Showing posts with label getting exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label getting exercise. Show all posts

Saturday, August 30, 2014

Personal Victory

A little over a year ago my dad had had it.  His knee hurt too much and it was time to actually get better.  He had a date set in June to have knee replacement surgery, but by the end of April, he knew something else was wrong.  Through May he was in and out of doctor's offices and hospitals until he finally had surgery.

Turns out my dad had experienced multiple small heart attacks.  He ended up with three stents, instructions to follow a new heart-healthy diet and requirements for daily exercise.  Meanwhile, Dad's orthopedic surgeon took knee replacement surgery off the table for a year.  (I guess surgeon's don't like operating on people with heart problems. Something about risk-of-death and all that.)

But with my dad's knee still really needing an overhaul, how could he meet the exercise requirements? Turns out cardiologists are really creative and also know all kinds of ways to get a rigorous cardio workout regardless of what body parts aren't working.

And it made me realize something.  That not working out is an excuse and when it's a big enough priority, you fit it in.

It would be awesome to say that this stopped me in my tracks and I immediate changed and started exercising.  But that would be a complete lie.  Still, it's been percolating in the back of my mind ever since.

This year Dad got his knee replacement.  His recovery was impressively fast.  All because of a year of consistent exercise.

So when I set some goals recently, one of the goals I set was to exercise daily.  I didn't set a specific amount of time or speed or distance, just to be at the gym 6 times a week.

Week one is in the books and I did it!  Today, for some reason was so hard to talk myself into going.  I did it anyway.  I'm not sure how long it's been or if I've ever been to the gym six times in a week.  But I know this, I have two more weeks to make this a habit.

As Clayton Christensen put it, "100 percent of the time is easier than 98 percent of the time."





Thursday, July 19, 2012

Bike

I've been reading a book recently that asks you what you miss doing from your childhood.  Then (of course) you are encouraged to begin doing that activity.

Some years ago I had a moment where I remembered how much fun it was to ride my bike.  We were never allowed to ride very far, but I rode 'round and 'round the block and enjoyed the mobility as well as the rush of flying down the hill at the end.  So I asked for a bike for my birthday.

I knew hoped it would be my major gift from Wendell, but I had no idea that he would buy me a moderately-expensive-top-of-the-line-ride-around-town bike.  A few months later, we bought a trailer thing that you put kids in to go on the back.

I bet a rode that thing at least a dozen times.  Since then, it's been sitting in my garage.

I have tons of excuses why it sits.
  • Wendell promised to take it for a free tune up that summer.
  • Wendell promised to tune it up the next year.
  • The store closed and we never got the free tune up.
  • The kids broke the bike pump
  • I don't know how to use the air compressor to pump up the tires.
  • The kids in the trailer always fought until someone pulled someone else's hair.
The reality is that these are just excuses.  And I really want to ride up the canyon.  I know there's a trail somewhere and everyone talks about.  At my current size and biking inability, that's something I need to work toward.

But my excuses are sounding weaker and weaker.  It's time I allowed myself to do something fun!