Book Review: Drop Dead Healthy

I've recently had a hankering for reading a few good health/self-help books, and decided to tackle Drop Dead Healthy by A.J. Jacobs over the holidays. During the recounting of his two-year journey to become as "healthy as humanly possible," I enjoyed Jacobs' conversational style and was surprised to find it funny. It was the noise-cancelling headphones that got me. Each chapter focuses on a part of the body, and not only the obvious ones. For example, there's one on the "inside of the eyelids" i.e. sleep, and one on the ears, in which he learns about the dangers of our sky-high decibel lives. Jacobs takes to wearing large 70s-style headphones around Manhattan to protect his ears from the constant noise. His highly-tolerant and reasonable wife is on board with this, until she finally loses it on the way to a play date for their sons, asking him to take the "dorky" offending items off before they arrive.

The book is full of interesting bits of information and funny exchanges with Jacob's wife Julie, who becomes a character in the story in her own right. Jacob also includes tales and anecdotes from a few other family members -- his grandfather as well as his "eccentric Aunt Marni" -- who all round the book out and make for a more interesting two-year journey of health from every aspect.

Although some may find my voracious reading of self-help books strange, I was told once (by a psychologist, my friends) that my approach to them is in fact quite healthy. I find I take away one or two helpful hints or even just one particular thing that makes me think. I also love those written in the first person by the author, as I can't get enough of observing how others' view the world and what it is that makes them tick.

In this book it was Jacob's tackling of his sedentary life style that really hit home for me. When he described his love of sitting down, I thought, "That's me!". Being healthy isn't just about exercise and going to the gym, but the research he did showed that sitting and starting at screens is actually bad for you. The book isn't footnoted (one of its flaws), so I can't check the "studies" he quotes, but he does make a point that anecdotally appears to be true: never before in history have we been so immobile. And when I examine my life I know it's true. I sit at a desk all day, I ride escalators, I would do anything for a seat on the tube, and when I get home I often lie on the sofa since I'm so exhausted. From what, exactly? A lot of my free time is spent sitting at a screen as well, since one of my hobbies is writing. And when I tried to write a novel in a month, whoa, I did a lot of sitting. I was fascinated by the ways in which he tackled this, including his treadmill desk. He wrote the entire book while walking.

I think one of the reasons I found this so interesting is that I already knew so much sitting wasn't good for people -- in particular hypermobile people like me. One of the reasons I still need to do my physio exercises every day is because I am so sedentary. When I saw my physio this last August after my week sailing in Turkey, she said my body was in much better shape than before I left. Clambering around a boat for a week was the the best medicine for my bendy body.

I don't think that I will be able to implement a treadmill desk anytime soon, but at least this book increased my awareness that I should be trying to sit less. Perhaps not taking a seat on the tube when one becomes available, standing up when I'm on a conference call, and trying to walk instead of taking the tube or bus whenever I can.

This won't be the last A.J. Jacobs book I'll read, in fact, I'm quite interested in one of his other quests: one to become smarter and one to follow the Bible as literally as possible. That one is sure to be interesting.

Related Posts:
Book Review: A New Earth
Book Review: Poser -- My Life In Twenty-Three Yoga Poses

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As The Nights Draw In

Sunday was my favorite day of the year. Getting an extra hour in the day is the most glorious thing. The Hub thinks I'd prefer to be a bear if I could. I like sleeping so much that hibernating a few months of the year would suit me just fine.

I do appreciate the extra hour of sleep, but I also feel like the extra hour we receive on this weekend every year is a small gift that makes the blow of next week easier. Autumn just seems to get busier every year. Christmas comes faster and I seem to be involved in more at work as the years go by.

And next week the darkness in England really arrives. By mid-December I usually start to notice signs of the sun setting by lunchtime. I don't know how people in Scandinavia and even Scotland survive as the days are short enough for me in London. If you didn't know, London is much further north than New York (Madrid is approximately the same latitude line as New York). I had no idea about this when I moved here (apparently I don't pay much attention to maps). On December 16th of this year, the sun will rise at 8 a.m. and set at 3:52 p.m.

