Working Out Takes the Edge Off

You know all the stuff you read in health magazines or hear on the news about working out making you feel better?

It's true.

I know. You were hoping that it was just a bunch of hooey as one more trick to lure you outside or to the gym.

Forget about all the scientific chatter about endorphins and metabolism and whatnot. Working out really does make your day better.

I think more clearly, have more energy, drink more water, (mostly) eat healthier and ... this it the big one ... I'm in a better mood.

On April 26, 2010 my husband popped out of bed at 5 a.m. and told me it was time we got moving again. He pulled on sweats and his running shoes and took off. I have a back issue so I need to ease into jogging after an exercise hiatus, but I also pulled on sweats and running shoes, but then I grabbed our two dogs and went for a brisk walk.

And you know what? It felt great! After a couple of weeks, I started taking the dogs to Lockwood Park a couple times a week and running the ginormous sledding hill two times. It might not sound like much, but anyone who knows Lockwood knows that hill is no joke. May started looking more like June and I decided I was ready to jog again.

Time went on and my morning workouts evolved into a shorter walk with both dogs followed by a 2-mile jog with the puppy after taking the older dog home. I was on a roll! I was never giving this up. I felt good, my clothes fit better, and the scale was moving south, giving me validation for my efforts.

Then December 1 hit and the temperatures plunged and I stopped getting up nearly every day. Two to three day intervals stretched into a week and then two weeks and before I knew it the only exercise I was getting was sporadic or involved shoveling. 

Well, the weather has turned again and I've started back to getting up again, going for a walk with both dogs, taking the older dog home and then going back out with the younger dog. I'm not as out-of-shape as I was a year ago, and there is some consolation in that. Still, it takes a tremendous force of will to get up while the sun is still thinking about rising.

My husband, just so you know, looks fantastic and never stopped running. Even when the wind chills hovered around -20, he got up every day and logged his miles. It's okay to be impressed with his resolve because I surely am.

But I'm going to do my darn best to stick with exercise this go 'round. I know I need to for my health, to keep my energy up for family and work, and to keep on the positive side of mood swings as I get older.