After dinner, I did the dishes, cleaned the bathroom, took out recycling, dusted, straightened up a few piles (it is a highly-effective filing system; honest!), and lugged a vacuum back and forth across the carpets of five rooms. Oh, and I climbed/descended the stairs probably six times. If I think some more, I can count some other things, I'm sure.
And, yes, that was all in one day! Oh, I realize that's a small portion of a jam-packed day for some. But, that was a full day for me, and it was most definitely exercise. I'm not talking about just our daily 2-4 mile walk. I'm referring to all that stuff afterward.
Sometimes, I think we get to looking at others -- that guy over there who just ran a marathon or that woman who swam a mega-distance or that Olympian who just trained in the gym for 8 hours -- and we shake our heads. "I really need to exercise," we say to ourselves. Then, we look at them again and maybe get a little discouraged and say, "Man, I just can't do that."
Maybe not, but those with MS and other challenging diseases have our own marathons to run. Today was mine. Maybe next time, my marathon will be walking a mile then fixing dinner. Maybe it will be going up and down the stairs a couple times on errands. Maybe it will be squishing sculpting clay between my fingers and applying it to my sculpture. Perhaps it will be chasing after a nephew or challenging a niece to Wii bowling.
When I think through my day, instead of getting discouraged because running or aerobics isn't on the agenda, I go ahead and count those moments of simply being active. If I moved my body and had fun doing it, that still counts. If I worked muscles and joints in getting something done, that still counts. I just move whatever I can move. I may not always move it well, but it's going to move! And, I realize that climbing a flight of stairs just once in a day is a marathon to some. I've been there. Just do what you can, and it is awesome when you do that! Keep on trying!
It is fun to get creative, too. There are all kinds of chances to be active. While I'm at the stove and stirring, I do a couple of yoga or standing dance moves, especially if I have music going (which is often). While watching a favorite show, I repeatedly point my toes then flex them back toward my knee (helps with foot drop issues, by the way). When I wake up in the morning, I do 5-10 sit-ups. Hey, I'm sitting up then wondering about laying back down again anyway; so, I put that indecision to good use! (grin)
What was your marathon today? Run it well, my friend!
All activity counts!
Some inspiration: www.youtube.com/embed/N8xnLkyKgsE
No comments:
Post a Comment