You Don’t Have to Run or Power Walk Miles Everyday to Stay Fit

I’ll never forget the other day when I was walking through my neighborhood, like I do everyday, when this older lady in flip flops passed me!

Here I was, laced up in my expensive walking shoes fitted with custom orthotics, and this little old lady in her thongs passed me by a mile. What the ##??!!

I began to think, maybe I’m not in as good a shape as I thought I was. Then I read this article in Nature. The takeaway is that a little exercise goes a long way:

“In general, the consensus has been that simply doing more exercise increases its effectiveness, but now researchers are getting fresh insights from smart watches and wearable devices. They're revealing that, in fact, exercising little and often could reduce chances of death from all causes and protect against conditions like coronary heart disease.“

OK, so does that mean I can take short walks, inconsistent bike rides and clean my house and that’s enough?

Apparently, yes! I just got back from the dentist’s office where they take my blood pressure before every exam. Guess what? They said my blood pressure is perfect. So, take that, little-old-lady who passed me. How’s your blood pressure?

I’m sure it’s better than mine, actually. But that’s the beauty of this study. There is no one-size-fits-all exercise mentality. You can run a half marathon or vigorously clean your house. If you are getting up and moving on a regular basis, it’s all good.

So, when I get on my Peleton in the morning, it’s OK if I don’t do a 45 minute ride everyday. In fact, sometimes I do (if the music is tolerable) and sometimes I am on for only 10 minutes. I figure I’ll walk later, or do weights.

How Much Exercise do you Actually Need Every Week?

The Mayo Clinic. Says only 15o minutes…Now that I can handle. Now, if you said 150 minutes everyday, then not so much.

The article also recommends adding a little strength training to that number, and you’re good to go:

“Do strength training exercises for all major muscle groups at least two times a week. One set of each exercise is enough for health and fitness benefits. Use a weight or resistance level heavy enough to tire your muscles after about 12 to 15 repetitions.”

I just remember in the 90’s it was always about how much time you spent at the gym. Honestly, I spent more time chatting with people there rather than actually exercising. And notoriously, I would give up my membership every time I started getting disgusted with the cleanliness of the machines.

So, that’s when it occurred to me: I could clean my house vigorously and that would count as exercise…Sure it would. I do enough stretching and lifting and moving fast to burn hundreds, if not thousands of calories…OK, maybe not thousands, but you get the idea.

Then, I started walking through the neighborhood with my son during the Pandemic, and that became my routine. Then, a couple years ago, I splurged and bought a Peleton. Now, I can’t live without my 6 a.m. ride with Cody, or Hannah or Bradley.

In fact, now, when Cody calls us his ho’s, I feel like it’s a badge of honor. (You have to take his class to understand.)

You see, I don’t have to conform to any exercise norms, in order to feel healthy. And as far as that little old lady who passes me walking in the neighborhood, I’m gunnin‘ for you Ma’am.

I may never pass her, but I am sure going to try to at least catch up.