I don't really mind the darkness that much. I'm lucky – I know people who really suffer in London winters. I actually like the fact that winters here feel completely different than the summers. Although we don't get too much heat in the summer, we get plenty of light and it makes the days feel long and full of possibilities.

But I'm not so great with change and this week I'll feel disoriented. When it starts getting dark at 4 p.m., I'll feel sad. It's the shock, I guess, and the feeling that once again, time is passing. Things have happened to me and friends of mine recently that has made me think a lot recently about how little control we have over our lives.

The only thing we do have control over is the way that we react to our constantly shifting lives. We can take the challenges and difficulties in stride and focus on what we are grateful for and enjoy the small things that we love daily – for me: morning walks, reading books on my commute, writing, cooking and being able to exercise again (more on this next week). We can choose to be tenacious, to approach life with humor and joy.

It's not always easy, but it's at least something to strive for. And as the nights draw in we can appreciate seeing friends, eating good food and drinking nice hot drinks, like mulled wine or hot cocoa. Light a candle in the darkness, so to speak. How do you cope with the winter blues and our lack of control in life generally?

Related Posts:

• Uncertainty
• When Is A Crisis Not A Crisis?
• Pleasure: Seeking It From Within

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Routines

What is it about routines? Why is it that even something nice like a bank holiday on a Monday throwing off my routine can make me feel a little icky, a little unsettled?

In my early 20s I discovered that I was having panic attacks. I wasn't sure what to call them and didn't even know that they had a name, in fact. The only 'mind problem' I was aware of was depression. But I didn't feel sad. I was just having moments of sheer utter panic for no apparent reason. Sometimes it would happen late at night while I was awake lying in bed, or on the subway going to my art class downtown. I knew something wasn't right, and looking back I even remembered having some attacks when I was very young.

Eventually I did something about it. I went to see a psychologist and had sessions with her for about two years. I learned what a panic attack was, that they were actually very common, and she taught me some techniques for dealing with them. Doing some therapy was a great experience actually. I think everyone should do it at some point in their life – it's like taking a continuing education course – on yourself. As long as you are ready to work, because facing your own demons ain't always pretty.

I truly believe that people's general anxiety levels are set pretty early on. And I am a worrier. Give me a spare moment and I will come up with something to worry about. My parents used to call this my 'overactive imagination', like it was something good or at least interesting. But when you draw pictures age five of giant blue monsters that tower over the end of your bed, I do wonder.

As I talked about in my post Baby 19, there is some scientific evidence out there to back up my anecdotal evidence (my own observation of myself) that we don't have much control over our anxiety levels.

But what we do have is control over is how we cope with our anxiety.

I was given a great cognitive behavioural technique (CBT) by my therapist back in the day that helps if I do find myself having panic attacks. But I find these days I don't need it so much as I've developed other coping mechanisms. In fact, I don't have many panic attacks anymore.

One of the most helpful things is just knowing my triggers. Holidays (sad, but true), routines being broken, extreme work stress (particularly working late at night), lack of exercise, too much time alone, not enough time alone (ironically) and abundant amounts of drinking. Alcohol may soothe the anxiety short-term but a build up of cocktails – no matter how nice that cosmopolitan tastes – isn't helpful.

Exercise helps, especially taking long walks and yoga. Writing helps too. Having a place where I can fully discuss things that emerge from my 'overactive imagination' (such as Shrapnelphobia) is a Godsend (so thank you, MB&S readers, for listening). But mostly, knowing that my anxiety is normal for me and will happen at certain times, allows me to just hang on and live through it. I know it doesn't feel particularly nice, but I know it won't kill me and that it will pass eventually.

I don't know, I think I'm not alone in suffering from anxiety – the world can be a pretty sad and scary place sometimes. And people do seem to love their routines, and things I feel are helpful too, like exercise or meditation. We all need our coping mechanisms. Do you suffer from any kind of anxiety? How do you cope?

