Walking with a Bad, Bad Cold

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As I'm doing this segment, I have a bad, bad cold. Nose is heavily clogged, headache, runny nose and a funny feeling that you might have a fever. Thank God the fever is arrested by something. God is good.

Even if you are a health buff careful about your condition, the cold virus just penetrates through at times. Even if you keep eating oranges and other fruits and drinking water. Even if you supplement with Vitamin C.

It sucks. And then you see people smoking cigarettes early in the morning and drinking liquor all their lives not bothered by colds at all. I just shake my head in wonder.

So, what do I do? I walk.

Anyway, walking is a natural activity. You really have to walk around even if you're sick. So just yesterday and the other day, I walked a lot. Today, I took a rest the whole day and drank lots of water.

Walking helps you analyze things and figure out problems, especially mysteries in life, and find some meaning. Then strangely, you feel light and happy and a bit care free about any problem. You feel at ease. The problem is still there looking at you with its funny, silly face, but at least you feel hopeful something good is going to happen. Something or someone will kick out the problem.

Getting sick is one way nature toughens our immune system more. Did you know that? The virus is allowed entry into our system so our antibodies can identify them and know exactly what to do the next time they encounter the virus, especially a new virus. So your body resistance improves. But before that can happen, you have to get sick first.

Everything happens for a good purpose. See? I stick to that in times I don't understand what's happening to me. And of course, walking helps a lot here.

So, never stop walking. Stop complaining and just walk.

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Morning, Afternoon or Evening Walk?

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Any of the above. You can brisk walk any time you want. Sometimes I do it at noon. I get tired writing stuffs for online clients and feel the stress. So sometimes I get up and leave home for a while and brisk walk around the block. Just to get my blood circulation going good. Sometimes I just walk leisurely to the village park.

But I think there are more advantages when brisk walking early in the morning. After a long sleep (6 to 8 hours at night) your body needs some perk-up exercise to "wake it up." No doubt, you need good rest but staying rested a long time is also disadvantageous. Your body also needs to move around a lot.

Here's an article on effective ways I move about and that keep me healthy and fit. Click here!

Early morning is when you've rested well enough and ready for a good brisk walk. Afternoon is sometimes too hot, even at 5 pm (except perhaps in December to February). And besides, you've been battered by stress long enough in the day.

Evening is when your body needs to relax. But on second thought, exercises like brisk walk can effectively fight off stress from work, Thus, some folks in Singapore run at night, even if they go home late and tired from an overtime. I read somewhere how some of them jog even at midnight. Ask your medical doctor about this first.

I've jogged in the morning, afternoon and evening. It all worked okay for me. My tip is to choose a time when there's less pollution, and that would often be early morning or dawn.

Just remember, regardless of the time you brisk walk or jog, what matters is that you're really having a good time doing it.

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5 Ways to Never Get Tired of Brisk Walking or Jogging

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It can be exciting to start a brisk walk workout program. You have lots of anticipations and expectations. At last, you're going to be healthy and fit! No more bulging pot belly!

But believe me, excitement like that doesn't last. Time will come when burnout happens. There will be times of laziness, and if you don't know how to handle them, you'd stop for good. Many times I've seen how folks young and old start out a jogging routine early in the morning during summer only to stop it after summer's over.

Those are useless workouts. In order for workouts to work, you should do them for life.

So here are 5 ways to never get tired of brisk walking (or jogging), especially when burnout starts to kick in.

1. Always read books (or e-books) or watch videos about brisk walking or jogging, especially by people who do them regularly and have obviously benefited from them. You see it in how they look. You need constant inspiration. This blog, Walk with Choy, can be one.

Here are my actual secrets on how I keep fit and how I keep up. Click here.

2. Look for walking or jogging buddies. Do your workouts with them. Better yet, do it with your spouse. It's more encouraging to do something in groups than being alone, although we need time to do things alone as well. I befriend joggers I see around and look forward to meeting them each morning and chat a bit with them. A sense of camaraderie always helps.

