sides. What's complicated about this??

I guess one can make a 'case' for walking properly - good posture, good stride, good speed. My plan is just to MOVE and continue to move. To me, walking is completely natural. All of us with two functioning legs - and many with less than that - have been walking for eons with no professional input. What we need here is some encouragement to get moving and reminders to keep moving. Toddling along, strolling, or striding at a good speed - they're all walking.



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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.

HILLS AND VALLEYS

I wrote about the best cities for walking and deterrents that keep us from walking. I listed weather and hills as two deterrents.

When one is a 'beginner' at this healthy walking, it takes some time to build up heat tolerance. But, it can be done! St. Louis has very humid summers. I'm not an early riser, so my outdoor walking often occurs in full sunlight during some of the hottest hours of the day. That used to really bother me. No more. I have built up my endurance for walking in heat and humidity and find myself much more tolerant of the heat. I sweat like anything, but I can keep going for my full three miles with temps in the 90's and high humidity. It doesn't look pretty - but it feels great when you hop in the shower.

Same goes for terrain. I started my walking 'life' on fairly level terrain. My subdivision didn't have many hills and I could walk a good distance without encountering much of a grade. Once I lengthened my walks and got into the groove, I began tackling hills. Now, as with the heat tolerance, I am able to walk up fairly steep hills and keep up a steady conversation. I get winded, but I don't run out of steam.

Hills are especially good for our hearts. But, they are not the first or most important part of our walking work-out. If one never tackles hills, that's okay. The main thing is to get out there (or in there) and put one foot in front of the other for 15-20 minutes every day. More if you can.

If heat and humidity are issues for you - and they may well be enduring issues if you have health concerns - then stick to a temperature controlled environment like the gym or a mall or your living room with a fan blowing right on you.

There is no one right way to do this. The only wrong way is to not do it!


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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.

WALK DON'T RUN

Everywhere outside you'll see joggers. Joggers on tracks, joggers on the street. Jogging is great. I used to jog when I was much younger. It's pretty hard on the knees and hips unless you are a person built for it - slight frame, no extra fat. I'm not built like that. I was jogging and playing racquetball. Fast forward 20 years - actually, limp forward 20 years - into the tender mercies of an orthopedic surgeon and two knee replacments in the past 5 years!! Now, I walk!

There are two advantages to jogging that I know about. Takes less time and you get into the mental 'zone' quicker. That's it. You don't lose more weight, get a better workout, or become more virtuous - no matter what the joggers tell you. LOL. You don't feel better. Anything a jog can get you, a walk can get you - and safer. Safer for your knees, your hips, the traffic....

I've got nothing against jogging. Some days, I wish I could just take off running like I did when I was in my thirties. But, those days are gone - and should never have occurred! Walking for the past 10 years or so has given me a better appreciation for what my body needs and can endure, what I want to get out of a work-out, and how I view the world around me. I was a competitive racquetball player - which meant I was a competitive jogger. I didn't want anyone to beat me!

Walking slows all that down. Slows down my innately competitive nature. Slows down the mad, mad, mad world. Give me a chance to appreciate what I'm walking past so I can view the kiddies, the animals, the flowers, the people. I like to walk at a fast clip and keep my heart rate up - but if I have to stop for traffic or a neighbor, that's okay. Nothing bad will happen. I'll just build it back up again and continue on. Nothing lost.

My advice to anyone who wishes to start or supplement any sort of exercise plan is to, simply, walk. It's so easy, so natural. So much to gain and so little to lose. Walk it off!


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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.

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS - better to have resolve than make resolutions!

I'm not a huge fan of New Year's Resolutions. Seems like everyone starts off all enthusiastic with some shiny new promise to change one's behavior. But, then the shine dulls, the new regime gets old, the old ways set in. Weather doesn't cooperate. Money gets tight. Jobs and Kids and Spouses and Not-Spouses and Life all get in the way.

Stop the Insanity!! Doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result is INSANITY. If you want a different result - you MUST do something different.

So, think of January 1, 2009 or next Monday or your birthday or RIGHT NOW as being the moment you turn away from Insanity and move toward Sanity.

You make that move by WALKING away from the Insanity. Walk TOWARD sanity, calmness, serenity, good health, feeling good. The Journey is so much fun. Sometimes stressful - but always wonderful when you KNOW you are doing the right thing for yourself.

Keep on walking.......


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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.