Related Posts:

• On Breathing
• Uncertainty
• Friday Find: On Mental Illness

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First Things First

Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I try to clean up. Whether it's my desk at work, or our home, or the kitchen – after a cooking session that makes me look like I employ similar preparation techniques to the Muppets' Swedish chef.

Life is messy and chaotic, but cleaning up at least gives me a tiny, if temporary, moment of calm to feel like I can face a difficult task head on.

Lately I've been giving myself a hard time that I'm not working on my book proposal. Or more accurately, completely re-working my book proposal which I first wrote nearly two years ago (how did the time go so fast?). I had an idea late last year on how to make it more interesting (hopefully) but haven't done any actual work on it, let alone get started on some sample chapters.

I've had some good excuses, the biggest being planning our wedding, which was a pretty time-consuming task. But now that it's over and I've done the most important post-wedding admin task – thank-you notes – what's the problem?

I've been thinking about this a lot, mainly during my 'thinking time' – my walks to and from the train station. Like most problems, or should I say challenges, you sometimes have to let them simmer for a while before what is bothering you, or blocking you, rises to the top and presents itself.

Thing is, although I would like to get started on the book stuff, there are a lot of admin things hanging over my head, including many that I put off when I was planning the wedding. And I feel like they're cluttering up my brain. Now I know that life will always be filled with red tape, so it's impossible to get to the point that it's all done, but there is something to be said for getting projects completed. As I've pointed out before (in my post Making Peace With Red Tape) clearing away the clutter does leave room to focus.

There are some things that I really should have never put off, like buying some smoke detectors for our flat. (Please don't yell at me – this means you, Mom! Your new son-in-law could also be held to blame.) Other than said anti-death-wish tasks, there are some projects that although not totally necessary, their completion would probably make me feel calmer. Like finally getting that external hard drive and backing up all my photos. There are also a lot of things I'd like to do to promote this blog that I've been putting off too (see my addendum below). 

It's probably a good idea to give myself some deadlines, just to make sure that these little admin tasks don't take years. The point is to tackle them head on to make room for more creative and exciting stuff, not to just procrastinate. Ah yes, and I should probably put to use some of those good techniques I learned in the Procrastination Equation. Especially acknowledging that I shouldn't be too hard on myself – we are impulsive creatures and my desire to hang out with The Hub and watch the Apprentice will probably always come before buying that external hard drive or actually finishing my filing backlog.

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Do you enjoy reading this blog? I'm going to be exploring how to reach out to new as well as existing readers, such as by finally getting to grips with using twitter to its full advantage, creating a facebook page, etc. But I'd also be grateful if you could help spread the word. If you have any friends who you think might be interested in reading my musings, please do forward them the link. More importantly, if you have any suggestions for how you think I could be getting myself out there more (I know some of you are probably really good at this) or even what type of posts you most like reading, let me know. Either email me here or post in the comments section. I really would love to hear from you.

Related Posts:

• Life Is Messy
• The Art Of De-Cluttering
• What Next? Start Small 

2

Trial And Error

 If you've been reading my blog from the beginning or at least over the past few months, you would be familiar with my morning struggles. To summarize, I'd like to be a morning person. They seem more productive and happy or something. But I'm not.

So over the past year I've been attempting to either try to become one or at least get up a little earlier in order to give myself some extra time to do the things I like to do, or at least not arrive at the office late and in shambles and feeling guilty (which happens a lot).

Growth and change are never linear. When I set out to 'fix' my posture/RSI problems, things would improve, and then they wouldn't for a long time. Sometimes I would feel like I was moving backwards.

Changing anything usually involves a lot of mistakes. And so has been my challenge with mornings. I've tried to bribe myself to get up earlier (pizza for breakfast anyone?), commit publicly to getting up earlier, spend the early mornings at home hanging out doing stuff, spend the early mornings at work doing stuff. I've made lovely breakfasts, bribed myself with cream cheese, eggs, bacon, etc. (the food list goes on and on), tried meditating early in the morning, writing in the morning, doing absolutely nothing in the morning except giving myself more time to get ready and last but not least, putting my blackberry in the living room in the hope that I would at least get out of bed to check my email.

Well, I've learned a few things.

