No More Excuses

Our traveling involves sitting long hours in Thistle. Idle. Sedentary. The under-exercied-bodies-of-the-elderly we all face as we age, cannot be left untended. Exercise becomes more...much more...important as the years advance. I have been suffering sciatic pain on this trip so I need, at the very least, daily bending, moving and walking to relieve this bothersome issue. Ed is suffering no such pain, but he's motivated to keep active.

Osteoporosis has also decided to plague me. Exercise to counter this little obstacle suddenly became a high priority. Before leaving town on our most recent trip, both Ed and I went to a physical therapist for help in devising a traveling exercise program. Resistance straps were added to our existing, but inconsistent, exercises of walking, hiking, biking and stretching.

The straps are easy to tote, being light and small, and can be used almost anywhere. In the photos above, the campground we were staying at was quite helpful with the poles they provided, but the doors or bike rack on Thistle, a small tree, a street sign, or a children's playground are all workable too.

Biking has for years been our exercise of choice, but it is surprising how many barriers can spring up to keep us off our bikes -- narrow, shoulder-less roads; too much traffic; rain and cold; hills too steep; days too short. We need and want biking to continue, but to be one choice of many, both for convenience and to round out our exercise program.

Ed race walks, we both walk about camp, to see the sights or to walk the dog, and we hike. At home, gardening is added to the exercise program as well. An additional activity, high on our physical therapist's list, and as yet untouched, is swimming. We very nicely use logistics as a barrier here too because, like with biking, the obstacles can seem insurmountable. Little head problems like, "Yikes, that river is flowing straight off the snow fields."

Hitting the big three: strength, cardio and flexibility, is our goal both on the road and at home. No matter where we are though, my hurdles come more from lax motivation than real obsacles. Sometimes it is entirely too easy to simply make another cup of coffee or read the next chapter.

Procrastination is a huge problem and one I'm suffering from at this moment. Ed is out race walking. So no more excuses. I'm off to exercise!

~~~

"The only thing standing between you and your goal is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself as to why you can't achieve it."

~ Jordan Belford

Posted with Blogsy