3. Change walking shoes every 6 months or every year. If you can afford it, reward yourself with gifts and a new pair of running shoes is one of them. I love new running shoes and they inspire me a lot to hit the road regularly. The same with jogging outfits and accessories. It's more exciting to jog or brisk walk with a new outfit or gear.

4. Change routes. It greatly helps to change routes regularly. Try this jogging path for three days. Then try another route. Try brisk walking in new and safe territory where you see new landscapes, neighborhoods and other scenery. Jogging or walking becomes an adventure then.

5. Walk with God. Make it a date with him. I often jog leisurely and talk with God along the way. It's a kind of quiet time I enjoy so much.

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Living a Good Life is Also Like a Good Brisk Walk

Quick Good Fortune

The first thing I tell newbies in walking is to make sure they have enough cash in their pockets before they start hiking, walking or jogging.

Even if you'd just walk around the block near where you live.

You never know what road emergency you will meet on the way. For instance, you're brisk walking and then suddenly a cyclist or another jogger injures himself and needs to be taken to a hospital. You need to take him in a cab and rush him to a hospital.

Here's my ebook on how to keep fit effectively. Click here.

When a situation requires it, we need to be ready to act as good Samaritans.

It's pretty much like real life. It's hard to "walk" through life without enough cash in hand and in the bank. Emergencies can suddenly happen. So it's important, too, to have an additional source of extra income.

Extra income source is for sudden emergencies and for investment. These are two things you should always prepare for. I never get satisfied with my regular income stream. I always look for ways to get extra income---for helping others and for investing.

I trust God as my Provider and I have faith in him. But that faith also teaches me to help others when I can and to do my best to be able to. It's like when I'm brisk walking. I take time to stop and help people I see along the way who need help. And to be able to do that, I should do my best to keep healthy and fit so I can help others more. Invest in health.

Get it?

We're not here for ourselves alone. Neither are we here just to work hard for our families. We need to have a life principle to reach out to those in need---even folks we don't know. That's why I make it a habit to befriend other brisk walkers or joggers I see around. A good walk through life means looking out for people who want to walk but are hindered from doing so.

It will be a lonely life to be keeping fit just for yourself---just so you'd not get sick. It will be more fulfilling if you keep fit also for others.

Learn to always share what you have with others. Life will become happier.

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Walking in a Rice Field

October 30 to November 2, 2016, I and my family spent some time in Agbanawag, Nueva Ecija for my wife's family business and to take care of some stuff left behind by her late dad. After a four-hour bus travel we finally got there at 11 am.

We were in the middle of the rice field. Her dad built a 2-level concrete house there, though we all preferred calling it "kubo" which means a small native house made of bamboo and nipa.

So from every direction, you'd see nothing but rice fields with some occasional small makeshift huts here and there in the distance. Oh yes. there's the Sierra Madre mountain range in view.

At 11 am, it was cool and windy. As a full-fledged brisk walker, my first instinct was to walk and survey the surroundings. But I remembered that I haven't had lunch yet. So we sat down in front of the house, under the huge shadow cast by the house, and ate some egg sandwiches. Before us was an immense expanse of rice fields with the steady wind blowing from the mountain ranges before us.

After a few minutes, a tricycle came and took us to the town center (bayan) where we had our lunch. Then we bought fresh meat and vegetables and rode back to the kubo. After some rest, I started brisk walking around.

What was really exciting was when my boys and I brisked walk around the rice field at night after dinner while my wife was chatting with the house caretaker, Janet. We took along a strong flashlight and roamed around the black darkness. It was cold and quiet except for some insect chirps and the noises from barking dogs and passing vehicles along the highway in the far, far distance.

It was a good brisk walk, and the darkness behind you (that seemed to go after you to swallow you) helped a lot to make our strides faster and wider. That was superb aero workout. Soon, we were sound asleep at 8 pm.

