Do you walk?

[ajkel64]

I used to walk with my two pooches for an hour every day unless it was raining. Now I hardly walk at all with arthritic hips and knees it is a battle. Plus the pooches are now 15 and a half and 13 and a half so basically when we walk the dogs now it is basically just around the block. I would like to walk a lot more to keep the weight in check. I lost 27 kilograms but I have put 7 of those kilograms back on.

 

[davent]

This comes to mind. Do you do a victory dance at the top.

Bad form to perform a Victory dance after only one trip up, multiple trips are the order of the day. There are people who will be there for hours. I was up to six trips at one point, my wife was up to eight and still doing them on occasion at eight months pregnant, tiny and tough as nails, to this day she's a destroyer of egos on the stairs.

And if you really want to go for a walk, half way down the stairs you can hop on the Bruce Trail, 885km/550miles long, runs the length of the Niagara escarpment in Ontario.

Bruce Trail - Wikipedia

dave

 

[kwk285]

I walk on my treadmill. I have the Treadmill set on random elevation. I is a good work out and doesn't kill my back like running did.

I also mix in weight training and bike riding.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I was a runner for years. Now I'm going to be 65 soon, and walk fast with about 10% "trotting" mixed in, for 30 minutes 3 x a week, with pushups and situps before and after. Once the weather cools a bit -- say about December (!) -- I plan to join a gym again, a real one with elliptical machines and free weights, and work that 3x a week.

 

[Bebe]

i have to walk the dog, rain or shine, 7 days a week at 6:30am sharp for ~40-45 minutes (my wife has the evening shift).
Than 8 blocks to the train station, maybe 1/2 mile.

 

[TexLaw]

I love walking and do so whenever practicable instead of driving. However, I use an elliptical trainer for my regular exercise.

We do walk the dog, but he's a little guy and is pretty much done after a mile or so.

 

[Esox]

if incentive needed, get dropped off a mile (or 2 or 3) from home...

One of the guys I hunted with years ago use to go for lunch with his wife at the closest town to them. After lunch, he'd walk home while she drove. Thats 9 air miles cross country. Bush, across one small river, plowed corn fields and bean fields, which are the worst to walk through. You have to rip your feet through the tangle every step.

I grew up hunting and fishing. Pushing deer in late November or early December it was typical to walk 10 concessions a day. One concession is one measured mile. Get dropped off at one end, push the deer to the guns at the other. From before sun up to dark.

Fishing was more of the same, but wading, slippery rocks, wearing waders and weighed down with gear. Same idea, start at the downstream end of the concession at the bridge and walk to the next bridge up. The difference being, rivers arent straight. That one mile concession might be a 5 mile walk in the river.

I had a heart attack Sept 21 2015. As soon as the doc cleared the blockage I said, "I'm good. I can walk home now". I wasnt kidding but they wouldnt let me lol.

Walking, especially cross country, is quite likely the best exercise there is. Its all in keeping the right pace.

And if you really want to go for a walk, half way down the stairs you can hop on the Bruce Trail, 885km/550miles long, runs the length of the Niagara escarpment in Ontario.

Try going down the trail at the Niagara Whirlpool. We use to fish there too. In the parking lot at the trail entrance they had signs up warning anyone with heart issues not to do it. Thats a hell of a climb. My legs were rubber when I got down and felt like hardwood when I got back up. The hike, more like a climb over and around the house size boulders, along the river from there though is spectacular, plus you can watch the jet boats. The volume of water through there is staggering. I'd never seen white water rapids 20 feet high.

 

[jackgoldman123]

I golfed one super hot day and was in a motorized golf cart when I came upon a guy walking in the heat with his clubs. He had a very long scar on one leg and I asked him about it. Some kind of surgical scar for heart issues. So from that day on I was motivated to walk since he could and was prescribed to do so.

 

[davent]

Try going down the trail at the Niagara Whirlpool. We use to fish there too. In the parking lot at the trail entrance they had signs up warning anyone with heart issues not to do it. Thats a hell of a climb. My legs were rubber when I got down and felt like hardwood when I got back up. The hike, more like a climb over and around the house size boulders, along the river from there though is spectacular, plus you can watch the jet boats. The volume of water through there is staggering. I'd never seen white water rapids 20 feet high.

You'd think climbing would be the challenge but it's the going down that is punishing, knees take a beating. On our stairs you see many people who are doing multiple climbs who wear gloves so that when they go back down the stairs they'll rest a hand on each hand rail then slide back down barely making any contact on the stairs with their feet. I always thought that that was cheating in the round trip race that doing the stairs becomes but it's gotta be saving their knees.

dave

 

[StillShaving]

I enjoy walking, especially when visiting a new place or city. It is easy to forget one is exercising and walk nearly all day. Walking at home feels more like a chore; it is hard to dedicate 1-2 hours for a walk. Too boring and unproductive use of time.

