Tag: encouragement

The Wandering Hermit: How’s Everybody Doin’ Today? Wanna Hear About My Lungs?

   2 July 2024  Leave a Comment on The Wandering Hermit: How’s Everybody Doin’ Today? Wanna Hear About My Lungs?

One of my favorite concepts is having the confidence to walk into a room like you own everything.  Of course, I never quite do have that level of confidence, but I think I’ve figured out a way to fake it, and faking it is nearly as good it most cases.  Recently, whenever I’ve been around other people I like to walk in like I’m the district manager; I’m not doing a walk through this week, but I am just seeing how everyone is doing.  What is surprising is how well even that level of confidence works.

I need to keep working on breathing.  I am MILES from where I started, but I do wish I could breath even more deeply.  I want to just fill those lungs up fully and enjoy the full capacity of respiration that I have lacked for so long.  Maybe it’ll take time.  Maybe it will never happen, but I’m trying.  I don’t know what would help other than what I’m already doing.  I’m willing to try anything.

[Walk #109]

The Wandering Hermit: Sizing Down

   1 July 2024  Leave a Comment on The Wandering Hermit: Sizing Down

Got in a second walk after I saw the July challenge on Apple Fitness: 2.77 mile walks at least 14 times.  That must be based on my walking average because it is a perfect increase in what I’ve been doing.  But I don’t like taking longer than an hour, so I’ll have to get these extras in in the evening.  It’s so warm.  But I’ve always been averse to even the mildest warmth, but I actually thought it wasn’t so bad.  I suppose that makes sense.  I’m likely having some changes to my body relative to my own heat tolerance.  I’ve always wanted to be someone who could stand to be outside in July, so maybe I’ll get there someday. 

One of the new shirts I got for walking arrived and fits perfectly.  It’s a 2XL, and if I’m being honest, that still feels too large.  It’s been a long time though, and I can start retiring my 4XL & 3XL shirts I think.  My favorite part was that it fit, but was not clingy or snug at all… that’s progress.  My weight loss might be slower than I’d like at the moment, but I am shrinking an that’s the part I’m excited about. 

[Walk #108]

The Wandering Hermit: Walk #100

   25 June 2024  Leave a Comment on The Wandering Hermit: Walk #100

This was my 100th walk!  It’s hard to believe I’ve done so many.  I decided to start doing a daily walk 1 April 2024, but it was rainy and so I officially started on 3 April, doing half a mile on a good day.  It wasn’t until 7 May that I finally started walking past the bridge that crosses over the creek and started walking up to the neighbor’s house and back.  On 11 May, I walked to the next road down, a mile away.  19 May, I crossed Fairgrounds, the cross street I live on, walking down a bit and back to the neighbor’s house.  Since 28 May, my habit has been always to walk to the next road from here, in any direction, and back.  That makes the walks 2-3.3 miles, depending on the direction I go.  This morning, I did 4.32 miles, walking East to Prairie Rd, North to Yost Rd, West to Fairgrounds Rd, & South to Burris Rd.  That is a little unusual because I was doing it to celebrate 100 walks, but I felt great afterward and was not short of breath or overly exhausted.  What I’m not trying to be cautious of is not continuing to increase the distance for no reason.  3 miles feels really good.  4 was a nice amount this morning, but I had started constantly checking my watch at about 3.5 to see when it would be over.

This is all probably painfully obvious to people who are already pretty active, but I started at not being able to walk out to the car without having to stop to catch my breath.  Being able to do any of this seems remarkable to me.  I’ve been thinking about my next steps.  Like I said, after 3 miles I was ready for the walk to be over, but it wasn’t because I was overly tired.  I was bored.  So, it might behoove me to add an evening walk as well.  That would definitely be easier on joining a gym.  I like the idea of walking 5:15am-6:15am & 5:15pm-6:15pm.  It is so hot this week, that I don’t think I’ll be able to test that out though.  Maybe I’ll try running in place with a fan blowing directly on me!  

