Just One More than Before

How are you with exercise? Addicted to it? Consider it a necessary evil? Detest it?

I have always thought that exercise should just become part of our day and movement. Nothing fancy. God made us to move and so we should.

Probably I have felt that way because, I hate to run and most exercise requires some type of fast, running movement. The only time that I like to run is if I am running after a tennis ball.

There was a delightful gal with whom I played tennis. She just had the best sayings while we played. Her best comment if we were down by a couple of points: just get one more point than before. Her thinking- don’t overthink this, don’t worry about the end game, just concentrate on what we are doing now. I can’t say that we won every time but thinking in that way certainly reduced any anxiety.

Sadly, I am in the stage of life that I need just a little more oomph in my daily exercise. I have joined the local women’s fitness group. It is so convenient- right around the corner from our home. I like the slogan- “Strong is the new skinny”. I attend the strength and tone class so that I can strengthen my osteo-poor bones.

The woman who runs the place is very encouraging and over the new year, she sent out an exercise program one can do at home: HIIT- High Intensity Interval Training. Apparently it is the “latest” thing. Or at least, the latest for me. The idea is that you push yourself hard for a short duration (20 seconds to a couple minutes) before slowing down to an equal or slightly longer recovery period.

Within the HIIT mode, is a regime called Tabata. Named for Japanese research scientist Dr. Izumi Tabata and his team from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports at Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, it is a higher intensity version of HIIT- 20 seconds of intense movement followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated eight times. The entire routine can be built around bodyweight exercises so no special equipment is needed.

In the plan, there are 4 sections of these eight types of tabatas. I have started doing these at home. At first I was lucky to complete one section. Each time I have worked on it, I try and do one more than before.

And it has worked. I have been able to complete the entire workout sheet. There were times when I wanted to quit mid-way but I said to myself, just do one more. That one more, turned into another one more and before I knew it, the eight times were completed. In addition to telling myself to do one more, I also tried to just be present in the experience. I just concentrated on that one more and tried not think about getting to the end or what I was going to do afterwards- shower, have lunch, etc.

It was all about being present, just one more that helped me.

I have really had to be intentional about being present. As I have shared in the past- I am a planner. I like to see the big picture, the final result and work on all the details in between. I am the type of person, who thinks more in large swaths of connection and details. It becomes a question of controlling all the aspects of a situation.

In thinking- one more than before, I have realized that I am not anxious about the outcome because I am not concerning myself with the outcome at that point in time. Consequently, what is experienced doesn’t have to be perfect. Just one more, one more word, one more repetition, one more step- whatever the one more is and before I know it, it is completed.

What about you? Do you get anxious with the big picture? Wonder about the ending and therefore never begin? What if you just started- one thing. And then do one more than before?

I think that we were created in this design- to be present with what we are doing and to take one thing at a time. In order to do that, we must remember. Remember what we have done (good or bad) and apply that knowledge to what we are currently doing.

I think that is why Jesus reminded us to not be anxious. Don’t worry about all the big and little things. He reminds us that God has been faithful in the past and will continue to be. We just need to remember our past and to concentrate on one thing at a time in our present. Not only is it healthier for our well-being, it also moves us closer to our outcome.

Sick List

One thing about being sick is that you are forced to be still.  It seems as if all I have done these last three days is sleep.  When I am awake I can't focus on anything- no reading, no watching television, nothing.  Only today have I had enough energy to move around the house.  It did occur to me some possible reasons why I got sick and what I can do in the future to prevent it. I list them below as a reminder to myself and as an encouragement to you to not get in the same boat. 

1) Get enough sleep.  I certainly wasn't getting my required 8 hours of winks a night.  Most of that stems from our two, four-footed creatures who decide that the middle of the night is the best time to bark at the passing foxes outside.

2) Get outside for exercise.  With all the running back and forth to my father's house I haven't been outside like I normally am.  Plus, the afternoon walk for me and my four-footed creatures would ensure that they would be tired and would sleep through the night and therefore I would too.

3) Reduce stress.  Ah, the rub.  Easily stated, difficult to execute. I have looked over the list of responsibilities that I have for the next six months.  Some things are short-lived while others will be ongoing.  I have realized that I cannot take on any more, even if it is something as simple as baking brownies for a meeting.  That simple action becomes just one more thing in a list of too many things. The proverbial straw that breaks the camels back. Of course, there are projects and people that I want to help but for the majority of things I need to say no for right now. 

4) Stop being the little red hen.  There are situations in my life when, I don't receive help from those who I think should help me, I become like the little red hen.  I will handle it all myself.  And then I get annoyed, upset and looking for reasons to get even angrier at the ones who are not helping.  In not being the little red hen, I am going to try and ask for help.  Or at least state what needs to be done and then let the chips fall where they may.  The work might get done, perhaps not the way I thought it should originally be done but if it gets done, then so be it.  The work might not get done either and then I need to let things happen as such. 