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How Diabetes is Helped by Brisk Walking

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First and foremost, brisk walking helps you lose weight effectively. And losing weight is a big step to controlling your blood sugar levels if you are diabetic. After your medical doctor approves of your brisk walking workout, do it regularly at least 30 to 45 minutes a day with proper diet.

Brisk walking helps shrink dangerous abdominal fats that increase the risk of diabetes. The excess fat building up around your waist and abdomen can lead to inflammation in your cells which can result to your being resistant to insulin---a hormone controlling sugar levels in the blood.

A Canadian study in fact discovered that women who did brisk walking for an hour or so each day lessened their abdominal fat by 20 percent after just 14 weeks or 3 and a half months---even without changing their eating habits.

"Walking is one of the best types of 'medicine' we have to help prevent diabetes, or reduce its severity and potential complications—such as heart attack and stroke—if you already have it," states JoAnn Manson, MD, DrPH, in an article on the site Prevention. She is also chief of the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, at the same time a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

My cousin, Ismael, goes biking regularly to keep his blood sugar levels normal. According to him, it works, requiring him less medications. But brisk walking is better than biking because with biking you have more idling time, like when you stop pedaling because the bike keeps moving on via the momentum anyway, especially downhill. 

With brisk walking, you have to keep your legs working, uphill or downhill. 

My friend and shooting range buddy, Lito, who's also a diabetic, jogs regularly at UP Diliman and says he gets wonderfully normal blood sugar levels after such runs. "It's like I'm not diabetic at all!" he exclaims.

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Something Diabetics and Hypertensives Should Know about Climbing Up and Down Stairs

From Livestrong Website

A study presented at the American Heart Association showed how walking downhill (going down stairs, for instance) improved blood sugar levels. While walking up stairs improved fat levels in blood.

Thus, if you go up and down stairs, there is a huge chance you may normalize your lipid and glucose levels in your blood.

Well, the study was done on the mountains of Austria, but it also said you don't need to do this in the mountains or hills. Just look for uphill streets or stairs and it would work as effective. God blessed my neighborhood with uphill streets so this is easy for me. It may be the reason why I always have normal blood sugar and blood lipd readings, especially triglyceride. Thank God!

But I also climb up strairs. If you want something more strenuous, try climbing up and down stairs. I tried this at SM North, Walter Mart and even at the Philippine Heart Center along East Avenue---in case a heart problem suddenly occured, hehehe. Just kidding.

Make sure your doctor gives you a go signal before doing this. Look for a building near your place and ask the owner if you could just drop by everyday to climb up and down its stairs. Then do the exercise. Or, go to the nearest mall. Better if you have a street in your vicinity that goes uphill.

The study showed that walking downhill improved the subjects' glucose tolerance by 8.2 percent. Uphill walking improved it by only 4.5 percent. However, uphill walking, according to the study, lowered the triglyceride levels of the subjects by 11 percent. But they only had a 6.8 percent improvement when they walked downhill.

How did the researches explain this? They thought it had to do with using more concentric muscle power when going uphill and more eccentric power when going downhill. Obviously, more studies need to be done to establish the internal processes behind it. 

To be sure, climbing up and down stairs is healthy (but make sure your heart physician approves of it).

You don't need a high stairs to do this. A two-level building would do. A stairs with 13 to 15 steps ought to do it for beginners. The stairs at Walter Mart in Munoz has about 20. The ones at SM North and Heart Center have more.

Do it slowly at first---sometimes, even really slow. No need to hurry up. Then, as you build more power and heart and lung strength (after probably a week or so), do it a bit faster. 

Doing it on footbridges should be ideal but the problem is pollution from traffic. So I'd rather do it in malls or in subdivisions with plenty of trees, like our place.

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3 Things You Shouldn't Do Just Before Brisk Walking

Trendzified

There are three things you shouldn't do right before doing a brisk walk.

