Man if you have even a little bit of a sense of humor that title has endless possibilities for ridicule. It’s a good thing I’m aware I do these things to myself.

I love movement, I don’t think I could do what I do if I didn’t. I like to lift heavy things off the floor, and sometimes over my head. I want to still be doing my thing when I’m in my 80’s, and I know movement plays a roll in the goal.

I also know that quality of movement begets quantity in the long run. Hear me out.

Exercise and movement are good for all the parts- muscles, bones, joints, heart, lungs and brain. When we move we almost always feel better. But one could argue that some movements are better then others. On top of that, it’s not the shiny objects that tend to give you the most bang for your buck.

I’ve had to learn the hard way (IE by beating up my own body) that going hard and fast all the time is going to wear you out sooner. At 38 I deal with a couple of chronic issues that I may have been able to prevent if I’d allowed myself to slow down more often and listen instead of drown out what my body was trying to tell me. I am grateful that I did finally listen before something as serious as surgery was thrown out there, and I will do EVERYTHING I can do avoid having any kind of procedure done.

So what does that look like? This puzzle has MANY pieces, so today the one I’m going to share is walking and tomorrow it’s hip mobility exercises.

Walking- Yes, you read that correctly. Get outside and go for a walk. 10, 15, 20 minutes. Use your arms, turn your face towards the sun. Listen to your favorite song or a podcast. Listen to nature. Breathe through just your nose (inhale and exhale). Can you do it? Give it a try, it’s harder then you might think.

Walking is a form of “cardio”. It’s not high impact or high intensity, and that’s the point. Running, biking, jumping, and rowing all have their place. All of them can be hard on your joints when done for an extended period of time at a moderate to high-intensity. So instead of doing one of those 5-7 days a week, add in some extended periods of just walking.

We have been conditioned to think that if we aren’t working HARD, breathing heavy and breaking a sweat that we aren’t doing enough to make a difference. That my friends is where we’ve got it all wrong. Our bodies spend an exorbitant amount of time in fight or flight. That is our natural stress response, and unless you’ve been living off the grid for the past few years, there’s a high likelihood that you’re running at a high frequency more often then you should.

Exercise is a stressor, walking is a way to utilize movement while not tipping the scale too far in the stressed-out direction. So if today isn’t snowing, raining buckets, or so windy you’re questioning whether or not you’re in Kansas anymore, get outside and take a walk. With the dog, with your kid, by yourself. Whatever it takes. And if that’s all the movement you get in today because life has other plans for you then congratulations. You can check the box and keep on moving right along.

SG