One of my goals when we began this lifestyle change was to improve my health and fitness. I knew I was out of shape, but I realized just how out of shape I was when I couldn’t walk from the elevator to our apartment door, a distance of approximately 200 feet, without getting winded. More than five years of no exercise program and poor eating habits had definitely taken their toll. A step onto the scale indicated that I had gained 40 pounds during that five years! My habits had to change and the weight had to come off.
Beginning a weight loss, health, and fitness program at 53 is very different from starting one at 35! I took two steps. I joined Weight Watchers and I started walking. At first, I just walked slowly around my building. The goal was to walk for 20 minutes. I didn’t care how fast, and I didn’t care how far, I just wanted to be able to walk for 20 minutes without stopping. When 20 minutes became easier, I moved to 30 minutes, again, didn’t care how far or how fast. Just 30 minutes of uninterrupted walking.
I also altered the way I ate. I drank a LOT of water (like the equivalent of Lake Erie) and I began reducing the number of processed foods we ate and finding locally sourced foods for us to buy. I started reading labels and eating more fresh fruits and vegetables. And, I kept walking.
It made a difference. The 30-minute mile became a 20-minute mile, and 30 minutes became 40 minutes, then 60 minutes. Two miles became three miles, then four miles, then a little farther. Walking the hills became easier, and the miles became faster. I lost weight, and felt good!
In September, when I was starting to walk faithfully almost every morning, I saw a woman wearing a smart-looking walking skirt. I liked it…it was functional and flattering. I was wearing an old pair of Jon’s shorts and oversized t-shirts, and felt dumpy looking. Then I found a Lululemon showroom. I passed it by for a week before I finally went in. It was filled with incredibly fit 20-year olds and I was an overweight 50+ mom, so it was pretty intimidating. Eventually I walked in and looked around. I found that smart-looking walking/running skirt hanging on a rack. I decided to buy it, but had to ask for help with the sizing. The young women working there were very enthusiastic and encouraging. I had a great time, wonderful conversation, and left feeling more upbeat about what I had accomplished so far.
I kept walking, and my pace changed from a 20-minute mile to a 17-18 minute mile (on the hills, there isn’t much flat land around here.) I walked with friends, and discovered the social aspect of exercise. It actually became fun.
Today, I am still walking. I have lost 15 pounds and have signed up to do the 5K for St. Jude in Memphis. I’ve joined the fitness center being built right next door to my building, and I’m waiting for it to open. I am looking for a beginner yoga class and hope to have started that before the end of the year.
I also decided I needed new social interaction. I love my friends, but they all work, and since my classes were online, the amount of social interaction I had was fairly limited. So, I applied for a position as a seasonal worker at Lululemon. Why? For fun. For the connection to my new fitness goals. For the encouragement of working with other fitness-minded people who encourage me with their enthusiasm. For the things I learn about yoga, and other forms of exercise and fitness. For the possibility that someone might be encouraged to see someone like me, older and just beginning her fitness journey, and be encouraged to start or restart one of their own. For the opportunity to teach other people things I have learned. For fun.
And, it is fun. I have had a ball. I don’t work a lot, just when they need a little extra help, but I have so enjoyed the people I have met, their enthusiasm and, as my mother would say, their “vim, vigor, and vitality”. They are passionate people, and love the things they do. They encourage me, and teach me new things. Believe it or not, I want to try climbing at the climbing center in January, because they make it sound like fun, and they think I can do it. Who knows, maybe I can?
And I have a new goal for 2014. It’s to begin to add a little running to my walking. Not the marathon, crazy-juice kind, I’m not there yet, but to go from a walk to a walk-run. They way I feel now, why not?