I’m proud of myself.  I didn’t know if I could do it, but I was determined to try and feel like I finally figured out something I wish I had learned 20 years ago.  I could dwell in that regret, but that won’t actually alter the reality of my life.  Instead, I’ll take that knowledge and make a future from it.  

[Walk #100]

The Wandering Hermit: People of the Dawn, People of the Dusk

   24 June 2024  Leave a Comment on The Wandering Hermit: People of the Dawn, People of the Dusk

I woke up feeling just fantastic!  I like waking up with so much mental energy, but of course it tends to fade in a couple of hours and I sort of have to regain it later in the morning.  Still, it starts strong.

Last night, I thought I might wake up and drive somewhere to do my walk.  I keep wanting to do that, but I basically burst awake ready to get going and it seems a waste to not take advantage of that energy.  I’ll definitely have to give that a try soon.

I keep thinking about how some people are active early in the morning and others are active late into the night.  Every time I talk to one of my brothers, they’ve been up too late or have a list of things planned to do late into the night.  Dad was always up until 2 or 3am, waking up for his day around noon.  Grandma Fuchs was the same.  But then Mimi, Mom’s mom, would be sitting in the family room each morning before dawn—lights still off, just sipping her Folgers coffee and enjoying the quiet of her own company.  Mom was also an early riser and I guess I’ve just carried on that tradition.  Whether there is an innate difference between people or if we are just adaptable, I’m not sure.  All I do know is that I’ll take the dawn.  It makes me happy.

I’m wondering if I should be looking forward to simplicity after moving or if that is foolish.  Maybe I should be expecting more chaos; at least then it would be more difficult to be disappointed in the outcome.  I find it challenging to not be optimistic, something I’ve seen as a shortcoming.  Optimism isn’t cool.  It’s sometimes a hinderance.  But I would rather look forward to something good and believe it will happen than be down about everything all the time.  Bad stuff is going to happen whether I worry about it or not; it feels silly to go through anything once in my mind before it happens again in reality.  

[Walk #99]

The Wandering Hermit: Careful! Don’t Bully Yourself

   23 June 2024  Leave a Comment on The Wandering Hermit: Careful! Don’t Bully Yourself

I was talking to my brother after yesterday’s morning walk.  I mentioned that I tried to take a photo on every walk, just as a part of my recent practice of having daily habits, but that as it was my 97th walk since I started I was out of things to take a photo of.  This morning, I decided that was a silly thing to say.  It was a silly thing to think in fact, so I found a huge number of things to take a picture of today and I didn’t go far out of my way.  I did slow my pace, stopping frequently to get a good shot of a particular plant or the right angle of the road.  And it was a nice relaxed morning.  I’m positive that not every morning needs to be about my pace & speed, but I still tried to make up for that by going a little bit longer than usual.  

During a recent video by Mike Pridgen (Mike Needs a Plan), he reminded his viewers to avoid self deprecating humor about themselves.  I’ve been thinking about that; I don’t know if I 100% agree, but I think I’m much closer to that than I used to be.  One of the traits I value most about myself is that I don’t take myself too seriously.  I think there is a difference though between acknowledging the silly things I do, an laughing about them, and taking shots at myself that are unwarranted.  It’s a nice reminder to not tear myself down.  I’m definitely guilty of that.  I find that the older I get, the more I appreciate things that are deemed corny in youth.  I like being positive.  I like being happy.  

The temperatures are going to be intense all week.  I haven’t lost my commitment to not having excuses for my daily walks, so it’ll be interesting to see how well I get on in the sweltering heat.  I do normally walk early enough that it isn’t too warm yet, but it was 74ºF/23.5ºC this morning and while it didn’t feel as bad as yesterday, it was still warmer than I would have liked it to be.  It wouldn’t be so bad if I stopped complaining about it!

[Walk #98]