Oniony

One of these days I'll add some audio (and maybe video!) to my written word. For now I'll share a some audio humor from a site I had forgotten about. Click on TheOnion.com or the title of this post to listen to a brief satire. I'm betting you'll replace that puzzled or curious look with a smile.

I am chuckling. You can chuckle. Please...

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FreeRice.com

You know what to do, Mr. Phelps, er, Hunt.

Three Miles Before Sunrise

This morning I woke up a little early and decided to talk a walk and wake up, so I got the dog and off we went. I expected to walk at least a mile, yet I found what I have found many times before: more energy as we went on our way. Lost in thought about a story I'm thinking of writing, I had gone a mile almost before I knew it. I simply turned and went the other way. You see, it's just not that hard once you start doing it. Longer distances start to seem more "normal" and doable. Even walking before most of the neighborhood is awake is a tenable situation.

There are a lot of lights in our suburbia, especially within our development. With Mellow as my companion, this is a pretty comfortable way to wake up. Visible crime is rare here. It's been six or seven years since two teenagers mugged one of the neighbor kids and that was seen as an aberration by everyone in the neighborhood, except maybe the victim. So I felt good about this walk. You've got to decide whether your neighborhood is safe in the early morning darkness. Or maybe you're fortunate enough to live somewhere that that doesn't even cross your mind. For those of you who think it's just fine, consider getting up earlier than normal to get your walking started.

Gene Griessman, a professional speaker who also does a great Abraham Lincoln, includes that advice in 99 Ways To Get More Out Of Everyday. That is, get up an hour earlier to accomplish more or to get that "extra" thing done. It seems simple enough, but I know lots of people who might say, "Ooh, I could never get up that early." Well, you CAN if you stop telling yourself that you can't. When I first stepped my toe in the water of walking last summer, I even got up about four one morning to take a walk. You can if you allow yourself to think differently. I originally found Gene Griessman on Zune where I downloaded all of his stuff for free once I paid the monthly fee and I've also seen him on ITunes and MP3.com. His ideas can save you a lot of time and help you get more done. Will I walk this early tomorrow. Maybe. Maybe not. But I did today.

Google Big Man Walking

Two days in a row I've googled Big Man Walking and two days in a row this blog comes up number one! That took just a little over a month from the start of this blog. You might be thinking, "Who's googling Big Man Walking?" and you might have a point there. But, if YOU google Big Man Walking and tell a friend...anyway, it's a neat little milestone for this blog.

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

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Click on the title of this post to visit FreeRice.com. Have a little fun, expand your vocabulary and while you do that you'll be helping to feed some hungry people.

Another mile before you know it

Here I am a couple hours later after running a couple errands and walking across the Palomar College campus and I've added another mile to my total. I took some extra steps to get into the shaded area because it has started to warm up. I'm reminded how nice it is to live in Southern Cal and I'm just shy of four miles today.

Nearly three miles walked before 10 am

During the last few days I haven't taken walks in the two mile and up range. So I decided to get this week off to a more powerful start. Even though I've got to watch my time more closely today, I was still able to get in a two mile walk and my total is close to three miles already and it's only 9:45 in the morning. We'll see how the rest of the day goes. Gotta go.

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

Money Reward For Walking

Money as a reward gets the attention of a lot of people. I'm not offering you money for walking, but maybe I can help you see the reward part differently. I realize that for those of you who have been fairly inactive, walking or exercising more is more physical work than you've done in a while.

Unfortunately, one BIG reason to get your walking in is to avoid health problems. Or at least to lessen the possibility or intensity of those problems. I mentioned my brother had pancreatitis when I started this blog in January. Since then I found out that a friend of my son's dad had a heart attack and I think he's around 51 like my brother. He will recover, but it's still a big deal. Today I visited a friend from church in the hospital (who is also 51, coincidentally) and he was initially admitted for pancreatitis and then had a problem with a burst blood vessel. I can't promise that if you walk that these health problems won't happen to you, but I know being in better shape lessens the probability that you'll have certain problems. Plus, being in better shape can lessen the severity of what you're going through. I still remember how well my sister-in-law came through her pregnancy some years back when she was working out at the gym regularly. Being in such good shape helped with a smooth delivery and got her back on her feet much quicker.

How much does it cost to get sick? You can lose work days as my brother did. Most of us have to pay something when we go to the doctor or the hospital, even if we are insured. Those are real costs when they happen to you. (Come to think of it, they're real costs even when it's not you paying for them.) NOT having to pay those potential costs is itself a financial reward. Not missing work and pay is a reward. Maybe you prefer to think of those scenarios as punishments. If that's the case, you're increasing your chances of NOT being punished by walking. I realize that this point of view isn't sexy or exciting or wow, but it's a real and legitimate way to view one of the rewards of walking or otherwise exercising and getting/staying in shape. Maybe I'll be more exciting next time. I know I'll be walking.

