Tag: Walking

Legs Are Made for Walking

As a kid, I didn’t think twice about walking five miles to my friend’s house, a mile to the bus stop, or three miles down the road just to see the old paper mill still up and running.

Walking was never a dreaded chore. It was sheer enjoyment. A means of transportation. A trip around the world and back. It’s what I did.

As a single mom with no vehicle and no money to buy one, I walked to and from work, to the grocery store and the Goodwill across the busy highway. I’d put my baby in the stroller and off we’d go. Just the two of us, down the old tree-lined, cracked, broken sidewalks of Wilmington, Delaware.

I was thirty-six when I started jogging and fifty-three when I stopped. At sixty-two, I started jogging again, but not with the same commitment or enthusiasm. It soon dwindled from walking when I felt like it to not walking, period.

But I never quit thinking about how much better off I would be today, had I never quit jogging. Because, now, two years shy of turning eighty, with neuropathy and back problems, it’s tough just getting out of bed.

But, I’m not in a wheelchair, or on oxygen, and because I don’t want to be, I’m going to walk. Maybe ten minutes. Maybe an hour. Maybe three days a week, maybe four or five. Maybe, only one day. But that’s better than not doing it at all.

So yes, I walked today. Really fast because it was freezing. My fingers were on the verge of breaking, and I was a hair from calling my husband to come get me!

When a Walk Turns Frisky

The toughest part about walking is stopping what I’m doing, bundling up, and pushing myself out the door. But once my feet hit the driveway, I’m ready to dive into the adventures of the great outdoors.

My walks consist of thoughts and ideas, and letting my spirit run free and wild. The dishes can scream their dirty little heads off, but I can’t hear them. I don’t even know them. This is my time. My walk. And I’m not stopping till my legs fall off.

I enjoy walking most on the wooded trails. However, there are none close by, and I wouldn’t feel safe walking them alone, so I walk the neighborhood. Since it was once a pasture, the scenery, with its hills, a little pond, and twists and turns, is beautiful, and sometimes, quite adventurous.

One day last summer, I turned down a road I don’t often walk and was met with a German Shepherd. He was still a puppy. A big puppy, on the brink of becoming a full-grown, mean-looking beast, so I kept an eye on him as I continued walking.

I never run from a dog. Ever! I stand and face the bully; my walking sticks ready for battle. But, I didn’t feel threatened, he just barked and followed me from across the road. Then he came over and sniffed my hand. Okay. Sniffing is good. He’s not growling and showing his big, sharp teeth. He’s just an overgrown puppy and wants to play.

Overgrown was an understatement. This grizzly bear puppy suddenly jumped on my back, nearly knocking me off my feet, and planted his two big paws on my shoulders!

Oh boy. Now I’m in trouble!

Without a second thought, I swung my walking sticks behind me, poking him in the ribs to get off. Nope! Didn’t work. Now what? This Romeo only has one thing on his mind! Desperate to keep my wobbly knees from buckling, my calm turned into cold-blooded screams!

At last, two guys ran to my rescue, neither of which owned the dog, but knew who did, and they weren’t home. But their four-legged beast is out, running the streets and parked himself on my back!

Finally, after much tugging and pulling and me trying not to fall and break my neck, he decided it wasn’t worth the effort, got down and ran back into his yard.

That was the last time I saw that dog. The last time I walked down that street!

A New Beginning

I just finished a brisk twenty-minute walk. Yay! I mention this because I stopped walking when it got so hot last summer, promising myself to start back in the fall. But, everything happened but that.

You know how it goes: I’m too busy, too tired; too not into it. I’ll do it tomorrow. A thousand tomorrows later, my walking shoes sit and cry in the closet.

Thinking about getting fit and making excuses for why I can’t only cause a guilt complex. And already there’s no more room in my brain for that! So, I pledge, not to the New Year, but to myself to get out the door and walk.

If it’s not snowing. Or raining. Or too windy. Or someone mentions shopping!