1. Never eat a full breakfast. I often eat something before brisk walking but never a full meal. You may stand up or walk slowly around after a full meal, but don't walk briskly. It will cause more problems with digestion. After your brisk walk, then you can eat a full healthy meal. I said "eat a full healthy meal," not overeat.

2. Don't take stress with you. Leave stress at home---in fact, get rid of it. Never brisk walk or exercise with bad emotions or negative stress. It creates free radicals in you and that wouldn't go well with your exercise. It might even make things worse for your health. Make sure you're in good spirits when you go out. relax, be happy and enjoy your surroundings.

3. Don't neglect your toilet rituals. Never---I say again---never hit the road without emptying your bladder and sigmoid colon. Well, what I mean is, make sure stool in your colon ready for elimination should be eliminated. I can't fully describe the horror of needing to urinate or eliminate stool right in the middle of nowhere.

You usually take a bottle of water with you when you run, right? And then you get all excited and drink water now and then. But that makes your stool go down closer to the exit and fills your bladder with more urine, especially in the morning.

Now, imagine if you suddenly feel the need to go to the restroom and you're 5 miles away from home.

Besides, it isn't good for your health to be keeping them stuck up in you while exercising.

To help eliminate morning stool, I take 2 to 3 tall glasses of water first thing in the morning. And it's a big help, too, to eat nothing but vegetables the night before. I often eat pineapple to ease my bowels.

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A Jogger's Dream Bedroom

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At first I thought of titling this article, "A Walker's Dream Room," to share what a typical brisk walker might like in a bedroom. But I didn't want to scare my readers into thinking this was about zombies. A zombie's dream bedroom? All they dream about is eating us.

Anyway, a jogger's dream bedroom is probably something that has a high ceiling to fit a loft or mezzanine above and a matching high staircase. Something that looks like the picture above---well. to me that is. I love to have a bedroom with, of course, a comfy bed for me and my wife, huge windows offering a good view of the world outside to greet me in the morning and lure me to go out and run, and a high staircase.

Why a high staircase? First, to reach the loft high above me and second, to serve as my "track" (as in track and field). I love to run up and down a high staircase now and then, especially when it's raining and I can't go out to brisk walk or run. I also love to do the same during my "walking breaks" when I need to get up from my PC desk and stretch out a bit.

I also want a reading corner or small work area where several levels of bookshelves are fixed and an area for my desktop is allotted. I believe runners and brisk walkers should also be readers and bloggers. I mean, they ought to exercise their brains as well. And since they go out on a regular basis and see a lot of things outdoors that mere mortals don't, I feel they also ought to be bloggers.

I don't go for bedrooms with a lot of furniture. I prefer my bedroom to have some built-in cabinets and drawers for our stuff. That's so I can move freely around and do some floor exercises like leg stretches and push-ups. And yes, I'd love my room to have a firm fixed pull-up bar, plus perhaps some weights. Not really a weights set, just a few weights.

A huge flat screen on the wall would be ideal, too.

Plus a white colored heavy bag for a few punching workout now and then, aside from the one I have in my home mini gym.

I think every jogger and fitness buff should have a big mirror in his room. It's important to see your fitness progress each day. And mind you, mirrors help a lot to develop your social projection and personality. Moreover, you can easily check your walking or running form. Even the way you stand.

Finally, I want a bedroom that isn't too big but isn't too small either. I want it just spacious enough but not too spacious like a mansion bedroom. I hate the idea of a mansion. The bedroom picture above is actually too big for me. Make it much smaller but with a high ceiling and it would be ideal for me.

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Sleep Miracles from Leisurely Walks

islamiclife.com

Do you stop working out because of lack of sleep? Not exactly. You stop rigid workouts but you have to maintain movement. To be sure, you have to sleep after a period of lack of sleep. You can't replace lost sleep even if you sleep a lot after. Lost sleep is lost sleep. So, as much as possible, sleep well daily, 7 to 8 hours.

But there are times when sleep lack is inevitable---like when a loved one needs extra care at the hospital, or something like that. So, the first thing you do after a bout of sleep-lack is to sleep at home. After sleeping well enough to somewhat recover strength, then walk slowly, like a leisurely walk.

