UK WALKERS UNITED!!

Here's another group that I read about somewhere and sought out on the internet:
http://www.walkingwomen.com/index.htm

Everyone in the rest of the world (outside of the USA) is used to walking every day. When I visited Europe in 2001, I walked at least 10 miles a day. When people don't own their own cars and when mass transit is more readily available than in the US Midwest (except for Chicago), everyone walks every where.

The site linked above is interesting in that it's just for women and they set up 'holiday' trips which we would typically call vacation trips. Check it out. Might be worth setting up a weekend outing for you and a circle of walkers together. Wouldn't that be fun??


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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.

PLAYLIST FOR PACE

As promised, I've gathered a list of some of the music I find it fun to walk to. Please feel free to post comments with some of your favorites too!

Here are some tunes on my playlist (most are disco cuz I love my disco):

Love Is In Control - Donna Summer
Dancing Queen / ABBA
Stayin' Alive / The Bee Gees
More Than A Woman / The Bee Gees
Brick House / The Commodores
Take A Chance On Me / ABBA
Night Fever / The Bee Gees
Jive Talkin' / The Bee Gees
Do You Think I'm Sexy / Rod Stewart
Get Down Tonight / KC and the Sunshine Band
December 1963 / Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons
You Should Be Dancing / The Bee Gees
I Love The Nightlife (Disco 'Round) / Alicia Bridges
Physical / Olivia Newton-John
You're The First, The Last, My Everything / Barry White
(Do you get that I'm a BeeGees fan - and not just their Disco sound, I might add??)

Here's a site where you can purchase pre-recorded dance remixes perfect for your walks:
http://www.cardiomixes.com/index1.html
Caveat: I've never purchased music from this source so I cannot vouch for them. I use Itunes for music downloads. There are other sites where you can select music to download, choosing each song and paying only for the tunes you actually want like for the Ipod.



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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.

KEEPING PACE

I have discovered that keeping up a good pace is essential for my getting in a good walk. I am fortunate to have an Ipod since my kids convinced my husband a couple of years ago that I NEEDED one for Mother's Day. I had no idea how to turn on the thing much less download music, but I learned. I still have to ask the kids for help with glitches, you know.

Anyway, the Ipod is the perfect walk accompaniment, second only to a great pair of shoes. Before the Ipod, I used a variety of devices, including a 'walkman' type cassette player, a portable CD player, and a teensy portable AM/FM radio. The 'walkman' works fine. The portable CD player, at least the one I own, is not a good idea for walking as it skipped with each of my strides. Quite frustrating. The radio was fine, although there was often too much talk on it and not enough music, especially music of the beats per minute I wanted/needed. But, short of a great walking human companion, a portable music device is perfect for walks.

I have done some more research on numbers. This time, the numbers refer to beats per minute (BPM) and miles per hour (MPH). These numbers are important if you want to get the most benefit out of your work out. Here's an article that gives a nice overview of these significant figures:
http://selfgrowth.com/articles/sundquist.html

Now, all those numbers are nice to know - but how can you use them to your advantage? Here's the deal. Choosing the right music can really boost your motivation and energy. Don't believe me? Try it. Put on a ballad and try to boogie to it. Can't be done. Put on some Salsa or Disco and you'll find yourself moving all around the room.



So, if you have access, you need to develop your own playlist. If you walk indoors, you can perhaps create a tape or CD for your personal use - one that contains songs in the right BPM for you. Refer to the article linked above to determine which BPM level you want. I'm at approximately 130 BPM, so my playlist will be tailored to that.

Stay 'tuned' for a sample of my playlist soon.


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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.

SMALL STEPS

Here's a website that is useful and informative. It includes an activity tracker if you join. It's free. I'm thinking of joining as an easy way to see exactly how much physical activity I'm getting in each week.

http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/adults.html

This link will take you to a page which gives a nice overview of recommended amounts of activity for adults. Don't be discouraged if you are not able to or have not yet reached the recommended levels. That's why their master website is called www.smallsteps.gov.

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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.

UNNECESSARY SURGERY??

I KNOW I'm gonna take some heat for this post - but I can handle it. Please read the whole thing before you flame me!

I can't speak for anyone BUT MYSELF, but weight loss surgery scares me. Most surgery scares me - and I've had two knee replacements and two C-sections in addition to various other less significant surgeries. When I hear of people considering weight loss surgery, I always wonder if they've considered all the alternatives.

Well, not to be judgmental, as that is not my goal, but I have to pass along several things I've learned from people who've had weight loss surgery. In every case where the person had surgery and kept the weight off, I was given a detailed story of how many lifestyle changes had been made in the period between the surgery and the present day. Dietary changes and exercise. Every time. In every case.

