Tag: exercise

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walking because it’s good for me

I used to walk a lot, largely because my day included a half-mile walk from my house to the train, and from the train to the office, plus I’d aim for a mile or two at lunch. Most days I averaged a sum total of around five miles in a day.

Then, along came the pandemic.

Like so many others, exercise became problematic for me. Sure, I could still go out for walks, but in the early days, when we weren’t sure exactly how this thing was transmitted, I had no desire to accidentally have to be near people who could have this thing and not know it.

After a while, it just became easier to just stay home. I got lazy.

I’ll admit that when contemplating the move out here to Stockton, I worried that the trend would continue, because I had no idea what the neighborhoods around me were like, so I didn’t know how safe I’d be walking.

I have walked every day for the last 9 days, starting off at just over a mile and working up to the last three days which have averaged 3 miles. Somedays I take a planned out route. Somedays I play a game of “where does this road go” which, I will admit, has gotten me into trouble in the past as I’ve either gotten a bit lost, or ended up on a road that didn’t connect back to where I started without turning around.

Yesterday I played the game and was rewarded with a very lovely walk in the not-quite-daylight and this beautiful sunrise.

For me, walking is a time when I can be in my body, in my own head, without the interference of the day’s agenda and all of the things I need to do. Sometimes I’m composing poetry. Sometimes world building. Sometimes I’m just remembering things and people and places.

And yes, sometimes I’m just thinking about putting one foot in front of the other to get back home.

The day is always waiting for me when I get back, with work to be done and such. Today’s walk needs to start a bit earlier than it has been, as I have meetings starting at 7:30 am. I am currently drinking coffee and thinking about today’s walk. Where will the adventure lead? I may take the reverse course I did yesterday, or I may divert around a park I spotted yesterday. I won’t know until my feet hit the road.

I hope your day includes many wonderful adventures, Readers. May the Friday be with you.

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getting girly

I am, most definitively, a woman.  I have never been a “girly” woman.  The most girly I get is the treat of having someone else color my hair for me, and even then, I have a pretty straightforward cut that is easy to style (or not) to keep it all pretty low maintenance.

I am, however, getting ready to go on vacation, and I was suddenly struck with a deep desire to have my nails done, so yesterday after the gym, I stopped into a nail salon and had a mani/pedi and got my face de-haired.  I originally just asked for my eyebrows, but then decided to let her do my upper and lower lip, chin and cheeks.  Ever since I started using the Nuva ring to help control my out of control menstrual cycle, my facial hair has gone bonkers.

It’s been ages since I did any of that.  Add in the massage chair during the pedicure, and I was feeling pretty pampered.  And today I have an appointment with my amazing hair stylist who is going to re-green my hair for me.

I’m feeling downright girly!

Since today is Saturday, there’s been quite a bit of writing as well, with my focus once more on the Daughters of Morru book.  Toss in some coffee and clothing I haven’t been able to wear in years?  Yeah, it’s a good day.

How about you, Readers?  What’s on your agenda for this final weekend in July?

Photo by Kris Atomic on Unsplash

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plot holes and other dangers

I was up early this morning because I forgot to turn off my alarm last night.  I slept hard though, and woke up knowing I had stuff to do.  I’m heading out to my mother’s house today, so I got up and hit the gym first thing.  So first thing that I got there before the doors opened.

I have plans to do some writing tomorrow, but today is all about physical pursuits.  My Daughters of Morru story is coming along, now that I’ve filled in a plot hole that’s been bugging me.

Someone told me recently, when they saw me writing, that it is possible to correct a typo without backspacing the whole word (or however much of the sentence you’ve finished writing)…not sure it’s true.  LOL.  I have to take my hands off the keyboard to just fix a single letter, but backspacing means my hands never leave the keys.

Anyway, my coffee’s getting cold, Readers, and we can’t have that!  I hope you have a wonderful Saturday, whatever you’re up to.

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a little peace and quiet

There is something special about losing yourself in the wilds, even if you’re still within the city limits.  Walnut Creek has a number of designated “open spaces” where the grasses and flowers are allowed to grow wild, where wildlife is protected, and trails crisscross throughout them, making them a great place to forget the modern world for a little while.

The one closest to me is the Acalanes Ridge open space, thus named because a ridge of hills cuts through the middle of it.  The toughest path is the Ridge Top trail, thus named because it runs along the top of the ridge, taking you up and down some pretty steep hills. There are gentler paths, ones that skirt around the hills, or take you into the valley.  Some trails are long enough to take you into a completely different park, if you so desire.

I have always found that I deal better with my stress when I can do something physical, and hiking steep hills certainly applies.  So yesterday I strapped on my hiking boots, grabbed my hiking stick and some water, and I hit the hills.

For the first time, I hiked from one entrance of the open space to another entrance, across the ridge top trail.  I overdid it a little bit, a little too much enthusiasm, I guess, because coming back, even taking one of the gentler trails back, I wasn’t sure my legs were going to hold out, and by the time I got back to my car, my legs were like rubber.

At one point, my headphones gave out on me (my fault for taking the bluetooth headphones), so the end of my hike was without music.  Even though I was in the middle of an urban area, you’d never know it.  I saw a few scattered people out with their dogs or a friend, but for the most part I was alone.

butterfly treeThere were birds and any number of small animals I never saw, but could hear in the grasses.  There were big fat bumble bees flitting from flower to flower and butterflies galore, and amazing blue dragonflies that danced in the shadier part of the trail.

I didn’t have my camera, but that didn’t stop me from grabbing a few shots of the flora along the way.

There is nothing better for beating back the stress than some serious physical activity, and nothing better for resetting my brain than a little peace and quiet.

I hope you find some of your own today, Readers!