Leisurely walks (as long as you can endure them) are a good way of gradually recovering strength from a bout of physical weakness. Don't stress on it. Just enjoy them. It doesn't matter if you're doing them very slowly. The idea is not to remain idle. Idleness adds to physical weakness. Walking to enjoy the surroundings promotes good circulation, safely challenges the heart and lungs, tones up the leg muscles and creates positive thinking.

Even if you can only walk within your hospital room, make it an adventure. Appreciate what you see--the nurses and aides that visit you now and then, the small scenery out the window, the air conditioning, the visitors---anything. It just requires a little imagination.

Better if you walk out to the garden. I used to enjoy walking around our small backyard, going around it over and over, when I was sick with muscle trauma and a bit of anxiety. I appreciated the cats and dogs and the birds perched on our mango tree. That was how I started recovering from the trauma.

In fact, life is like that. Don't remain idle. You may let yourself some moments of idleness now and then just to relax and meditate. But be mobile soon after. Find something to do and make sure it's easy to accomplish. Then do another simple task. That lets you easily get to one success after another. Staying at home or in your room all the day every day, for instance, can do a lot of harm---physically, emotionally, and mentally.

Go out and see that the world is big and provides lots of possibilities. Now and then we all need that realization especially when boring or stressful work makes us feel confined to a small room or corner and makes us think there is no other reality but that. It renders you lonely, hopeless and conscious of nothing but your problems and miserable life.

So you need to go out and walk awhile to get some fresh air.

Back to lack of sleep, many people don't realize that their inability to sleep may be remedied simply by walking. If you remain lying down because you cannot sleep, it may only make matters worse. Try to get up and walk around your house or garden or roof deck, if you have one. The fresh air and blood circulation is probably what you need to get a good sleep. Nothing tiring or stressful. Just plain leisurely walk. One you enjoy.

Finally, if you can't sleep due to overeating---which sometimes happens to me---a little leisurely walk does the trick. Again, it should be nothing strenuous. We just want to give some help to the digestive system. First, stand up and relax. Better if you have someone to talk to about pleasant things. Then, after 20 to 30 minutes, walk a little here and there, like you're just enjoying the place and ambiance. After 45 minutes to an hour, drink a glass of water.

You'd be surprised that, after that short walk, you'd feel sleepy enough once you sit down. Sit for 3 minutes and then lie down to sleep.

Basically, the idea is to keep moving with your feet.

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What Sinigang na Bangus and Tortang Giniling Have to Do with Brisk Walking?

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It's true, a serious workout needs to be partnered with a diet. But this does not mean you starve yourself. That's often the wrong notion when people hear about "diet." They equate it with strict, starvation diets. That takes out the fun in workout---especially in brisk walking.

And here's where sinigang na bangus and tortang giniling come in. After an hour or so of  brisk walk, jog, push-ups and shadow boxing, your energy reserves are depleted. You need to take something nutritious and heavy to perk up your body engine and make you energetic all day.

I don't believe in rigid diets. I've seen people almost killing themselves with very small meals (if any) and yet grew bigger. I believe in eating right and eating everything in right proportions. The reason most people become overweight is too much carbohydrates---bread, rice, sweets, cakes, cookies, pastries, desserts, and the like. And then they add ice cream, sodas, softdrinks, shakes and other fancy modern beverages which are mostly nothing but sugar and flavor.

So, after a well enjoyed workout, go for a heavy breakfast like rice and sinigang na bangus and tortang giniling. Few people eat that for breakfast. They laugh off working out and burning calories only to replace everything you lost with a heavy meal.

But truth is, you have to replace most of what you lost---especially nutrition. And this food menus are nutritious. You have lots of protein, fibers from the veggies in sinigang, some fat and carbohydrates. The trick here is to eat just enough. Never be a glutton. I'd say there will be no problem with 3/4 cup of rice, a small (solo size) bowl of sinigang with one slice of bangus and lots of veggies, and a big enough slice of tortang giniling.

