New Habits: Daily Walking

I’m sure many of you have read by now the study that says if you sit more than three hours a day, your expected lifespan takes a hit of a few years. Well, that is a pretty difficult pill to swallow for denizens of cube farms like me. I tried in vain to have my office pay for a standing workstation, but I have to prove that it would be used to treat an existing condition, and furthermore have my doctor write a memo stating as much. Despite the obesity epidemic ravaging America, an overweight guy who just wants to live longer doesn’t seem to be compelling enough reason to write up an official excuse.

So, I have been improvising with a plastic storage bin until I have picked out something more permanent- and a bit more critically, figure out a way to finance it. The idea of having to find a solution on my own is a tad irritating- after all, doesn’t it ultimately benefit a workplace to support the long-term health of its employees?- but it just underscores how we manage everyday to sweep potential health risks under the rug while caving in to a barrage of messages telling us to indulge in them. So much so, in fact, that the bad behavior has become ingrained. When you’re running errands, pressed for time, it’s so easy to just swing by and pick up a sausage biscuit or a double cheeseburger. There aren’t too many fresh raw vegetables available in drive throughs. The message is slowly changing, yes- but it’s become incumbent upon a person with healthy aspirations to write over those ingrained habits with new ones.

So, I’ve started a new behavior. I tend to be an early riser, so I have some extra time in the mornings. I’ve made taking a thirty-minute morning walk part of the process of waking up. Now I get out of bed, put on my walking clothes and head immediately for the door. It was a pain at first, but now it feels pretty normal. I have found a few things to enjoy while walking: the cool morning air, I’ve chosen a fairly picturesque walk, and I’ve been going through my music library rating songs. On Monday I will start listening to an audio book, which will provide me with something extra to anticipate when heading out the door. Whatever it takes to make it more pleasant and turn this into a life-long habit.