So, if you change your diet and your activity level, do you need the surgery to begin with? Some people do. People who weigh so much that they can't actually move enough to facilitate weight loss. People who have multiple medical problems that put them in eminent danger of death or disabling stroke. People who have had absolutely no success with dieting.

But, here's what I have heard and what I know. In every case where the person lost, say, 100 pounds in the year after weight loss surgery, there was a radical change of lifestyle that included exercise! Every time! No one can sustain a weight loss like that while eating chips in front of the television. Can't be done.

My question is, then, do you really need the surgery? If one dedicates a year to losing 100 pounds with radical changes in diet and activity level, is the surgery the cause of the weight loss?

Please don't flame me! I'm not saying that all weight loss surgery is unnecessary. I'm not saying that there is not an appropriate case for weight loss surgery. I just don't get that people don't 'get' that even after weight loss surgery, they'll have to move the body to sustain the weight loss.

Right?

I lost 65 pounds about 10 years ago without benefit of weight loss surgery. A relative of mine had weight loss surgery about the same time and regained all the weight. What was the difference between the two of us? Well, he was about 10 years younger than I and he did not increase his activity level after surgery. That's about it.

Of course, there is a huge emotional and psychological boost that the immediate loss of 20-30 pounds after surgery will give the person undergoing surgery. Losing that amount of weight without surgery is almost impossible. In fact, it is never healthy - with or without surgery. But, it is the logical result of the surgery. It's also the logical result of lifestyle changes - but it takes quite a bit longer and the psychological and emotional edge just doesn't come that quickly.

After enduring another weight loss surgery a couple years ago, my relative is now thin. Due to other health problems, he is not easily able to increase his activity level. He sustains his weight loss because he is no longer able to eat more than a few spoons of food at a time.

I have regained about 15 of those pounds I lost almost 10 years ago and have sustained that 50 pound weight loss for the past 6 years since my first knee replacement. During the months before and after that knee replacement, my activity level was not enough to keep that 15 pounds off and I don't do diets very well.

Now, I'm a steady weight with a steady activity level and a steady diet. Some days are better than others when it comes to the food intake and the activity level, but overall, it evens out and the weight stays off.

I'm not against weight loss surgery because I didn't need it. I just wish people would give the lifestyle changes a serious trial before having surgery. I wish the lifestyle changes would be taken as seriously before surgery as after surgery. Were that the case, many people would be spared the huge risks associated with weight loss surgery and attain the same results in about the same amount of time.



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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.

WAKING UP

I'm NOT a morning person. For years, I had to arise at 5:30 AM or earlier than 8:30 AM for a variety of reasons - job, kids, etc. No longer! I'm a night owl and I finally get to sleep the hours that suit my body best which usually means that if I can sleep til 8:30 AM, I'm fine no matter how late I went to bed.

However, there are those occasional days when I must get up earlier or when I just haven't had enough sleep. Also, I'm a person who is adversely affected by gray days and a lack of sunshine. Now, they have a name for it SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) or something like that. I used to call it my 'turtle' days when I would go to work in the dark, work all day in an office with no windows, and drive home at 5:30 PM almost in the dark. Those were rotten days for me.

For years, I ran a Learning Center for teens in substance abuse recovery. These kids, as are most teens, are all sleep deprived. They stay up too late, get up with too little sleep, eat poorly, and get almost no physical activity. Getting and keeping them alert was a constant issue for me. Here's what I figured out that worked 100% of the time - jumping jacks! Simple!




Even Santa needs to do jumping jacks some years!

I'd make the kid go through the motions even if s/he didn't actually do the jumping part. I'd move my arms in the same motion. Twenty of those and the kid was awake and ready to work. I also got them a frisbee to use during our 15 minute breaks from study. They always came back to their books in a better frame of mind and performed better.

Now, with so few kids getting any form of physical activity - even recess - in most schools, it's no wonder that they're all getting fat and depressed (yes, depressed. Why else do you think so many kids turn to drugs and alcohol??) The 'fix' is so simple and easy - and almost free.

Take advantage of this easy remedy in your own life. If you are unmotivated to walk or do other activities, do some jumping jacks - even if it's just to wave your arms around in the air for a few minutes - to get yourself moving. Anyone can do that, right?


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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.

LOOK WHAT I JUST FOUND!

Check out this website: http://www.ava.org/

This is a noncompetitive organization that encourages and informs about walking and a few other 'easy' sports. You might be able to find other walkers or a walking club in your area. There is also information about starting your own walking group.

This is not homework! Just for your information. If YOU know of other organizations that suppport walking and walkers, please let me know.


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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.