The thing is, most times I practice good habits.  Usually I get enough sleep, exercise and have a good diet.  It is the stress that gets me every time.  Stress affects each of us differently. Regardless on the cause and the effects, stress is one of those insidious situations that sneak up on us.  We go along fine, thinking we are handling our situation when out of the blue, we get sick, or have tooth problems, or stomach issues, or insomnia.  When I feel under stress I like to list the responsibilities that I have to do and that I want to do.  Are there things that can be put off in order to stretch out the responsibilities?  I am learning to be more clear with my family and friends of the things I can and cannot do.  It still can be difficult.  Some people, on hearing that you cannot do something today will decide that you meant forever and will be miffed.  I am learning that I can only be clear with what I say.  I cannot ensure that the hearer is clear too. 

What about you? What would you add to the above list- things that you know if you do not practice you will end up sick and in bed.  How do you deal with stress?  Do you keep it at bay? Do you feel that your life is overrun by stress? What small changes can you make to lessen the stress? Are there things you can put off, say for the next six months? 

 What would your sick list be?  

Radical Ramblings

In our town there is an weekly alternative newspaper.  Most weeks the articles and subject matter are a little avant garde, even for me.   This past week though there were some thought provoking articles all on the subject of walking, and specifically walking as a mode of transportation in a city. 

In some ways, it still gets me that we look at walking as if we have a choice.  Isn't that how are bodies are made- to move and to move in the form of walking?  Of course we could roll on the ground to where we need to go or we could crawl on our hands and knees but that is not a desirable mode of transport.

One of the articles in the newspaper was written by a self proclaimed radical pedestrian. Whether he truly believes what he wrote or just trying to provoke, he does have some interesting points. When you are traveling at car-speed, sitting and driving in a car, you don't notice your surroundings. "At car-speed, building simply seem 'dilapidated' and people 'loitering' or 'hanging around'."  When you are walking you get to see the surroundings.  You decide to speak or not to speak with another person out on the street.  You have the opportunity to interact with those surroundings and to elevate the inhabitants from "loiterers" to "people with stories, backgrounds, loves and sorrows".  

We saw the difference of car speed vs. bike or walk speed when we travelled through the city on our bikes a couple of weeks ago.  There were some areas that we went through that, if we had traveled by car, would have been seen as a blight in our city.  We would have been anxious to get through that neighborhood and never give it another thought.  Instead, because we were slowly traveling at bike-speed, we were able to have some conversations with the residents.  They were not long, nor deep interactions but they were interactions nonetheless.  The residents asked about our fund raiser and where we had ridden.  As a society, each time we have these little discourses, we strengthen the ties that bind us together.  Each interaction draws  us a little bit closer in community.   

The writer of the newspaper article wonders how much cars have kept our city segregated.  He writes about the frustration of people talking diversity and intersectionality yet no one wants to get out of their cars and interact. "Facebook stokes fears so that people don't want to walk in certain neighborhoods."  The irony is that if people did get out into the streets, the safer the neighborhood would be. 

He also wonders if automobiles have subsidized the suburbs at the expense of the cities.  He feels that if all roads were toll roads in order to reflect the true cost of the automobile- pollution, parking, construction and congestion-  people would think again about walking.  Interesting.  Would that make people think twice about driving?   He poses some radical thoughts. 

I wonder, why does everything have to be extreme in America?  Why can't we embrace and choose a middle road? Why can't we decide that for certain activities we will walk and not use a car?  Especially for those of us that live in a more congested area.  Does it have to come down to government regulation for us to function in the way in which we were designed?  Why can't we decide when we walk and when we use a car?  Yes, a car is certainly very convenient.  (I can tell you that after walking home from the store with heavy grocery bags digging into the palm of my hands and my shoulders.)  And yes, some people do not have the luxury of a car.  (I guess the definition of a car being a luxury or necessity is also another debate.)   

I know for me that walking and bike riding for errands are a conscious choice over just jumping into the car.  I have to think about my schedule, how much time do I have, the weather, the distance, etc. It is not my default mode of thinking (yet) though it is getting there.  I realize that by not making it my first choice, I might be losing out- missing community, interactions and exercise.  

What about you?  Have you ever thought about using another means of transport other than a car to get from here to there?  What is your city or town like?  Do you think that the car has segregated it?  

This week, is there any time or opportunity for you to walk or bike ride instead of using the car for a specific errand?   For instance, getting milk at the convenience store, dropping your kids off at a friend's house or meeting a friend for coffee?  Are you up for some radical ramblings?