First, I'm not sure if this is ever going to change, but the absolute earliest I can get up, without thoughts of ending my life (I'm only partly joking) is 6.30 a.m. For some reason, that half hour between 6 and 6.30 is a real necessity for me. And don't give me the whole have-you-tried-going-to-bed-earlier? speech. I've tried for a year. A year. I give up on 6 a.m. Also, even if I can get up at 6.30 a.m. most days of the week, there's always going to be one or two where I need to sleep until 7 a.m. I haven't been able to prevent this.

Second, my body is not ready for breakfast right away. It takes me at least until 8 a.m. if not 9 a.m. to be ready to eat. It's just the way my body is and I'm going to accept it.

And third, being creative isn't happening in the morning. I can get up successfully at 6.30 a.m., get into work a little early and answer emails or do admin, but I'm not ready for writing or anything of the sort.

But there's also some good news: I've realized that the morning walk I started doing a year ago in the summer when we moved into our new flat was really the happiest morning activity I've ever engaged in. So I've re-instituted it. I don't know what it is, maybe it wakes me up, or cheers me up. But whatever the reason, it works. I just go to the train station that is a 25-minute walk from our house (instead of the one 10 minutes away). I sometimes even do it on the way home as well. Hey, when you sit at a desk all day, some light walking isn't going to hurt. It also gives me time to think and be alone, which I love. We'll see if I'm so enthusiastic in the winter months.

I don't know if this is the end of the morning story, but I think I've settled on a happy medium. Maybe I'm not a morning person, or will never be one, but through trial and error I've at least discovered a few things about myself that help me to navigate the mornings OK and at the very least I'm late for work less often.

P.S. The most ironic thing about this is that if you read my first post on this subject, The Magical Life Of The Morning Person, I already knew a lot of what I discovered this past year, which means maybe I need to trust myself more. Although I seem to have at least programmed myself to get up some days half an hour earlier than before, so that's some progress!

Related Posts:

• I'll Never Be A Morning Person, But...
• Jekyll And Hyde
• Making Morning Space

2

A Snail's Pace

The other day at lunchtime I went to a meeting of my company's Toastmasters club. Toastmasters is a group for people who want to improve their public speaking and communication skills through 'doing'. For example, there is even an impromptu section of each meeting – where people are chosen from the audience to come up and give two minute speeches on surprise topics (can you imagine?). And the whole thing has a timed itinerary. There is a time keeper and a grammarian and all sorts of other scary things I can't remember.

I do a lot of public speaking for work. I enjoy public speaking and would love to improve. And joining Toastmasters was one of the things I put in the 'after-the-wedding' basket of my to-do list.

But after a packed-full hour of people speaking and clapping I went back to my desk and thought "over my dead body am I going to that every other week." Not as keen anymore, eh?

Other people have told me about feeling bored or at a loose end after planning their wedding. I feel quite the opposite – I am so completely and utterly exhausted that even sometimes meeting up with people seems like a big task.

I just want to be a 'normal' person right now. Go to work, cook some food and exercise (including my physio work of course!). My tap dancing class seems too difficult. And reading my book club books is obviously creating trouble for me (see Tinker Tailor Soldier – Why? for a more in-depth study).

I wonder if part of my malaise is that a wedding is about a lot of people other than you. It's about taking care of them through the organizing of a million little details. Sure, it was about me and the Hub, but it was also about our families and friends and making sure they had a good time (and that we didn't lose any Americans in London). And I'm very good at taking care of other people.

So perhaps this shift in mood for me is part exhaustion but also part of a retreat back to myself. I'm feeling a little spent – like I don't have much to give – which is probably why a lunchtime speech-a-thon is a little too much for me right now. Time to re-group and get my energy back. I'm sure it won't be long before I'm tap dancing again, but for now I'm much more into long solitary walks.

P.S. The blogging stays. I'm much better when I'm writing.

Related Posts:

• Good For The Soul (not totally related, but I don't think I've linked it before)
• Taking It Easy
• Friday Find: Go Easy On Yourself

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Exercise, Again

It's not easy to get into an exercise routine. For anyone. But you've got to be strategic. It's got to be right for your body type, something you actually like doing and the right frequency to keep you from just giving up.

