Friday, February 04, 2005
And she's u....no... she's down!!!
Well, I had one day where I didn't have a sick child, and we took full advantage, spending the day up north at my sister's, skating and sliding and having a blast. But all this week again I have had a miserable little person around, keeping me indoors in this beee-yoo-tiful weather. Woe is me!
You see, I need to get out and move. It is the one absolute prerequisite to my mental and physical well-being, so it doesn't surprise me to hear on the news that "they" are saying that exercise is probably as effective as medication in alleviating depression. Yet it is rarely prescribed by doctors. Of course, how do you prescribe that? People have very different attitudes toward exercise, and it's hard to motivate yourself, particularly if you're depressed!
I'm convinced that an important part of a healthy and happy life is making walking (or cycling, or whatever) an essential part of your lifestyle, where you walk to do your errands, walk and talk after supper, walk to the park and the library and wherever else. This is very different from going to the gym to work out, or attending an exercise class, tho' those are good things to do. This is making exercise natural, an integral part of life, as it was meant to be (we are the first truly sedentary generation in human history).
Another important benefit that I derive from walking: I feel like I live in nature, in the world around me. I look at the stars and the ways the constellations change throughout the year, I observe the animals and birds and the way they behave in different seasons, I come to know the many types of snow and rain and fog. This also has got to be good for my mental health.
So I'm really looking forward to donning my hat and coat and cruising around NDG this evening, after the kids are in bed. It's what keeps me sane, or as close to sane as I get.
Well, I had one day where I didn't have a sick child, and we took full advantage, spending the day up north at my sister's, skating and sliding and having a blast. But all this week again I have had a miserable little person around, keeping me indoors in this beee-yoo-tiful weather. Woe is me!
You see, I need to get out and move. It is the one absolute prerequisite to my mental and physical well-being, so it doesn't surprise me to hear on the news that "they" are saying that exercise is probably as effective as medication in alleviating depression. Yet it is rarely prescribed by doctors. Of course, how do you prescribe that? People have very different attitudes toward exercise, and it's hard to motivate yourself, particularly if you're depressed!
I'm convinced that an important part of a healthy and happy life is making walking (or cycling, or whatever) an essential part of your lifestyle, where you walk to do your errands, walk and talk after supper, walk to the park and the library and wherever else. This is very different from going to the gym to work out, or attending an exercise class, tho' those are good things to do. This is making exercise natural, an integral part of life, as it was meant to be (we are the first truly sedentary generation in human history).
Another important benefit that I derive from walking: I feel like I live in nature, in the world around me. I look at the stars and the ways the constellations change throughout the year, I observe the animals and birds and the way they behave in different seasons, I come to know the many types of snow and rain and fog. This also has got to be good for my mental health.
So I'm really looking forward to donning my hat and coat and cruising around NDG this evening, after the kids are in bed. It's what keeps me sane, or as close to sane as I get.
# posted by becca : 8:00 AM