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

Crunched My Back

No cause for alarm, but, apparently 15 crunches two days in a row is too much for me right now. I walked over 200 miles in a little over a month and no problem. After 30 crunches in two days I walked a little funny. So I'll lay off crunches and I'll keep walking. I still believe it's better to not push quite as hard and keep yourself healthy so that there is no recovery time. I simply didn't pay as close attention as I should have. Maybe there's a lesson here?

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

Change Your Idea And Change You

Last week I was talking with my friend and mentor, Fran Cannon of Cannon Business Institute (formerly Cannon Training & Development), about my resolution to walk and lose weight this year. He encouraged me in my journey and we talked about how he started running in the late 60s. He had run track in high school, but running five miles or more at a time was not part of his universe of ideas. I'm pretty sure he said that he went to work for General Atomic and saw a guy who ran five miles at lunch. After Fran saw him do it, he realized that it was possible. He went on to run with some people from work at lunch time even up to eight miles or so in Torrey Pines and the surrounding areas. He saw some great scenery while running and picked up the "bug". He's in his 60s and still runs on a regular basis.

A few months ago I wouldn't have guessed that I would be walking as much as I am every week or that I would pass through the 200 mile mark in early February, but I did. I changed my idea, my conception of what's doable or possible. I decided that if I'm going to have a chance to live to be 80, let alone 100 or more, I better get started taking better care of myself. I made my New Year's resolution and my idea universe expanded.

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

200 Miles Since January 1

This afternoon in Escondido, California I passed through the 200 mile mark for 2008!


I am REALLY walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what!

Christine Burke On The Radio

After some walking at Palomar College when I picked up my son, I found that Christine Burke had asked through email if I could be a backup speaker tomorrow at Toastmasters. Of course I said yes and then we emailed further about getting together at her Fitness Together in La Costa to measure my fitness progress. Here's our brief exchange:

> Is Tuesday 7:30 am ok?


I am on the Radio next Tuesday! KCEO AM 1000 9AM.



She's not available next Tuesday morning because she's on the radio! Listen Tuesday morning at 9 Pacific Time. Then come by and see Christine's Fitness Together.

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Click on the title of this post to see Christine Burke.

Don't Quit

In politics, I guess sometimes you have to know when to quit. I am surprised that Romney did.

As for walking and exercise in general, never quit. Keep it up everyday. Know your physical limits or your limit on a single day or outing, but don't quit regular exercise.

I KEEP walking. You KEEP walking. Please walk today. No matter what.

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I noticed that the second line of the article has a "did" where an "if" should be. I guess I can relax a little about my blog's grammar and such. Click on the title of this post...

Dog Walk Just Over A Mile

Thursday morning. I've already had my 6:30 meeting and talked with my son about the academic programs being offered to him and I've walked the dog around the neighborhood almost a mile and a quarter. Yesterday my longest walk was just a little more than that and I had to guesstimate because my new Sportline pedometer has a cover over the battery compartment that can open accidentally just by handling it. When that happens, it goes blank until you put the cover back on. I prefer to have a pedometer that is absolutely a no-brainer. My original Sportline was like that except that the belt clip broke and that took me on the search for one with a better belt clip. I give this new one a B as long as nothing else funky happens. So I will keep my eye out for an A pedometer with a clip that doesn't break or wear out too easily. Maybe I'll design one.

I guess my thinking goes something like this:

I want as many of you to either

1) walk if you're NOT walking, even if it means 30 extra steps an hour

2) walk at least an extra 30 steps an hour if you ARE currently walking/exercising - hopefully more like an extra mile or two or three a day, but SOMETHING is better than nothing

3) move on to running or a more "calorie intense" exercise for a portion (even a majority) of your exercise IF that's what you want to do and you are ready for it

4) get/stay ENCOURAGED in meeting your goals (exercise or otherwise) whether you're exercising at the optimum level for your size, type, age, etc... or whether you're just reading this blog periodically and haven't dived in yet.

So, I want to reduce the potential blocks. I want to cut down on your potential excuses. I value the ability to see where you've been and where you're going. I see that keeping track of your progress is best done through measurement. The easier it is to measure your progress, the more likely you'll measure your progress. So, the search for the completely no-brainer pedometer or step counter goes on.

I am walking. You can walk. Please walk today. No matter what.

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Click on the title of this post to learn, help the hungry and maybe entertain yourself. The table below shows the millions of grains of rice donated each day so far this month. (The up arrow in row three is just there because I didn't do this in WORD or something like it.)

February 1, 2008 171,527,040
February 2, 2008 100,095,120
February 3, 2008 ^91,009,660
February 4, 2008 139,444,840
February 5, 2008 152,321,000
February 6, 2008 163,823,880