Monday, January 2, 2012

Happy New Year

Here we go again.  Another new year is upon us.  This is always a rather melancholy time of year for me.  I know I'm not alone in this feeling, though.  Many people feel a bit down during and after the holiday hustle and bustle.  Carl was off of work for a week and a half and we had such a nice time together that this morning things felt a bit empty around here.

I decided to try turning over a new leaf this morning.  Though I walk as much as I can around the farm and down the road, winter is making an appearance finally.  We now have about two inches of snow on the ground.  I won't be able to do much walking off-road once the next snowstorm hits.  Normally in the winter, I cross-country ski.  But, it is also customary that I take at least one or two tumbles a winter when I'm on skis.  (Just call me Grace.)    I'm not looking forward to falling on my dented derriere again, so I'm thinking the skis will have to wait until next year.  Once the snow gets a little deeper, I will get out my snowshoes, which is fun, too, but I prefer skiing.  The thought of a gym membership has never appealed to me, not even when I was slimmer.  I prefer to look ridiculous in private.

I have never invested in exercise equipment.  I don't have enough room in this house for a treadmill.  I know a few people who owned one, and it ended up being a clothes hanger.  That's all I need, a big ol' place to toss coats on.  NOT.  I had thought about getting a Wii Fit when they first came out, but so many people told me it wasn't worth the money and it would end up sitting in the corner (or the cabinet, or wherever you store exercise equipment). I thought it looked like great fun, but I guess it gets old after awhile?

And, to tell you the truth, running on a treadmill seems silly; like a waste of time and energy.  Being an old farm kid, I never had to worry about not getting enough exercise.  Exercise opportunities and work go hand in hand  on a farm.  You're always walking or running somewhere, pitching something, hoisting buckets and bales and climbing ladders to get to the haymow.

Ann and I often talked about how much of a shame it is that all the work on a weight-lifting machine or treadmill or aerobics class couldn't be put to good use.  In other words, it would be so much better if you could get something productive done while you exercise.  Maybe I should see if I could generate electricity for the house.  Carl should be able to rig up some sort of a Rube Goldberg invention that would make all the energy output useful. 

In years past, Carl and I would saw down some trees during the winter which is a great workout, running my little chainsaw, piling up brush, loading the wood.  Makes you feel alive.  I love the fresh air.  But we haven't had any trees to take down for awhile now and the only other work is Castle Aaargh which needs warmer weather because right now the rocks are frozen down to the ground.  I do have some dead branches to clear out of the white pines in the Back Eight, though, as long as the snow doesn't get too deep.  So there IS something I could be doing.

I do try to make my walks count.  My mother lives a little less than a half mile away, so I take the opportunity to stop in and see her almost every time I go for a walk.  That way, I'm checking in on her and seeing how she's doing and we have a nice visit.  Of course, the dogs, Teddy and Pudding,  are guests of honor at Grandma's house and have special  pillows they gravely wait to have laid down for them on their perch by her big kitchen window.  They know the drill so well that if I try to walk by without stopping, I have two seriously confused dogs on my hands.  We have to stop and see Grandma.  It's a tradition.


  So, I rented a walking exercise video on New Year's Day and am attempting to sweat myself into better shape.  Heaven knows the shape I'm in right now isn't a good one.  Actually, I am counting my blessings because after my little trip down the stairs things could have been much worse, so I am grateful I'm still walking. I could be in a body cast.  But after taking a hard look at the old pictures of the way I was and now viewing the way I am, well, I'm a lot overwhelmed.  How's that saying go?  Every journey starts with a single step or something like that?  Well, I've gotta a whole lot of steps in front of me.  Staying motivated is always the hardest part.


After renting the video, I was intrigued; I wondered if there were other ones out there that are fun, too.  The walking one is really a lot more intense than I thought it would be, but I have to take it back on Friday.    I took a completely out-of-the-box step yesterday afternoon and ordered a dance exercise video online. We'll see how this goes when it arrives.  (I didn't even tell Carl I did this.)  I figure a DVD is a lot smaller to store in a closet than a treadmill or an elliptical thing.

Not that it will end up in the closet.

I'm going to dance myself fit.

Or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

Wish me luck.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year :0)
I bought a exercise DVD last march
It's not seen the light of day ...yet!!!

DutchBakerGirl said...

My goal is to have the sweaters taken off of the elliptical machine sometime today. Tomorrow, I may dust it off. It is anyone's guess how soon I will actually use it.

Happy New Year to you and to Carl! :)

Diana LaMarre said...

Good luck!

I have a nice stair-stepper down in the basement. It has not had a person on it in the past 8 years. I hope you have better luck with your plan!

El Gaucho said...

Happy New Year. Best of luck with your new walking program. You can do it!!

The only experience I have with at home exercise equipment is the recumbent bike we just got a few months ago. It's very smooth and I use it to pedal along as I'm watching some TV, the football or basketball game.

Kelsie from Our Country Home and Studio Photography said...

You go girl...I hope you enjoy the new DVD

Blessings Kelsie

Gatsbys Gardens said...

Keep up the good attitude Karen. You are inspiring me to go down and use that elliptical machine tomorrow.

Eileen

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year Karin, I hope you find a routine that you like. Life is too short to toil through boring workouts.

myomyohi said...

Karen,

I've been thinking similar thoughts. When I saw the Christmas pictures I about cried. I have gained about 50 lbs the last 2-3 years and I mentally, physically, emotionally need to get rid of most of them. Good luck my friend.

