So today I had tickets to the Armed Forces Bowl game. I was unable to use these tickets, but not for lack of trying. It took us two hours from the time we left the house until the we finally found a parking space. Only about 30 minutes of that was getting from the house to Ft Worth but that's beside the point.
So we finally got a parking space and we got about 500 feet from said parking space when we had to turn around and go back to the car and then head home. Why you ask? Well, it's because we parked about a mile from the stadium and my mother couldn't make the walk. At barely 500 feet from the car, she was huffing and puffing and needing to stop and take a break.
Now, I'm sure you're sitting there wondering why it is I'm bringing this up and I will tell you. My mom claims that she is in the condition she's in because she has arthritis and everything hurts and it's hard for her to walk. But the thing is, my dad also has arthritis. The same kind of arthritis to be exact. And he can walk miles without having any problems. You know why that is? Because he goes to play golf every morning. He works at the ballpark every summer. He actually exercises.
Ever since my mom retired several years ago, all she does is sit at home and watch TV or nap all day long. I have been telling her repeatedly that she needs to get out and exercise. Even just walking around the block once a day would help. But no, she insists that sitting on her ass doing nothing all day has NOTHING to do with the fact that she can't even stand up long enough to do the dishes anymore. It's because everything hurts.
Now, what do EVERY SINGLE arthritis commercial in existence tell you? That keeping active is important. Yes, they want you to take their drug to help ease the pain, but ALL of them say that you need to stay active to be able to continue to be active. If even the drug companies are saying it, you know that it's bound to be at least a little bit true.
My mom has type 2 diabetes. This could have been prevented with a bit of exercise and some weight loss, but she doesn't care. She can't even walk from one side of the house to the other without being winded, which could be solved with a little bit of exercise but she doesn't care. She just keeps sitting on her ass and expecting the problem to go away on its own, but it never will because she refuses to exercise. And now she's gotten to the point that she can't because of the fact that when she could, she wouldn't.
This is one of the reasons that I am taking Taekwondo. The only exercise I was getting before I started Taekwondo was at work. Going up and down stairs, walking from my car to the apartments. And I swear I probably walk about 4 miles a day just going back and forth across the store. But even I know that that isn't enough. And eventually I might actually get to the point that I am allowed to retire and will need something to keep me active and moving. I do NOT want to end up like my mom. I refuse to have similar medical records. I am going to be healthy as long as I can because I do not have the luxury of going to the doctor. I have no health insurance and can't afford to be put on umpteen million prescriptions for problems that could be solved with diet and exercise.
So here is my challenge to you. Stay active. Even if it means just walking around the block once. Or even just playing Just Dance on the Wii for half an hour a day. Or like my dad does, go to play golf every morning. Find something that you like to do and do it to keep yourself active. Because if you refuse to be active while you're able, eventually you won't be able anymore.
No comments:
Post a Comment