Let’s Go Walking! Join me for a virtual walking support group

Posted by Becky, Volunteer Mentor @becsbuddy, Feb 19, 2020

Many of you living with cancer or an autoimmune disease, like me, deal with daily fatigue. You know that exercise is so important to your health, but it’s so hard. There’s always an excuse: it’s too cold or hot, it’s going to rain or it’s raining, or it’s snowy and icy, or I just don’t want to. I, too, have all these excuses, but I have a new rescue dog who wants to go out and who doesn’t care about my excuses! And I’ve got traction devices for my boots.Now I just need a walking group who will keep me accountable. People who say, ‘let’s go for a walk.'

And I thought: What about my virtual friends on MayoClinicConnect?

Mayo Clinic has an easy 12-week walking program to get us started! Here’s the link:
- Get walking with this 12-week walking schedule https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/get-walking-with-this-12-week-walking-schedule/

So let’s form a virtual walking group. We can agree to walk every day and encourage each other through Connect. We can walk outdoors, in a mall, or in the red center, or in the hallways of our apartment building.

Who’s in? Who’s going to join me?

Come on, Let’s Go Walking!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Just Want to Talk Support Group.

@mayofeb2020

@lioness @jude07... High expected to reach 98 today. Pushed myself to walk extra distance this morning at 7:30 because I know I won't be going out later. Rolling blackout is expected too. Usually on days like these, people would go to local libraries malls, and senior centers to take advantage of a/c, but now all these are closed. Not sure if public swimming pools are opened. Would love some cooler weather. I'm wilting.

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Ive been slack on my walking since it is so hot but have been walking inside not outside . Just to hot cant stand the heat or sun I had sun poisoning one time and when I get into the hot sun I get sick

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@ellens

98 degrees sounds hideous! I whine when it hits 80 degrees. Big box stores should be open and if you are willing to mask up, you could take some refuge there. I live in Duluth, MN, "the air-conditioned city," and when we got up to 88 in July I was not happy! I'll take shoveling snow over cooking in the heat.

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@ellens, We've been experiencing 100+ temps for days in a row but unlike Duluth,with humidity from the lake, ours is dry heat which is more tolerable for me...unless out in it for more than a few minutes. lol Ready for some of your "air-conditioned city" to travel our way!

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@lioness

Ive been slack on my walking since it is so hot but have been walking inside not outside . Just to hot cant stand the heat or sun I had sun poisoning one time and when I get into the hot sun I get sick

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@lioness, How I agree with you that this high heat is disrupting our outside walks! Yesterday was my birthday and my children sent me a lovely Shutterfly photo book of family photos with inscriptions taken over the last year. Couldn't wait to open it until their call, (we are on different time zones and I wake so early). So grabbed a mug of coffee and Family Adventures album and headed for our Arboretum and wildflower park for an early walk and lovely space to enjoy.

At 6:30 am a couple were walking in the park and as we distanced and talked a bit through our masks, it turns out they have been taking daily walks in the park for three years. They live nearby and take their walks early before dressing for their jobs. They asked about the album so it was an added pleasure to allow them to thumb through it. Certainly an unexpected surprise and delight because so often I don't even see others on my walks.

Later in the very hot day as I went to the mailbox, I found a tiny Gecko inside the metal box. Wallah!! My love affair with Geckos began years ago when I found a small one in my garage. Many a fruit fly order was placed at one local pet store and many kept and nurtured Geckos later, it was astonishing to happen upon this little fella in a metal mailbox of all places and on my special day to boot! Quickly lifted him out and placed the baby under a shade tree under some plants. At least the little guy was "sitting" on some mail but how he managed to scamper up and into the box is a mystery. Just the very short walk from garage to street had me wilted and perspiring as I hustled back to the house!

My thoughts are with all of our California and Colorado friends and families as incredible heat and lightening storms continue to set areas ablaze. My daughter and friend can see smoke and haze in the distance from their morning hikes in the Boulder, CO area.

Best wishes to all who are working to keep themselves and their loved ones safe and well!

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@fiesty76

@lioness, How I agree with you that this high heat is disrupting our outside walks! Yesterday was my birthday and my children sent me a lovely Shutterfly photo book of family photos with inscriptions taken over the last year. Couldn't wait to open it until their call, (we are on different time zones and I wake so early). So grabbed a mug of coffee and Family Adventures album and headed for our Arboretum and wildflower park for an early walk and lovely space to enjoy.

At 6:30 am a couple were walking in the park and as we distanced and talked a bit through our masks, it turns out they have been taking daily walks in the park for three years. They live nearby and take their walks early before dressing for their jobs. They asked about the album so it was an added pleasure to allow them to thumb through it. Certainly an unexpected surprise and delight because so often I don't even see others on my walks.

Later in the very hot day as I went to the mailbox, I found a tiny Gecko inside the metal box. Wallah!! My love affair with Geckos began years ago when I found a small one in my garage. Many a fruit fly order was placed at one local pet store and many kept and nurtured Geckos later, it was astonishing to happen upon this little fella in a metal mailbox of all places and on my special day to boot! Quickly lifted him out and placed the baby under a shade tree under some plants. At least the little guy was "sitting" on some mail but how he managed to scamper up and into the box is a mystery. Just the very short walk from garage to street had me wilted and perspiring as I hustled back to the house!