Myra

HolleyGarden said...

My exercise of choice is Leslie Sansone's walking DVD -I have the one that gives a choice of 1,2,3, or 4 miles. They're fun, and they keep my heart in shape. Good luck to you! I think finding the right exercise for you (what you like to do) is the key.

Junebug said...

I hope you enjoy your dance video. I break out my old Richard Simmons ever so often. I think with the holiday I really need to be doing something beside the hand to mouth routine! Remember it is one step at a time! Here's to a great 2012!

Alison said...

Good Luck, Karen! I have done well in the past with an exercise video from Leslie Sansone called Walk Away The Pounds. I need to get started on it again this winter too.

I get depressed at Christmastime too.

Karen said...

SueB, I know, the hardest part is getting started. Sometimes just looking at the box is intimidating. They're all so skinny.

Hi Cathy, oh, no, you have an elliptical coat hanger, too? I tried one of those once and my knees hated it. Maybe it was just the one I tried, I'm sure there are different kinds out there. It's so hard to find something fun!

Hi Zoey, Stair steppers and I don't like each other, either. I still think it would be fun to have all that effort pay off for something useful, don't you? Like churning butter, or washing my laundry or something.

El Gaucho, since my tailbone is very unhappy with me at the moment, I doubt a recumbent bike and I would get along. I have admired them from afar, especially when I see people pedaling along the highway. It looks comfortable, that is IF you can sit on your tailbone, lol. Someday, maybe. Pedaling while watching TV sounds like a lot of fun.

Kelsie, I have one full day of the walking diet behind me. Whoo hoo. It's anyone's guess what I'll do tomorrow.

Eileen, you have an elliptical too? Gosh, so many well-equipped home gyms out there. Now I feel more inspired, too!

Thank you Donna, yes, life is much too short and some of those workouts are impossible along with boring.

Myra, I hear you, too. I should lose at least 50 and way more than that. To tell you the truth, I stepped on the scale and was frightened. Couldn't believe I'd let myself go so bad. But I did. I hate looking at pictures of myself, too. We can do this, Myra! Dang menopause.

Holley, deja vu! That's the video I rented from the video store. I do like Leslie's personality and the fact that not all of her fellow exercisers are a Size 2. Gives me hope!

June, Oh, yes, I have the hand to mouth routine down to a science, lol. Yes, one step at a time, I will keep that in mind.

Allison, That's the video I rented. Like I told Holley, I really enjoy Leslie Sansone. C'mon on over and we'll work out together!

Toni - Signature Gardens said...

I just reinstated my gym membership today, as a matter of fact. I had to put it on hold when I hurt my arm last year and had surgery. But I finally felt like it was safe to go back. You'd think I get enough exercise in gardening, and I do in spring and fall, but summer and winter...not so much. I won't make myself do it on my own, so I go to yoga and pilates classes because I push harder when someone is encouraging me to do "just one more." I love walking, but I have kind of a bum leg, and that prevents me from getting a really good workout. Yoga keeps me limber and strong for gardening. I like lifting weights, too, but I think I overdid it last year which might have contributed to my injury. That exercise stuff can be dangerous!! Not as dangerous as playing Sheepshead, but almost :-) (Sorry, I couldn't resist). Hey, I am so glad that all you hurt was your tailbone when it could have been so much worse!! Hey, I wonder if you could rig a laptop onto an exercise bike or treadmill and you could blog and ride or walk at the same time :-) Don't think of it as exercise. Think of it as conditioning for Castle Aaargh building :-) Remember to count your blessings while you're walking to stay focused on the good things in life :-) You have your health and a great husband and kids and a beautiful garden and and and....make 2012 a great one :-)

Lona said...

Good luck with the exercise which ever one works for you. Like you there would be no use to buy exercise equipment because I would get bored and it would be a waste.And jogging is out since I could not even run when I was a kid so this old women has not developed rhythm over the years I am certain. I started cutting out carbs in April and have lost 25 pounds. Slow going off at this age but hey, I put that much on every year so why not take it off slow too.LOL!
Good luck and blessings in this new year.

Karen said...

Hi Toni, Whatever you do for a workout definitely works! The gym, eh? I wish I could psyche myself up for that experience, but I'm just not a joiner and I hate looking silly in public. (I prefer to look silly at my friend's homes when I play Sheepshead and fling myself down their stairs, lol.)

I am so happy to still be walking after the jarring experience, it was quite the ride, and it happened so fast. I don't think I've ever sailed down steps so quickly. Every day is a little bit better, though!

Lona, no carbs? Oh, boy, I bet it works, but oh, boy, lol! Congratulations to you on your weight loss, that is awesome. I'm afraid to jog, too, since I will get too much of me in motion and the next thing I know I'll do myself more great bodily harm when I can't stop, lol. We'll see how long I'll enjoy the DVD's. At least they're rather cheap, and easy to store. Ha.

deb said...

Good luck with your new routine Karen. I agree, need to feel accomplished after the "excerise". I so need to lose..a lot. I just don't have the motivation, especially since the separation. Seems I spend all day on the computer searching out jobs...not that I'll ever find one but....
I really need to get a schedule figured out...thats my goal for this year. My life has been so topsy turvy over the last year and it doesn't seem like it will end soon, so I need to cope and try to get back or find a new normal....what ever that may be.

Sending you engouraging hugs!
*hugs*deb

insemination said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Rosemary said...

Happy New Year ...... and happy walking.