Exercise is an important….and necessary part of my life. I have battled with my weight my entire life. It is not easy to maintain my weight, I gain weight easily and have to watch what I eat, as well as exercise regularly, otherwise my weight goes up quickly! I do not consider myself overweight (nor do the medical charts). Every year it gets harder to stay at my weight because well, as we age our metabolism get slower….fantastic, right? Luckily, I do like to exercise….but am not one of those people that wakes up with the desire to go for a jog….I have to talk myself into exercising. Exercise has many health benefits, physical and emotional, it helps me de-stress, feel more energetic overall, and I sleep better when I exercise regularly.
Over the next few weeks, I will share with you strategies that I use to stay fit & not gain weight. Trust me, it is not easy for me. Wish it was….wish I was naturally thin, wish I did not have an appetite for sweets & tortilla chips, wish it was easy to lose weight, wish there was a secret pill to stay thin…..but, that is not the case, haha. I can’t wish to be thin, I have to work at it….all my friends and colleagues tell me they have to work at it.
Meet Lola (pictured) – you will hear lots about her in my blog, she is one of my closest friends and the one I spend the most time with! I love this gal! She is not only an excellent friend, the best I could ever ask for, she is also my exercise buddy and helps me get motivated to exercise! We have been walking together for more than six years! We take long, speed walks, usually downtown by the bay. Our route doesn’t change much, but it is a wonderful, fun time, every single time! We call it “our therapy”- haha! It is our “amiguita/friend time,” we chat, we vent, we laugh…all while we exercise. The walk goes by fast, sometimes we walk around the block a few times at the end of the walk because we still have things to talk about. Before I was married, we used to walk together about two to four times per week, now we both make an effort to at least walk together once a week. It is our time to catch up and we value it. Every week we touch bases on Monday and set a day to walk that week. Once we set the day, we rarely change it and pass on other invitations which may seem more fancy (like dinner out)….because this is our time! I joke with her that if Jim and I have a baby (when we do), I’ll probably bring the baby along in the stroller on the walks with Tia Lola (aunt Lola)!
So, if you can, exercise with a friend…..it does wonders for the soul! The calories you burn are just extra….better said – part of the benefit!
Do you have an exercise buddy?
Hugs,
Paola