As you may know, I am now recovered from what was a terrible problem with my posture that resulted in muscle imbalance and pain. Unfortunately for me, after recovering, I had a few set backs, including a tonsillectomy and then a back injury last summer from moving house that was totally unrelated (apart from the fact that I am hypermobile, which means I will probably always be a little more prone to injury than most people).

So it's been a long time since I've had a regular sustained exercise routine for more than a few months – besides walking. And that's been tough. Both physically and mentally.

But last October, the stars finally aligned and my physio cleared me to start exercising again. First, I started going back to Bikram yoga. I was thrilled– but had to remain calm about the whole thing and not overdo it. I just went once a week. I also went back to my tap dancing class. This was all amazing.

And then, it got better! I was cleared to do some aerobics again, so I started getting back into Zumba (a dance exercise class). This trio of activities got me through the five months prior to the wedding.

So what happens now? I've been getting stronger and although I don't want to overdo it, I wanted to up things a little more, considering that tap class doesn't happen every week and sometimes we don't even really work up a sweat (we all usually just wear our work clothes). And even though I'm not sure I'll settle at this level, I think exercising three to four times per week seems like the right amount for me.

I'd been toying with a few ideas – including going to yoga twice a week. I tried it, but it was just too much for me. I know that the Bikram yogis swear you have to go at least that much, if not everyday, but it's expensive, and it's time consuming. Apart from being a 90-minute class, you get so sweaty that there's no way you can leave the building without a shower. Plus there's the 15 minutes I spend after class sprawled on the floor unable to move before I can even get to the changing room.

Going once a week is still really challenging, but I also don't dread it. For now, that's my Bikram yoga equilibrium.

One thing that has influenced my decision about what to add in next is a pesky bit of a click in my right shoulder (not sure how else to describe it). According to Super Physio, this will go away once my right deltoid (the big shoulder muscle) gets just that bit stronger to hold one of the joints in my shoulder together better.

I have weights that I use to do specific physio exercises with, but SP said that I need to do more varied work (i.e. faster and in more directions) to actually get that deltoid muscle as strong as it needs to be to stop said pesking 'clicking'. And this doesn't mean I need to become a body builder – no, it means going to Zumba and waving my arms around more and doing things like swimming or tennis or golf.

So I've now started adding swimming back in on Thursday nights. In the past I've struggled a bit with trying to incorporate swimming into my routine. But I am pretty interested in getting rid of that click and I think it's probably the safest bet right now as I don't feel ready for tennis or golf yet. Also, there's the added incentive of a little lie down in the sauna afterwards.

There's a lot to think about when it comes to exercise for me. I can't just plow ahead and try out every new exercise fad that comes along (and who really wants to fly with Jukari or throw those kettle balls around anyway?). Sometimes it stinks, but I know that in the end my body will thank me for it. I have to be my own expert, as only I know the type of exercise that works best for me, what I really like and how I can make it sustainable. And I think that might even be true for everyone, even if you don't have a pesky shoulder click.

Related Posts:

• Keeping Score
• Our Bodies, Ourselves

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Listen, Don't Tell

Do you trust yourself?

When I first started physiotherapy, I certainly didn't trust my body. And why should I? It had turned on me, corrupting my life with pain and making me realize that things I had always taken for granted weren't a sure thing anymore – for example, being able to use my hands. (For a more complete tale of what happened to me, read The Whole Story.)

When I finally found a physio to help me get my life back I plunged head long into doing everything she said to fix it. And sometimes we talked of the day when I would be better. How often would I have to do my exercises, I asked? Would I have to do physio exercises every day for the rest of my life?

Her answers were murky to me. We would see, she said. Maybe I would need to do them once a week, or once a month. It would be a matter of how I used my body on a day-to-day basis and what else was going on in my life.

I didn't get it. At all. I wanted prescriptive answers. I wanted to be told I would need to do X static abs X times per week.

