I finally got my numb butt out of the chair in front of the computer today and actually went for a walk. I can’t believe how sedentary I’ve been for the last couple of years. I sit at the computer all day to work on my crochet blog, then sit on the couch in the evenings to crochet.

I have always loved walking (makes sense with a last name like “Walker”) and would pound the pavement at least two to three times a week, so I don’t know what happened. I’m not going to blame it on age because I’m in fairly good shape for a young 62.

A New Year’s Resolution I Can Commit To

My one 2013 New Year’s resolution was to eat better and exercise more. I didn’t quantify it any more than that because I wanted to give myself a chance to succeed. And putting numbers on resolutions like these is a recipe for failure, in my humble opinion. If I can do a little bit but do it consistently, then I am good to go.

This philosophy has worked very well for the little bit of exercise I actually do, namely a few yoga stretches in the morning, jumping on my mini trampoline for about seven minutes twice a day, and a few more yoga stretches at bedtime. Now it’s time to raise the bar and apply it to walking.

The yoga stretches and mini-trampoline jumping have built up my stamina, but at the end of my walk today, my hips were humming, i.e., sore. Not debilitatingly soar, just uncomfortable. I thought the mini-trampoline jogging would keep my hips flexible, but walking apparently uses a whole different set of muscles. I had to keep thinking about a video I saw on Facebook about a former paratrooper who messed up his back and knees parachuting out of airplanes during his military career.

Over a period of about a year, he went from being overweight and barely able to walk on crutches to a slim, trim jogger. “If he could do it, then so can I,” was the mantra I kept repeating to myself as I climbed yet another hill.

My Neighborhood Walk

That’s the thing about O’ahu –  there are a lot of hills, and I live at the foot of the Ko’olau Mountains, so it’s hillier than other parts of the island. And even though my neighborhood walk today was a relatively short (compared to what I used to do) 40 minutes, I got a pretty good workout.

There are various routes I can take on these neighborhood walks. The street in the photo above is part of the route I take on my short neighborhood walks. As you can see, I still have to climb a hill.

My Beach Walk

The second place I love to walk is along the beach at Kailua Bay, a little south of Kaneohe Bay where I live. I enter the beach through one of the many beach access paths from the street that run along the Bay. Then I walk about a mile down the shore to the lifeguard stand at the public beach and back again. Some days the water is such a startling turquoise, it takes my breath away.

I do this walk barefoot because I want to feel the water on my feet. And my understanding is that walking barefoot is better than walking with shoes because it strengthens the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in your feet, ankles and calves.

My Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden Walk

When I lived in DC, I was about an eight-minute drive from the National Arboretum, one of my favorite places to walk. I much prefer walking in nature than on city streets, so when I came to Hawaii, I was happy to find the Ho’omaluhia (place of peace) Botanical Garden 10 minutes from my house.

This is an extremely hilly walk, so I always get an excellent workout, but who cares when you’re surrounded by such lush, tropical beauty? Depending on how I feel, I can go for a short walk, consisting of one or two hills out and back or a longer walk that takes me over three hills out and four hills back.

For now, I’m going to take my time on my walks and enjoy the beauty of windward O’ahu. As my muscle and joint strength build, I’ll pick up the pace. But the important thing is to get out and walk!

Do you have a favorite exercise that helps you keep fit after hours of crocheting?