I’ve also been conscientious about my health.
- I’ve been careful about eating healthy and avoiding empty calories.
For my entire adult life, I’ve started my day with an hour-long workout. However, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve needed to become more diligent about my nutrition and exercise. My metabolism has definitely slowed down a bit, and it’s become more difficult to maintain my ideal weight. My typical workout usually includes a brief warm up, stretching, approximately twenty minutes of cardio, some weight lifting, ab crunches, lunges and a cool down. My muscles were accustomed to the same type of exercises every day. I decided that I needed to try something new and more demanding. I started running at least three days per week. I bought myself a good quality pair of shoes and clothing designed for running. Thinking I was in good physical condition, I figured I’d have no problem heading out on a long run. I was surprised and frustrated when I was breathing hard and needed to slow to a walk after just a mile. I’ve gradually built up my stamina so that I now have no problem with a six or eight-mile run. I’m working to increase my pace. I’ve seen huge benefits from adding long runs to my regular fitness program. I lost weight and increased muscle tone. I also find that an outdoor run is a great way to alleviate stress and improve my overall mood. I feel energized, healthy and more productive after a run. If it wasn’t for the need to rest my joints and muscles, I’d run every day.