Smart, Confident and Courageous

I'm truly excited and primed.

Being the fearless Bomber doesn't mean that I am without healthy concerns as I prepare to embark on my short ventures across the fruited plains of the land I call home, America. Laree seems to think I'll get lost a lot and this got me wondering:

~ Will I find the right bookstore on the right day?

~ If I do, will anyone show besides me?

~ What will I say... Duh...and will anyone listen?

~ What if no one believes me?

~ What if I make a joke and no one laughs, or I tell them "to exercise and eat right for life" and everyone falls down laughing?

~ Where and when do I work out?

~ If I don't will I turn into putty?

~ How about protein, fats and carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, EFAs and meal frequency? Will they all scatter uncontrollably and will I turn into jelly?

~ What if nobody recognizes me? I thought he was taller, younger, bigger, had hair...

~Worse. What if they do? "That's him, The Blond Bummer. He's the one who calls us "fat." Get him before he jumps the fence."

~What if they catch me?

~What if I get on the wrong airplane returning home and wind up in Egypt?

There you have a few of life's real concerns that confront me these dreadful, agonizing and overwhelming last days.

Laree is my level-headed confidant who added two good ones I hadn't thought of: What if you're attacked by a pack of large, hungry rats in your motel room late at night, or your shirt sleeve gets totally caught on the revolving cylinder of a giant cement truck? She had me there.

I'm seriously reconsidering the whole trip. It's irresponsible and foolhardy.

What if the Secret Police arrest me in Wisconsin on suspicion of spying for Iraq, while I'm standing in front of the Barnes and Noble Bookstore adjacent to a World Gym on a popular boulevard 7 o'clock Monday night?

I might go underground for a month till things cool off. dd-bb

BIG QUESTION NEEDS BIG ANSWER

The email question below comes from a friend of a dd.com subscriber who turns to me for some last ditch advice. Her words gave the view of a neat lady with a typical widespread problem and, seemingly to her, a perplexing annoyance. The letter was free and easy and long. I condensed it and provided the answer by email the next day. I hope my new friend doesn't mind my using her format to answer a question that might be on the mind of many of our friends.

Her life is at stake and the life of many like her. What can we do?

THE QUESTION

I can't seem to get any routine going that is compatible to the middle-age, no-lung-tolerance smoker and drinker with no energy... I've cut down -- how does a person actually start becoming fitter?

I am a single mom of three, 5'3" and weigh 138 lbs. Not a lot I need to work on...I just wanna lose the thunder thighs, be more active with my kids and not pass out from lack of air while working out.

My favorite line in the whole letter: "Any info you could send would be awesome and I will try it."

Rather than take her to the edge of the abyss and point to where she was headed, I took the simple and mild way that ambles along the fairgrounds, yet covers an important distance.

AN ANSWER

A single mom with three kids has her hands full, even though they are absolute angels. You are not alone in your plight and the solution is the same for all: Exercise, eat right and be happy in the process. No pills, gadgets or secrets are available now nor will there be in the future -- not without compromising the human system and presenting unhealthy consequences. These are just the facts, ma'am, and I am not oblivious or without compassion. The truth can appear cold at first glance, but it does prepare you for freedom. Knowing it eliminates wasted time and energy and false hope looking for the higher-tech, quicker and easier way. There isn't one.

Your concern is about the accumulation of fatty tissue on your thighs and your lack of endurance. Okay, try the walk n' jog combination to fit into your busy days. At a specific time each day -- the earlier the better (morning habits have a better survival rate and the activity speeds up your metabolism for the entire day, to say nothing about feeling like a million bucks) -- slip on your good sneakers, step out the door and start walking. Walk for five minutes at a hearty pace and then slowly jog for 15 seconds. Walk another minute or so and jog for another 15 seconds. Do this walk-jog sequence for two or three more cycles as you head home. This should take you 10 to 15 minutes and you are on your way.

You can do this every day or four or five days a week. In time you'll want to extend the jogging time and diminish the walking time so you are jogging more than walking and eventually jogging entirely for 15 minutes. Take your time throughout the summer to condition yourself and accomplish the challenge. Accomplishing a challenge is a grand reward in itself, affirming and motivating. This is something you need to do and should want to do for the rest of your life. Simply put, you will live longer and more happily if you do.

The example you set for the kids is priceless.

This will not be easy but it will not be miserable. You sound like a positive gal who can see the agreeable -- joyful -- dimensions of this free and spirited outdoor activity. Let's go over the list: dark clouds of guilt float away; fulfillment is a reward at the end of each session; stress drains from your pores and every deep breath; general well-being rises once you overcome initial soreness and achieve fitness; energy and endurance are welcome byproducts; personal self-esteem reaches a new high; leg muscles are working hard to strengthen and tone the body; the system oxygenates and detoxifies; your heart and lungs are undergoing much-needed exercise, and it's fun to be zipping along. You're smart, tough and growing healthier day by day. Almost forgot: Humility is a great and rare attribute.

A similar walk and jog program can be accomplished on a treadmill during inclement weather. Stepping out the door and ready to go has its appeal, don't you think?

If you can't make this work, you have not seriously considered the consequences of an exercise-empty life. Don't rely on daily business or the occasional unstructured fun games you play with your children. These are real and positive, but do not provide enough specific activity to support your health. Each month dear folks delay their exercise program -- procrastinate -- or fail to continue it, the more out of shape and unfit they become, the longer they delay their genuine joy of living and inner peace. We're responsible for our self and the one's we love.

This is no major exercise program, but it's a terrific start. Find a like-minded friend and support each other in goals and purposes.

You're burning more calories and you're putting a new demand on your muscles now that you're exercising daily. Feed yourself right: Get rid of the sugary junk food, increase your protein intake and eat smaller meals more frequently. You'll crave less, have more energy and start to build some muscle and lose some fat. Your systemic functions (liver, kidney, glands, hormonal, etc.) will improve in health and efficiency and balance. Weigh yourself daily and don't freak out as the numbers go hither and thither. Give your scale some breathing room and look for the pounds to drop over the course of the summer.

This is all doable and natural. The discipline you apply and practice and develop during your mission is worth the effort alone. Discipline is the King -- or is it the Queen? -- of character qualities. There is none more valuable. Think of the worlds you can conquer with the nobility of discipline.

That's about it, ma'am. It's not unheard of that willful seekers go on to expand their exercise endeavors to include the increasingly popular activity of weight lifting. Yes! Or find the cigarettes and alcohol less and less appealing and more and more compromising. The killers must go, girl.

End of answer and I know you heard it all, but I thought I'd remind you to remind a friend who hasn't.

Look sharp, daredevils.

Dave

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