To Exercise or Not To Exercise, That is the Question

In none of my recent posts have I discussed exercise. Yep. Exercise. For a naturally non athletically inclined” person, exercise is not something I eagerly do. It takes time. I have to work it into my already “busy” retirement schedule.  It’s lots of trouble. I have to keep my gym bag gym ready. If I already have makeup on before I go to the gym, I have to take it off then reapply it after exercising. Yada. Yada. Yada. I can find a million (ok. Maybe that’s an exaggeration) excuses for not exercising.

I have at times in my life been a regular exerciser, but for me currently, the discipline of eating with the proper control and restraint is a higher priority. Eating too much can and does easily negate the benefits of regular exercise. “You can’t out exercise a bad diet.” (Biggest Loser quote.”) Therefore, I am focusing on conscious eating rather than disciplined, regular exercising.

That said, I am exercising. Lap swimming is my exercise of choice. I love to swim. I lap swim for an hour; 1200 yards. My goal is to swim two to three times a week. If the pool at my gym is full, my second choice is the elliptical, on which I also spend an hour. Exercising is serious business for me. I go in, get it done, and get on with my day. Retired people are very busy, you know.

I don’t really have a choice about whether or not to exercise, because it is critical to keeping my blood pressure under control. If I miss a couple of weeks in the pool, my blood pressure jumps up 20 points, and I feel lousy. Soooooo I keep doing it.

So I believe exercise is important because of the health benefits, and I tend to put it in the same category as medicine. I just take it. I just do it. That said, I am always happy and feel great once my exercise sessions are done.