My thoughts are with all of our California and Colorado friends and families as incredible heat and lightening storms continue to set areas ablaze. My daughter and friend can see smoke and haze in the distance from their morning hikes in the Boulder, CO area.

Best wishes to all who are working to keep themselves and their loved ones safe and well!

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Happy belated Birthday, hopefully the day was a “gecko” one! Love those photo album books, enjoy it over and over!

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I’ll try. For now that’s all I can muster. Thanks for your outreach.

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@fiesty76

@lioness, How I agree with you that this high heat is disrupting our outside walks! Yesterday was my birthday and my children sent me a lovely Shutterfly photo book of family photos with inscriptions taken over the last year. Couldn't wait to open it until their call, (we are on different time zones and I wake so early). So grabbed a mug of coffee and Family Adventures album and headed for our Arboretum and wildflower park for an early walk and lovely space to enjoy.

At 6:30 am a couple were walking in the park and as we distanced and talked a bit through our masks, it turns out they have been taking daily walks in the park for three years. They live nearby and take their walks early before dressing for their jobs. They asked about the album so it was an added pleasure to allow them to thumb through it. Certainly an unexpected surprise and delight because so often I don't even see others on my walks.

Later in the very hot day as I went to the mailbox, I found a tiny Gecko inside the metal box. Wallah!! My love affair with Geckos began years ago when I found a small one in my garage. Many a fruit fly order was placed at one local pet store and many kept and nurtured Geckos later, it was astonishing to happen upon this little fella in a metal mailbox of all places and on my special day to boot! Quickly lifted him out and placed the baby under a shade tree under some plants. At least the little guy was "sitting" on some mail but how he managed to scamper up and into the box is a mystery. Just the very short walk from garage to street had me wilted and perspiring as I hustled back to the house!

My thoughts are with all of our California and Colorado friends and families as incredible heat and lightening storms continue to set areas ablaze. My daughter and friend can see smoke and haze in the distance from their morning hikes in the Boulder, CO area.

Best wishes to all who are working to keep themselves and their loved ones safe and well!

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@fiesty76.. Happy belated birthday! You're, what, 21?? Your walk sounds lovely, the weather in CA continues to be in the 90s. The fire made air quality worse. Kudos to the firefighters, both in CA and Colorado, they have to battle the extreme heat, the fires, and covid. Can't thank them enough. Talking about geckos, they're everywhere here, big daddy ones to tiny baby ones. They love the heat!

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@lioness

Ive been slack on my walking since it is so hot but have been walking inside not outside . Just to hot cant stand the heat or sun I had sun poisoning one time and when I get into the hot sun I get sick

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I’ve really been slack in my walking! Don’t even do it inside, does getting bounced in a car for 2hours count? Probably not. I’m having problems with the altitude here and am short of breath most of the time. The grandkids are gorgeous and so full of energy! We’re staying at the other grandparents ranch so no TV or radio and barely any internet. The quiet, when the kids aren’t here is awesome.

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@mayofeb2020

@fiesty76.. Happy belated birthday! You're, what, 21?? Your walk sounds lovely, the weather in CA continues to be in the 90s. The fire made air quality worse. Kudos to the firefighters, both in CA and Colorado, they have to battle the extreme heat, the fires, and covid. Can't thank them enough. Talking about geckos, they're everywhere here, big daddy ones to tiny baby ones. They love the heat!

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Thanks for the birthday wishes, @mayofeb. It was a terrific day! However, I mentioned something during our Zoom family sharing in regard to being of senior in the 65 yr group, my 15 yr old, and former favorite 15 yr old, had the nerve to question: "only 65 Grammer????" Humph! I thought we'd taught him better...lol

Yes, my heart goes out to all those affected by these terrible fires and to none more than those firefighters and their families for their brave, heroic work!

Ahh, so maybe the baby in the mailbox had found a comfy, toasty place to relax!! Had read that in Mexico, geckos can be sometimes heard "singing" within the walls of homes and buildings. I was never serenaded. So does that mean I flunked gecko nurturing??? Smiles to you and all. Keep well and safe.

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@jude07

Happy belated Birthday, hopefully the day was a “gecko” one! Love those photo album books, enjoy it over and over!

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Thank you, @jude07! Yes, it was a resoundingly lovely gecko day!!

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@fiesty76

@ellens, We've been experiencing 100+ temps for days in a row but unlike Duluth,with humidity from the lake, ours is dry heat which is more tolerable for me...unless out in it for more than a few minutes. lol Ready for some of your "air-conditioned city" to travel our way!

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Good luck with getting better temperatures (I'm not being sarcastic). I spent 40+ years in Montana and their summers get hot and with sometimes single-digit humidity I felt like a shriveling prune. Going out in the sun at the higher altitude made it feel like I was in a blast furnace. So, the low humidity can be nice, but it has its down side. It's not terribly humid in Duluth. I spent some time in NC with my now ex-husband and there the air felt like a warm, wet blanket.

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