Just Get Moving!

My mother was a runner.  I’m talking marathon racing, heart pumping, sweat pouring RUNNING. Many weekends were spent watching her compete in races. She was and still is an excellent example. For years, hanging in her room was a poster which read:

WHY DO I RUN?
TAIN'T NO MYSTERY--
I WANNA HAVE A GOOD MEDICAL HISTORY,
DOCTOR TOLD ME RUNNIN IS GREAT--
HELPS THEM BLOOD CELLS CIRCULATE,
GREAT FOR THE LUNGS,
GREAT FOR THE TICKER,
CAN'T NOTHIN' GETCHA
IN BETTER SHAPE QUICKER,
FEELS SO HEALTHY, FEELS SO SWEET,
PUMPIN MY ARMS AND FLAPPIN' MY FEET,
MOLDIN' MY MUSCLES, FIRMIN' MY FORM,
PANTIN' LIKE A PACK MULE,
SWEATIN' UP A STORM,
KEEPS ME YOUTHFUL,
KEEPS ME LOOSE,
TIGHTENS MY TUMMY
AND SHRINKS MY CABOOSE,
BEATS BEIN' LAZY--
WHY DO I RUN? MAYBE I'M CRAZY!
                                                     ~ Ed Cummingham

I’m proud (and sometimes frightened!) of the characteristics I’ve inherited from my mom. Unfortunately, running isn’t one of them. I don’t run. At all. EVER. I’m not even sure I’d know how to move my body to make the motion of running if something scary was chasing me. 

 What I do enjoy, is walking! Sometimes while walking, the poem “runs” through my mind.  Instead of, why do I run? I’m thinking, why do I walk?  The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports the health benefits of physical activity include: weight management, reducing your risk of cardiovascular disease, reducing your risk for type 2 diabetes, improving mental health and mood, and increasing your chances of living longer.

What’s the point to all of this?  It doesn’t matter if you’re a runner, walker, bike rider or vigorous gardener.  What does matter is that you just get moving!  For more information about the health benefits of physical activity visit: Center for Disease Control & Prevention | Physical Activity for Everyone