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Lighten Your Limbs With Friends
Hello all. I have Diabetes 2 and have avoided exercise for over 2 1/2 years. I am overweight and know that I need to get moving and lose weight. I have always had excuses not to do anything much before. I have a treadmill, and I look at it, but I never use it. A few weeks ago, I decided that it is time to lighten my limbs. I received my Mayo newsletter. and it included a twelve-week Exercise Plan. It was like fate that I had decided to exercise and Mayo dropped the perfect routine in my lap. Because it's 12 weeks and not years and years, as some plans are, the Mayo is doable. They're not asking me to run a marathon!
It's a way to get stronger and healthier. However, one part was missing: I need to be accountable to somebody else. I would love for other Connects to join me so that we could celebrate our success each week. I don't want to wait to January when all we hear is "New Year, New You." So I thought it would be good to start before the bombardment of ads for gym equipment and promises to lose many pounds too fast (and gain it back even faster). I needed a plan that will work for me and anybody else, and Mayo has given it to us.
Let's get a jump on 2019 by finishing strong in 2018. If we start the first week on Friday, November 2, 2018 (only four days from now), it will propel us through the weekend and keep us going. Just think: By January 25th, we will have completed the 12 weeks. Just when other people are trying to keep their exercise resolutions, we'll have finished 12 weeks. We'll be lighter, heathier, and stronger. We also will have gotten into the habit of exercising and hopefully, do another 12 weeks. Doesn't that sound good? To be able to say, "I'm healthier and feel so much better and have lighter limbs." For the first time I am excited to exercise, but I need others to come along with me. I need the accountability.
Please join me and give it a try. Come along with me so we can say it's not just my 12 weeks, but it's our 12 weeks. The first week asks us to do 5 minutes of warm up, five minutes of brisk walking, and five minutes of cool down. That's only 15 minutes. I can do that! The walking is the speed that you are comfortable with. The warm up and cool down are just slower walking. It can be outside, in your house, at a gym---wherever you feel comfortable and whatever time of day is convenient. Nothing required except determination and desire to make it 12 weeks.
I'll post the exercise times for each week once we get started. Let's give this gift to ourselves and improve throughout the holidays. If you have any questions, send me a note, and I'll answer what I have from Mayo.
Everybody's walking! Sounds great to me.
@retiredteacher
Volunteer Mentor
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@marvinjsturing that was my incentive too, to be in as good a shape as possible when the time finally came for my liver transplant. I exercised and lost weight. Being healthy and in decent shape really does help with recovery.
JK
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3 Reactions@marvinjsturing, @jk, Today ends 11 weeks of Lightening our Limbs. It's hard to believe that tomorrow starts the last week, and we have been walking for three months. Terrific. One more week and we will have completed the Mayo Walking Plan. Every walk next week deserves a big and more fancy flourish at the check offs. Then to continue is my goal. The time has passed quickly, and after another three months, it will be almost Spring! Yea for us!
Carol
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2 ReactionsI am excited to make it through the 12 week program and will continue to exercise. You talk about the coming of spring...We're supposed to get 6 to 8 inches of snow tomorrow. Sounds like a good day to stay inside.
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2 Reactions@marvinjsturing I saw the weather for the Northern tier of states and crossing to New England. Brrrrrrrr! It is going to be 15 degrees here in the South Sunday, but no snow expected. It will be a good weekend to stay inside. I missed walking today as we've traveled for my husband's appointment with his cardiologist. His blood pressure has been too high since he had heart surgery in 2011. So echos and TSE and other tests are necessary twice a year. The cow aorta they had to put in is leaking, so they keep a check on that. It is always taxing and I just give out, so walking tomorrow, not today. I've missed a number of days with dr. appointments, but will make them up. That's one good thing about walking; there's always tomorrow to do make-up days. I am happy with what we've done. And if we do three more months, technically it will be Spring (March 20th). So we will have walked through Winter and into Spring and then Summer and then Fall, and before we know it, we will have walked a year. I'm still praying for you, your donor, and your transplant.
Stay warm.
Carol
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3 Reactions@retiredteacher We are expecting 17" of snow here. That's OK, as long as do not lose power. We thought when we moved to a neighborhood with underground wiring that would no longer be a problem but when the wires leading into the neighborhood go down, we are all stuck. I hate that. Here, with wells and septic systems, when we lose power we have no heat, no water, and cannot flush toilets. UGH.
I got to my club early today to do pool exercises. I figure tomorrow will be a recumbent bike day.
JK
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2 ReactionsI agree, @contentandwell. I once lived with a well and septic system and when you lose power you have nothing. I hope that you stay safe with power. How many inches so far?
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1 ReactionI also agree @jk. These storms are in no way easy except for the 1%ers that have everything for every situation. We live in the country but have city water, so we can flush toilets and have running water, but we're freezing when the electricity goes because we have no heat anywhere in this total electric house. We have a fireplace but have never used it. I am allergic to smoke. The smell just makes me ill. So our fireplace is capped off. If it were to get as cold as in the North, we'd have to go to a hotel/motel---somewhere with heat or just head further south. I pray that all the people who are in the line of this storm will be okay. I worry especially for the homeless.
All Volunteer Mentors and Moderators take care.
Carol
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2 Reactions@hopeful33250 Thankfully southern NH, where we are, was not hit as badly as expected. The snow has stopped here, and it is now sleet. This is a picture out my FR door this morning. I did not take it in black and white, but it sure looks like I did! We have about 8 - 10 inches of snow. So far, so good. We still have our electricity, obviously.
JK
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3 Reactions@contentandwell I love this picture. I have always liked beautiful snow scenes, and this is so soothing and calming. Winter here is just dead grass and stark and colorless bare trees.Thank goodness you didn't get the horrendous storm that was predicted. We were supposed to be really cold, but we just had rain and winds, but nothing to do any damage. I think the front has moved on east, so we're having Winter. As long as we have electricity, I'm good with cold temps.
I see these pictures posted, but I don't know how to do that on this site.
Take care.
Carol
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1 Reaction@retiredteacher Carol, it's a piece cake if you have the picture in your files. Just go to the link "photo/files" and it will open up for you to select a picture from your files.
I can't believe how many places canceled opening today, last night! Heck, you can't live in NH if you are a weather wimp.
JK
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