Walking

"It is very important for you to get up and moving around. Walking is the best thing you can do. Taking short, frequent walks around your house throughout the day will help you feel better and help you to not get stiff. You can being slowly and increase the distance and frequency you walk daily as tolerated. You should only be walking, being sure to rest in between. Resting is essential to restoring energy and promoting healing. You should not be doing ANY lifting, pushing, pulling or tugging over 5 pounds."

Those are the instructions from my post-surgery care packet. For the past 5 or 6 days, I have been walking around the block in my neighborhood. Darling daughter has been keeping me company, bringing our geriatric dog along for the fresh air (note: I said fresh air, not exercise. We amble, we don't walk - no one was increasing their heart rate.) Occasionally, we'd venture further, past the horse farm and through the neighborhood, but nothing much.

This is Brotherhood/Sisterhood Week in our schools. The 3rd and 4th graders have a pen pal from the high school and they visit this week. They end the week with a visit and a "Unity March" on the canal through the main street of the village.

Darling daughter has been pleading with me to join her, and I was wishy-washy, knowing that I'm not supposed to drive until I see my doctor on Friday. But we live along the canal, with a great walking path that connects the various parts of town - parks, etc and other suburban towns. It's really nice and we've biked and walked there numerous times for pleasure and as a means of transportation to various festivals, etc where parking would have been a problem. So I thought, "Great! I'll walk on the canal and meet her at the park." Well, I didn't have to, as Darling husband went in to work late and graciously dropped me off at the park.

So, on this crisp, cool sunny morning, I waited at the park as a gazillion school buses disembarked and discharged school kids of all shapes and sizes. I was armed with my cell phone, sunglasses, mp3 player, and and apple.

I found my daughter and her new buddy and off we went on the march. A slow pace along the canal to Main Street (.8 miles). From there we went across the canal bridge, the library, a coffee shop, Candy Nation, and turned onto church street. so named because we passed the Baptist church, the Lutheran Church and the Presbyterian Church). I said my good-byes as the group was headed for the jr high and I knew there was no walking path home from there; so I kept straight and headed back to the park to rejoin the canal path. (approx. 1 mile).

At this time, I had been walking about an hour (11:30 AM), but much of it was stopping and starting with the crowd to keep the parade together and certainly wasn't strenuous. I started along the canal path and started to get a little tired. So, I stopped on a bench to rest for a few minutes and continued on. Several people passed me, but I was walking a comfortable pace - more normal instead of the slow walk on the march. Then I started walking s-l-o-w-l-y, maybe even weaving a little. Damn, this was getting looooooong. I checked my watch 11:50, I *know the bridge is just ahead, so it won't be long before I get home and have some lunch.

12:10 PM. Where the %$^ are all the benches? I will not sit down where all the dogs pee and poop. Just a little farther. (Or is that further?)

12:20 PM. There's a little cute little map at the canal path where it meets the road that crosses over. It says that I just walked 1.7 miles from the park where I started. Hmm, that's not so bad, is it? I can almost see the next bridge (it's not far) that marks where I leave the canal path for my neighborhood.

12:30 PM. I reach another cute map. I've walked another 4 10ths of a mile. I have to go uphill to get to the road and into my neighborhood and it seems soooo far away. Instead, I walk past 4 more houses and exit the canal path through my friend's backyard and scare the bejeezus out of her knocking on her patio door. I need water and to sit down again for a minute.

Was I out of my mind?! Forget lunch, I just want a nap. I drag myself home around 1 PM and collapse on the couch with a glass of water. I fall asleep and didn't wake up until Number 1 son bursts through the door around 3:30.

Did you do the math with me?
.8 miles
1 mile
1.7 miles
.4 mile
I think I walked around 4 miles. ( I originally though 5.5 to 6, but I double counted one leg of the journey)

I don't think that's what they meant when they said "short, frequent walks". I am whipped. Holy crap.

And on that note, my boss and friend dropped off dinner, (looks delicious, and he even included dessert and wine!) :-) so I'm putting it in the oven and going back to sleep.

Next time, I'll watch Blood Diamond. Geesh, what was I thinking?