But I'm finally getting it. Even when I do my exercises now I don't necessarily do the 10 repetitions she prescribed to me at the beginning. These days I can feel when my back is flat enough on the floor and when my shoulders are loose enough. These days I listen to my body – I have finally stopped telling it what to do.

Generally, I think we have stopped listening to our bodies as much. We are like deer in the headlights when it comes to all the 'health' advice we're getting from T.V., magazines, and newspapers. Our lives are so fast paced and we're so stressed out that we need others to tell us how to take care of ourselves.

It's bull puckey (I once had a camp counsellor who used that phrase – I haven't used it in about 20 years).

Yesterday my body was a mess. I felt completely pre-menstrual (even though I wasn't, which was slightly worrying). I was stressed about a million little things that all added up to make me feel terrible. So I slowed down and listened. I wasn't very hungry, so I ate very little. I drank a lot of water. Even though I went to yoga on Sunday I still felt like I needed to move some more – so in addition to my tap class last night, I skipped the bus and walked up the hill home. Even though it was freezing!

I'm feeling much better today. I don't know what was going on yesterday, but it's not important. Listening to ourselves extends far beyond the physical, including some harmless bloating. It's not just about what we want to eat or whether it's a day to put our feet up on the couch or go for a walk. It's about what we want to do with our time, our days and our lives. This past weekend I really didn't want to do any writing. So I just stayed away. I know that's a luxury – many of us get a pay check to do things for a certain set amount each day and each week – but there are so many other choices we make. So until I'm in a situation where I don't have any choices, I will try to take advantage of the ones I do.

Related Posts:

• Four Meals A Day - And Why Not?
• Taking It Easy
• Pain Can Make You Ill

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Keeping Score

I have a very large Excel spreadsheet where I have kept track of all things physio-related, including various exercises done (how many reps), heart rate, anti-inflammatories taken and general comments about my pain – how severe and where. A thrilling read. And it goes back to early 2007.

Recently, I've just stopped filling it out. I kept forgetting – which is surprising – as I have kept it faithfully every day for over three years. Recently I started to use it to keep track of the new exercise I was starting to incorporate into my routine. In fact, I decided to start a new one – focused more on regular exercise and less on the physio-kind. But I've failed miserably to fill that one in as well.

Maybe it's that I've started to internalize what it is I need to be doing without the need for anything external. I don't need to keep track anymore. It's clear to me which exercises I still need to do daily, and those that I need to only use from time-to-time. I rarely need to take ibuprophen (or the stronger anti-inflams) anymore. And I can tell when I'm feeling run-down or over tired – my morning pulse rate probably only confirms what it is I already know.

I've settled into an exercise routine over the past six weeks. I go to tap class on Mondays, Zumba at the gym on Wednesdays and Bikram Yoga on Saturdays. I'm not doing any walking other than the 10 minutes each morning and night to and from the train station. Frankly, I'm not too keen on walking these days – now that I can finally do other things.

Three exercise sessions a week suits me just fine. When I told a friend recentlywhat I was up to these days in terms of exercise, she said: "That doesn't sound like exercise, that sounds like fun!" Exactly. And I feel better. You don't realize how much you like something (even exercise), until it's gone. It's a privilege (and if you don't believe me, read a recent post from Nourishing The Soul on another reason why exercise is a privilege – specifically running in this case).

I don't want to keep score any longer, I just want to do it. It's like when I went away to college. Throughout much of my childhood, I was a fanatical journal writer. But I ditched the habit when I moved away from home for the first time, keen not to observe, but to enjoy, to live a little more. And likewise, I'm ditching the spreadsheet.

There is quite a bit of research out there that shows that people who measure things do more of them, but there's also the theory that to get something done what you really need is excitement. One of Leo Babauta's recent posts along these lines has got me thinking about achieving, without goals, and although I'm not ready to throw away the to-do list, there may be something to not keeping track of everything.

And maybe letting the spreadsheet go is part of the journey to view myself as a 'normal' person. I still find it hard to believe that I'm going to be able to play golf and tennis next summer. And that I don't really need to take anti-inflammatories everyday anymore (you wouldn't believe the amount of drugs I carry with me at all times, just in case). It's as if I'm afraid to accept that I am well and healthy. That I just might jinx it.

But I suppose it's time to relax a little – stop keeping score and start enjoying the game.

Related posts:

• What's Your RPR?
• Tap Dancing And Mind Shifting
• Other People's Backs
• Give Me An Inch

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Success Is Fun, But Work Should Be Too

My Dad once gave me an Ann Landers newspaper column about the idea that success is fun, but work is work. I'm not taking too much of an issue with that. Success is fun, and work sometimes is not. There are days when I have tasks to do I – at work or at home or anywhere really – and I gnash my teeth and wail (usually quietly inside my head) and do everything to avoid doing what needs to get done.

I think this is pretty typical. How many times do you read tips in magazines, newspapers and on blogs about how to avoid procrastination? And that's because there are (I believe) psychological reasons involved with procrastination. In my case, mainly fear of failure or an exaggerated sense of how big the task at hand really is.

But I also blame the attitude that work can't be enjoyable. Look, everything in this world can't be fun, but then again, when I actually do take the bull by the horns and get to that task I may have been dreading, whether it's putting away the laundry or writing a report, I always enjoy it more than I think, once I get stuck in and start concentrating.

I think generally that we would be better off if we focused less on success and more on enjoying the actual work. I think that it's a fallacy that success is what makes us happy. In the book Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott (a book on writing that I can't recommend highly enough), she quotes from the film Cool Runnings, about the Jamaican bobsled team and their Olympic dream. The men are desperate to win the gold medal, and the coach says to them, "If you're not enough before the gold medal, you won't be enough with it."

Nothing could ring more true. How many times have you achieved your goal and after sipping some champagne you realize that nothing has really changed? I'm not advocating abolishing goals, but at the end of the day, your life is still your life. And that's why it's important to be satisfied with not only your successes but your work. I do think that in my case, the less I focus on where I'm headed and the more I am present in the here or now, doing what needs to get done and enjoying it, the faster I actually get to my goals.

We live at the top of a hill. It's a good 10 minute walk from the closest train station up to our house. And by 'good' I mean, it's definitely 10 minutes down the hill, but at least 12 minutes up. And 12 minutes is longer than you think when you're tired at the end of a long day.

But there's a bus. It goes straight up the hill and drops us off right smack in front of the house. But it only drives by about every 10 minutes, so if you're not lucky and arrive when the bus has just been there, you'll have to wait 10 minutes to get to the top of the hill on the bus – nearly the same amount of time that it takes to walk up.

So what to do? I have found that if I stand around waiting for the bus I get really irritated and antsy. If I choose to walk up the hill but keep stopping at each bus stop and looking to see if the bus is coming, again, I feel pretty unsatisfied. But if I make the commitment to just walk up the hill I also end up enjoying it (along with getting a little extra exercise), get lost in my thoughts and get there in what seems like no time at all.

When you make the choice to commit – really commit – to whatever it is that you're doing, or even dreading, sometimes you discover that the work just seems to melt away. And (gasp!) you may even enjoy it.

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The Art Of Walking

Walking doesn't have the same cache as running. But it's just as good – in fact, I think it can be better, for at least some people. This blog, and my philosophy, is all about making the choices that are best for you, and not others. But here's some food for thought on why you might want to give walking, the poor cousin of the exercise world, more of a chance.

Personally, walking has given me moments of sanity. When I was in physiotherapy for an extended period of time, one of the things I had to do was stop all exercise besides walking (and of course the physio exercises). Because you are treating a muscle imbalance, if you go out and do lots of high-impact exercise, you will automatically use the muscles which are overly strong and they will never atrophy. Instead, you have to build up the weak muscles using very specific exercises while allowing the ones that are too strong to get weaker.

But walking I could do. Granted, it was frustrating that it was all I was allowed to do, but going for a walk is good on many levels. It's good exercise, for one, and when you walk you are doing something slowly and deliberately enough to work on your posture. I am currently hunting around for a good book on walking and posture to review on the blog, so stay tuned.

Many people say that walking is a way that they gather their thoughts or work on problems in their life. Naturalist John Muir said that "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." I'm not sure if he meant blog topics, but I usually have a new idea for a post after the 10-minute walk home from the station each evening.

And walking with a friend is a great way to have a good talk. I read about a therapist who did sessions with clients while walking together because the clients were much more willing to delve beneath the surface of their lives while in motion. Once I spent a great afternoon walking and talking with a friend while we meandered all over Regent's Park. Much more enjoyable than just sitting in some coffee shop – and the scenery kept changing.

I used to listen to music while I walked, but these days I like to open my eyes and really "see" everything around me. There are so many times we're on autopilot. But of course there's no right way, and sometimes when you want your walk to be really good sweaty exercise there's nothing better than some fast-paced music.

People think they walk a lot, but when pedometers were all the rage, I heard about people strapping them on and realizing they actually took a lot less steps than they thought they did. Doing a 30-minute walk every day can be enough to get the health benefits of exercise (it's a much longer walk than you think, my friends).

And walking is something you can keep doing as you get older since it is so kind to your body. Before we took my Grandmother to Israel she trained for the extra walking by taking a 30-minute walk each day. When we did a 3-hour tour of Jerusalem I think I was more tired than she was at the end of it (she's 93, by the way).

Pretty much everyone can do it, it works as a solitary activity and in groups, and it sounds appealing in all seasons. There's the warm sunny afternoon walk through the summer countryside. But there's also the after-Christmas dinner walk in the icy cold night-time air, peeping into all the houses lit up inside and out. Walking is the open arms of exercise.

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Exercise And Perfectionism Don't Mix

I definitely feel better when I'm exercising. But there's no greater mood killer than feeling like you have to exercise. I've seen a lot of articles written about finding exercise that you like to do, and I think there's no better advice.

But the other thing I've struggled with on the exercise front is being a perfectionist about having an exercise routine. Perhaps because you hear so much about the importance of getting into a routine to form habits. However, there can be a step too far.

After I got better enough from my RSI/postural problems to start regular exercise again, I got a little crazy (this happens to me often). I probably could have been mistaken for a general planning a war exercise with the way I made up spreadsheets, tables and maps for all this exercise I was planning to do.

One of the specific things I wrestled with was my determination to keep a weekly swim in my routine. My gym is right next door to my office, I like swimming, it's really good exercise, and if I didn't do it every week, what was the point of doing it at all? Ah, the all-or-nothing trap. It's a fail safe way for any perfectionist to get paralyzed.

But finally, I wised up. I also admitted to myself I need some routine. I have my Monday tap dancing class. I go to yoga on either Saturday or Sunday – at whatever time works that week. I also attempt to fit in one other dance or aerobics class during the week (right now I'm a big Zumba fan). I really love dancing and I like yoga – or at least the mind and body benefits I get from it. But the thing I do that keeps me the sanest is walking. Although some people think isn't 'real' exercise, I have a lot of time for walking (it probably merits its own post). When I have a pain flare up it saves me as I know it's something I can always do. Also, if I'm too busy for other exercise I know I can still fit in about 25-30 minutes of walking a day – usually on the way to work or home. And that's enough exercise to get the necessary health benefits.

And swimming? Now I reserve that for when I feel like it. Sometimes there's nothing better than going to the pool after work, swimming for as little as 20 minutes and then stretching out in the sauna. In the winter when it starts getting dark at 3 p.m. in London, my gym turns on colored lighting in the pool area and pipes in music that I can only describe as 'light techno'. It's weird, but strangely calming.

I also try to avoid this idea that you have to do a certain kind of exercise a certain number of times per week. At Bikram Yoga the teachers always say that you should go a minimum of twice per week. Why? In the past, someone saying that would have made me fall in line like a little lemming. Now I know that my body can only handle Bikram once a week. But it's still helpful to me, and I can even see changes in my body from it. I try to ignore all the noise from people who don't know me very well. Please remember, it's your life – and you're the expert.

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