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Greetings!
I will not lie to you.
I've been back from staycation since last week.
I was going to continue staycationing but
to be honest,
I needed a vacation from my staycation.
Exactly one week ago, four days before
the first day of school, (Coaches worldwide, are you listening?)
my son returned from his World Series run.
Yes Folks, his baseball season did persevere
until four days before school started.
Max had a baseball experience that every
American boy dreams of-
To go to the World Series as a 13 year old.
It's what God had in mind when, on the seventh day,
He said, Let there be kids who love baseball.
My son patiently sat the bench for all four games,
except, EXCEPT, for the very last game,
when Coach put him in at the top of the seventh inning,
with our team one run down and needing a guy on first base.
Max delivered.
Granted it wasn't enough to win the game
but more than enough to light up his (and my) whole summer.
Then just like that, the game was over.
Out of our lives the World Series went
Like a candle that had been snuffed out.
Poof it was over.
Some kids came home morose because
they didn't capture the title.
Not Max.
He was satisfied to have gone to the baseball mountaintop
and peer across it's vast baseball landscape.
Not to mention he didn't have to eat my cooking the entire time.
He now has what they call perspective.
This also meant that when he got home
My cooking wasn't THAT bad.
He'd been a bench warmer just long enough
to truly appreciate how wonderful it is to
get in the game.
He returned just in time to attend the final day
of a three week soccer conditioning camp,
which was the minimum amount of exercise
needed to hobble him with DOMS
(delayed onset muscle soreness)
for the next day's soccer tryouts, from which he got cut
(from being out of soccer shape, I assume)
and then was reinstated (when the soccer coach
found out what the Babe Ruth World Series is.
I forgive him though. Last year someone
had to tell me what the World Cup was.)
Needless to say, I need a vacation from our staycation.
But while staycationing,
I've been thinking of Max's experiences:
sitting the bench, and then getting his big moment at bat.
Next, being cut from the soccer team, then reinstated.
Tough times followed by reward;
a reward that might not have carried such sweetness
were it not preceded by the struggle.
It reminds me of the many friends and neighbors
that are experiencing similar contrast
in their financial situation.
There's nothing like not having enough money
to make you appreciate getting a raise.
And all you have to do is tear your Achilles tendon
or get a bad CAT scan to make you realize
how unimportant money is
and how far up the scale good health is compared to wealth.
Which leads me to my next thought
Which is
That exercise has many inherent struggles but
the sweetness of it's rewards are much more
than appreciating a time a bat or making a soccer team.
As a matter of fact, the more out of shape you are,
the greater the benefits of exercise!
If you stay fit, you will live longer. And you will live younger,
for longer.
(Were you wondering if I'd get to my point some time today?)
Physical fitness is the single most critical step we can take to slow
and possibly reverse the ravage of time.
There is a huge connection between our behavior
and our health,
or rather between what you know you should do
and what you actually DO.
Jane Brody wrote in this week's New York Times called
"You Name It and Exercise Helps"
She quotes Frank Hu, from Harvard School
of Public Health. He says, "The single thing
that comes close to a magic bullet,
in terms of its strong and universal benefits, is exercise,"
Think about exercise like brushing your teeth
or here's a good one-
think about exercise like picking up dog poop in your yard.
It just has to be done
Or else you'll end up cleaning up a bigger mess later on.
No drama.
No loud "EEEWWWS!!"
Just git on yer shoes and do it.
Or if that was too odiferous of a metaphor,
those of you who prefer a more sophisticated metaphor
Think about working out like
financial planning .
Approach exercise with the same discipline of
saving for your retirement.
You might have to say no occasionally to some goody
to which you'd like to say yes.
You may have to make some sacrifices,
time-wise or comfort-wise, but doing this is smart and judicious.
And just like a financial investment,
exercise investment will allow you to enjoy
your other investments later on.
Have I made my point clear?
Everyone needs to sweat.
If you don't like to work out, maybe you can think
of some other things you DO like,
and figure out a way to do your preferred hobbies
while exercising.
If you like reading , bring your book with you to read on the Stairmaster
or stationary bike.
Listen to your favorite songs on your ipod while you jog.
Instead of meeting your friend for coffee, save the four bucks
and go for a walk. Hey! You just saved four bucks!
Do you belong to a Book Club? Take them on the road
for a walking book club!
So get (or stay) physically fit.
So you never have to say,
"If only I'd taken better care of myself."
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Penny Hoff
Penny Hoff's Workout World |
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