I recently was
named Move It Monday ambassador, so I thought I would do a series on the
different ways that I move. Moving is very important to me since it is my
opportunity for me to exercise and maintain my health. Since I am training for
the Kidney Walk, I will start the series with walking.
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| Get out and walk |
Walking has
become one of primary methods of exercise and one of the easiest. I think I said it once or twice "one foot in front of the other." All I need to
do is find time, put on my sneakers, and go outside. I probably do this four
days a week: most of the time just for a short time, but once a week almost
hour and half and walk for 3 miles. That is my maximum so far.
I find that
when I walk, my blood pressure drops 5 to 10 points. As we all know by now,
maintaining a healthy blood pressure is important to maintaining kidney health.
So I make it a point to walk almost every day, even it is just for 20 minutes.
I walk slow, so I have recently upped it to 25 minutes to make it more than a
mile. I am hoping that someday, I can walk a bit faster.
Walking also
clears my head. When I walk, I put problems and issues in my subconscious and
enjoy my surroundings. During my walk, I look at the Mt. Diablo and surrounding
hills, what flowers are blooming, and what critters are running around. Today,
I saw a quail family moving from one hiding place to another – what a treat.
You never know what you’ll see.
During the
workweek, I try to walk around lunchtime to reset for the afternoon. It also
gives me a much needed boost of energy for the afternoon.
Walking also
improves my endurance. I am finding that I can walk a bit faster now and still
trying to shave some time. I did try jogging for a bit to increase the intensity, but I am finding my knees are no
longer up for that. So, it is back to walking for me... for now.
Although I
try to walk 20-30 minutes in one shot, sometimes it is not possible because of
my workday – especially when I go in the office. At work, I try to take the
stairs and take short breaks in between things. For a while I was even wearing
a pedometer to make sure I got close to about 10,000 steps.
I did not
walk before the transplant, but my recovery routine made it a daily habit. I
remember just starting with laps around the hospital section I was in, then it
was around our complex, and now to fountain and back (that’s my three-mile
route).
So, get
outside and walk. You’ll love it!
If you enjoyed this article, you may enjoy the others from my "Why I move" series:
