Last Day Of Vacation (Challenge #3 - 1/2 Hour Walk Everyday)

Today was the last day of vacation. Well, not my vacation exactly, but it was time to say goodbye to some out of state friends who've been here since last Saturday. We drove a half hour to get to a restaurant, ate food with Faith and Dan, then we went back to their house with everyone for a rousing day of board gaming. Yes, MORE board gaming! I don't think I've ever played as many games in one week as I did this past one, except maybe for the time that I went to GenCon. Werewolf, Bang: The Dice Game, Tsuro and possibly some other that I can't recall at the moment were all played today. Then we went back to Bobby's house to watch some really horrible movies (The Pirate Movie, which I have to admit is my favorite movie of all time even if it's totally a guilty pleasure, and we also watched Silver Hawk). Then the goodbyes came and because my roommates had gone home early, I chose to walk back to our apartment in the dark after the movie marathon was over. I also had no car by that point because I had hitched a ride with my roommates, so the choice was pretty obvious.

I needed to clear my head. A lot of times after packing so much social time in one week, like on a vacation or a convention, I get depressed. When I get depressed, walking around usually helps-- especially if it's in the dark and the temperature is nice. I've made this resolution several times in the past few years, but damn it, I'm going to make it again. I want to try a slow build up to exercising again by just talking a half hour walk every day.

I probably won't be able to stick with this one for as long as the others. I severely doubt my ability to stick with anything that takes longer than a few minutes a day. The willingness is there on some days, but then I fall behind and I lack the motivation and drive to continue after something causes a hiccup in my plans. It's all about that one missed day in my mind, which I guess just goes to show the all or nothing mentality that I've set up in my head, which is probably not the healthiest way of looking at life. Once I miss that day, I feel guilty and it seems like everything is set back and all the work that has come before isn't worth it because I screwed up that once. Ugh. Also, once I start exercising, I always feel like I'm not doing enough. I could have lifted more weight, walked more miles, got my heart rate up higher and really pushed myself to exhaustion if I only tried harder. I'm never satisfied when it comes to exercising, which is why I tend to give up a lot of times.

Still, on the days when I do get some time to myself to walk around I usually do feel a little better. And by starting slow, maybe I'll resist the urge to turn getting healthier into just one more thing I'm not happy with about myself. One can hope!

Further Reading: American Heart Association: Benefits Of Walking