It's breakfast anyway.

Then you eat a smaller meal for lunch and much smaller one for dinner. If you need in-between snacks, eat fruits. Orange and banana are ideal. Well, more ideal for me is pineapple, especially the small ones which you can buy in Manila cheaply---4 small fruits for P35.

So, the point here is, don't starve yourself after a good work out---a brisk walk, run or a combination thereof . Eat enough and eat everything. Eat something with a variety like sinigang na bangus and tortang giniling. Better if your sinigang has lots of okra, radish and eggplant. You'll only grow fat if you overeat, observe strict diets, or eat lots of carbs.

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Why You Should Have Jogging "Classmates"

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You should have jogging or brisk walking "classmates." That's what I call them. They also brisk walk or jog regularly in the morning or afternoon around our place and, the first time around, I often met them in the streets---just plain met them.

Later I met them eye to eye and much later with a smile. Then one time I stopped to say "Hi!" and that strengthened the familiarity among us. And then I asked them their names. One guy was named, Benjie," the other was "Paul," the guy with the big dog was also named "Paul" and another who looked Chinese was "Rex."

And so on.

I would meet them on the road and say "Hi!" and talk to them for a while and then go on my way. You got to have classmates like that whose help you might need someday if you meet some trouble on the street. Who knows, you might trip or stumble and injure yourself and need a helping hand. That's where your "classmates" come in.

They sometimes walk together in a group, chatting happily as they brisk walk. That's exciting, but I prefer jogging alone. I've always been a loner. And anyway, I am more able to focus on my workout when doing it alone. But I do socialize with them. In fact, I can easily make them laugh. But I try not to be too close to them. I want to focus on my run.

Another reason is, group jogs or runs entice you to compete against each other. You try to jog faster than the rest. Sometimes I want to keep up a gradual pace, hopping high and wide, especially uphill. This way I get the most of my jog. Others might find me too slow.

Or, it may be the other way around. I might suddenly break into a sprint and leave them behind and think I'm showing off.

Nonetheless, it's important to befriend other joggers---young and old. It's more fun and challenging to belong to a community than to be lone ranger all the way. I find great delight just smiling at new joggers and brisk walkers in the area, saying hello or good morning. It's great laughing with veteran joggers.

There was this man in his wheel chair who looked depressed while watching joggers pass by. When I passed him by, I smiled and said, "Good morning" enthusiastically. He was elated and smiled and returned my greeting jovially, looking like he was energized a bit. You can do that service while running outdoors.

That's why it's great to have jogging classmates.

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Your Walking Kit: Things You Need with You When Brisk Walking or Jogging

bagsearth.com

You need to take some stuff with you when you're brisk walking, jogging or running outdoors. Anything can happen out there, so you have to be ready.

What if, while jogging, a strong earthquake suddenly strikes? Or, you're a considerable distance from home and then a thunderstorm happens plus a tornado? What would you do? What do you immediately need?

Here are things I take with me when jogging or brisk walking:

1. Extra cash.
2. Small bottle of water.
3. Small bottle of alcohol.
4. Cell phone.

I put them in a small belt bag I strap around my waist.

Extra Cash: In case you're several kilometers from home and you get an injury that makes walking difficult, you can take a cab to the nearest hospital. Or, you suddenly feel hungry or anything, you can buy from the nearest grocery store.

Small Bottle of Water: This is self-explanatory. It's for taking a bath. :D

Small Bottle of Alcohol: What if you suddenly get wounded---like when a gunfight suddenly happens and you're in the middle of it, or an amok suddenly thrusts a knife at you ? The first thing you should do is clean the wound.

Cell Phone: If an emergency should happen, the first thing you should do is inform your family. Or, if a sudden catastrophe should happen, the first thing you want to do is find out if your family is safe.

