Jogging in Place: As Close to “Exercise” as I Get

That’s right, people. I’ve started exercising regularly. For a while I was walking up and down my staircase to get exercise, but that got boring. My current “program”?

I jog in place.

Once the fifteen feet of snow in my front yard melts, I might go jogging in earnest, but for now, I decided I needed something that I could do easily, anytime, with no preparation or equipment. My only requirement was that it be something that gets my heart rate up. I’m not worried about strength training or flexibility–just something that makes me exert myself that I can do every day.

Jogging in place fits the bill. I browse the internet while I do it, watching YouTube or reading books, or playing computer games. It’s fairly mindless, and with a pedometer it’s easy for me to see how long I’ve been going. Currently I do a minimum of 5,000 steps a day. I’ve found that (so far, at least) I feel better when I do it. Sort of like running the wood stove hot for a few minutes to burn out the creosote from the chimney. (Maybe that analogy doesn’t work if you don’t understand wood stove-ese . . .) But getting my heart rate up for that half hour or so each day helps me stay focused the rest of the day, and there have been a few times I’ve worried I was getting sick, and then I got better. (A far cry from what usually happens, which is I worry I’m getting sick, and then I’m sick for ten days.)

It’s certainly possible I’ve just gotten lucky on the whole sick thing for now, but even if/when I do get sick, I plan to go back to this jogging thing when I get better. Like I said–it’s easy. I can do it when I watch movies at night, even.

Yes, when spring arrives, I’ll probably head outside some of the time, although outside has heat and bugs–two things Bryce doesn’t like. And while I feel like an idiot jogging in place in my living room, I don’t really mind that much. My family has learned to accept the fact that I do strange bizarre things on a regular basis.

It’s helpful to manage people’s expectations.

Anyway. If you drive past the house and see a tall gangly guy bobbing up and down in the kitchen, now you know what’s going on.

Yay exercise.