 

[davent]

I enjoy walking, especially when visiting a new place or city. It is easy to forget one is exercising and walk nearly all day. Walking at home feels more like a chore; it is hard to dedicate 1-2 hours for a walk. Too boring and unproductive use of time.

You have to treat walking at home like a walk when you're in a different place or city. At home it's too easy to just do the same old over and over again. You have to play tourist at home, get out and explore where you're at or it does become boring. Grab a camera/phone be on the lookout for new and unusual things to document, changes that catch your eye.

dave

 

[DoctorShavegood]

Yep, everyday. You should see my calves.

 

[Macfrommichigan]

I don't even want to see your cows.

 

[Esox]

You'd think climbing would be the challenge but it's the going down that is punishing, knees take a beating. On our stairs you see many people who are doing multiple climbs who wear gloves so that when they go back down the stairs they'll rest a hand on each hand rail then slide back down barely making any contact on the stairs with their feet. I always thought that that was cheating in the round trip race that doing the stairs becomes but it's gotta be saving their knees.

The walk down to the Whirlpool really surprised me. Uneven terrain, odd spacing, rocks, mud. It all add's up and when going that far down I felt it at the bottom. I didnt need to stop on the way down though. I stopped 3 or 4 times on the way up. My thighs were on fire lol.

Last year when we went up to Wawa again, we hiked down to see the rock paintings at Agawa Bay. That wasnt a long walk but it was pretty high intensity. A well marked trail but up and down boulders, slippery and pretty steep.

We got all the way down there only to find the lake was too rough and we couldnt walk out on the ledge to see them anyway lol.

 

[davent]

That's gorgeous Mike! My wife's from the Soo and taught in Wawa the two years before we married, small world.

Going up is definitely hard work, burning muscles and gasping for air require rests, you do expect it to be hard. Going down messes with your mind because you think it's gong to be easy, the difficulty comes as a surprise. And.. if i'm going to fall i'd rather fall while climbing up, facing the slope, than fall down while moving down the slope facing away from the slope.

Back to those steel steps we have, with the size of my feet and the narrowness of the step, there's only a very narrow piece of shoe sole, the ball of the foot, i can land on while going down, a touch too forward and my foot slides off the step, a touch back from the edge and my heel catches on the step above, neither good situations. Going up no such problems.
dave

 

[Esox]

Back to those steel steps we have, with the size of my feet and the narrowness of the step, there's only a very narrow piece of shoe sole, the ball of the foot, i can land on while going down, a touch too forward and my foot slides off the step, a touch back from the edge and my heel catches on the step above, neither good situations.

I'm not sure which would hurt more if you slipped, rocks or steel steps lol.

 

[Davidkimberly]

I run (plod) for fitness but walk for transportation and pleasure. I have up driving about a year ago and find don't miss it. Walking connects me to my community in a way driving never could.

 

[Saxonbowman]

I walk with the dog once or twice a day. There is a lot of stop and sniff along the way so the pace isn't steady. When I have the time I take her to the park and can let her off the leash if nobody's looking. Then I can set my pace and she'll catch up and run ahead. She is only two years old so she'll go as far as I'm willing.

 

[John Rose]

SWMBO and I (both 65) try to get in walks 3-4 times a week. Sometimes it's brisk, sometimes it's more leisurely. It's always through the woods or a park with lots of greenery. In the winter we dig out snowshoes and head for the trails in the woods.

 

[steveclarkus]

In general, I am the type of fellow who would rather recline than sit up, prefer to sit than stand, and opt to drive rather than stroll. Alas, typical old guy stuff is going on and am reduced to knawing on carrot sticks, reducing sodium, and such. Aside from some walking on the beach while on vacation, I have avoided exercise when possible for years.

My better half has been dealing with some health issues and I have been thrust into a sometimes caretaker role. It is stressful as heck!

So...for the past few weeks I have been dragging my sorry tush out the door first thing. Well, second thing, of course. About six days a week I have walked for thirty to forty minutes each morning. It has been a pretty fair stress reliever and my tummy is a wee bit firmer.

Any morning walkers out there? Any advice for a 67 year old? (No, a dog is not a viable option.)

Mac

Well Mac, I'm two years older than you and my physical positioning preferences match yours precisely but I have a dog as you can see and he insists on walking me one mile every morning two hours prior to my desired rising time. At our advanced age, it seems we should be taking better care of ourselves by getting more, not less rest!
Steve