I also take with me a pen with sturdy casing and point. First, it's for writing stuff on paper (phone number of an apartment for rent you're interested in, or jutting down other information). Second, it serves as weapon.

I can even turn it into a deadly weapon with my Filipino martial arts skills. It's not really a deadly weapon (so you can't get apprehended by the police for deadly weapon). and metal detectors won;t pay attention to it.

Brisk walking or jogging outdoors is not all fun and workout. Remember, you have to be safe all the time when you go out there.

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Brisk Walking in the Rain

From businessinsider.com

If it's raining---like now. It's been raining hard since last week---you can still do an aero workout outdoors---brisk walking with an umbrella to protect you.

I actually tried it several times. It's more refreshing.

But don't jog or run. I don't need to tell you how the street pavement is slippery. And do wear rubber boots. In my case, I wore this cheap rubber shoes with lots of hole designs on them. I just avoided walking on flooded areas and getting my feet wet with water from the street canal. And I made sure I didn't have any wounds on my feet, too.

To avoid leptospirosis.

It's kind of odd brisk walking in the rain under an umbrella. People looked at me like I was the Penguin and they had to call Batman right away. But I think there's more adventure in it. You brave the heavy rains, get all wet eventually, enjoy the streets to yourself, and be the talk of the town later (suddenly you are popular).

And I believe you develop your heart and lung health this way more. The air tends to become thin when it's raining hard. So, if you brisk walk in it and gasp for air more, you strengthen your heart and lungs.

Not to mention you save on water, too. It's like swimming---you workout and also "take a bath," as it were, at the same time. So you need just a bit of water for the final bathing later. Imagine if this happens everyday. You save on your water bill, too.

Well, some folks I know don't bother with umbrellas. They just get wet in the rain either brisk walking or jogging. Some take off their shirts.

But whatever you do, never brisk walk or jog during a thunderstorm. I've seen joggers here brave fierce lightning and thunder and they think that just because they got away with it, it's safe. In any open area where you prove to be the highest thing standing, lightning could strike you. Don't wait till something terrible happens to you before you realize how silly a thing is.

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Why Relaxing is Essential to Brisk Walks, Runs and Jogs

From watchfit.com

Never go out there to brisk walk with worries. Leave your worries where they originated. Office worries should stay in the office, family worries at home, and so on. When you brisk walk, jog or run you have to be relaxed.

Worrying causes stress and stress multiplies free radical damage in your body. Now, did you know that aero workouts produced added free radicals in your body? But it's no cause for concern as long as your aero workout really keeps you healthy. The body will naturally get rid of the free radicals created.

But not if you workout with worries and too much stress. The free radicals produced may become too much than what the body can deal with.

Thus, relaxing is essential when you brisk walk, jog or run.

What I do is forget about worries and problems and look at my surroundings as I brisk walk outdoors. I keep myself in the "now."

I tell myself, "I'm here, walking, jogging or running, and I'm on this road that has lots of trees, gardens and Zen houses. Wow!" Then I appreciate God. Then I look around and appreciate everything or take note of things. Of course, mind where you're going or stepping on. In our area, we have lots of booby traps and land mines. I mean, don't step on dog poo and don't step into large holes in the streets.

It will help you relax to start slow and very gradually build up speed. I walk leisurely at first and then brisk walk before I break into a jog. And then I run. And then I switch motion---brisk walk, jog, run and on.

This way I keep myself relaxed.

Do you need to set goals or beat the record you made yesterday? If you're not an athlete participating in a competition, you don't need to. I never joined walking or running competitions, although I've been running to shape up since grade school. Just enjoy your workout. So what if I just jog for 15 minutes today? So what if all I did this morning was brisk walk? The thing is, you did something.

But often, I make it a point to jog and shadow box at least 30 minutes a day. If at times I do less than that, it's okay. no worries. Sometimes, I just lay idle all day long if that's what would relax me. Sometimes give yourself idle breaks---probably once a week.

Don't kill yourself trying to get fit.

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