Exercise 

No. I don’t like to go to the gym. I don’t like to run or sweat. I don’t like to work out. 

Yes, I like to eat Mexican food and ice cream. I like pasta and bread. I like potatoes.

So I exercise. If I didn’t, I would be even more over weight, and I’d be unhealthy. 

But I’ve also found that exercise is good for my mental health. I am more prone to get discouraged when I haven’t been physically active. Getting out in the sunshine, even for a short walk, helps me. So I exercise.

I try to do something at least two or three days each week. My workouts are not Intensity or Bootcamp style workouts at a gym. I try to do things I enjoy. It may be a two mile walk with my husband or yoga class. We ride bikes when we can.

Monday we rode twenty miles on our bikes. We are getting ready for a forty mile ride through New York City.  We aren’t fast, but we have fun. We’ve ridden in fifteen states over the past two years! And we’ve seen some beautiful bike trails.

I try to do little things to help me stay physically fit. While traveling, I take the stairs in hotels and go for walks while Ron is in meetings. When shopping, I park farther away from the store so I have to walk more. I do stretches and squats when I’m home alone. 

After The Accident, I wanted to just sit in my chair and cry. Ron and dear friends didn’t let me. Three weeks later Ron and I did a sprint triathlon. I was glad we did it. A friend came by the house often to walk with me. Another gal rode bikes with me whenever I was up for it. I am convinced that getting out of my chair and getting moving helped me heal from my grief. I know it helped keep me from falling into a deep depression.

So no, I don’t want to do cross fit or an extreme workout at the gym. But I will keep exercising. I will keep moving. And I’ll feel better for having done so.

A to Z Challenge, AtoZChallenge, depression, exercise, Five Boro Bike Tour, Grief, healing, healing in grief, Recovery


KathleenBDuncan

I write about my life, my journey, my family, and my faith. I am wife to one, mom to seven with one in heaven, and grandmother to many. I am also full-time caregiver to my stepmom E who suffers from dementia due to Alzheimer’s. In my spare time I like to read, travel, crochet, bike, and play with our black pug Molly.

Comments (22)

  • Good job for you exercising when you don’t like it! I don’t like it either, but it does make me feel better. I know that when I run in the mornings my days are more productive and I feel better throughout the day. Thanks for sharing! Cassie from Mommy, RN

  • I, too, have found that exercise is the best way to keep depression away. Unfortunately, it took me too many times to figure out that when I don’t *want* to move, it’s usually when I most need to. Every time I’ve fallen into depression, I’ve just stopped, and the lack of exercise ends up making it worse. I’ve gotten myself on a consistent schedule, now, where I make it happen whether I feel like it or not.

    What caught my eye with this post is your last paragraph in which you talked about your friends coming over and making sure you got out of your chair and got moving. You are so fortunate to have friends who know you enough to know what you need and will challenge you in that way.

    Enjoy your upcoming bike ride (by the way, biking and swimming are two things I’ve never been able to do . . . I’d so much rather do a run than a bike . . . with most, I know that’s the other way around. I’m kind of an odd one in that way, I guess).

    • Lonna,

      I am very blessed to have friends who love me enough to keep asking me to walk or ride with them!

      And I totally agree that when I am feeling depressed is when I need to get up and move! It is hard to do without help.

      I have learned to be honest with Ron and tell him when I am struggling. As my husband and brother in Christ, he takes joy in helping me, in bearing my burdens. It took years for me to realize that. He is kind and gentle when he suggests that going on a short walk or ride would help me. And he is usually right, though I think a long nap would be best…as in sleeping through the next three months. But we know that sleeping through depression never really helps because the issues are still there when we wake up.

  • I can relate to not enjoying going to the gym, it’s just so exhausting and boring! Going for walks and bike rides sounds like so much fun 🙂 Exercise definitely is the best remedy for whatever is ailing you, mental or physical

  • I really like your blog post. I also really like potatoes and struggle to find the drive to exercise.

    I found you on the a-z challenge list. Keep up the amazing work

  • Those are some long bike rides, and you’re doing tri’s! Amazing, that is very inspirational. I walk a lot for my daily dose of exercise and it helps to clear my mind. That and gardening.

  • As the old saying goes . . . one jumping jack at a time . . . it was spring when Glenn died and the first thing I did when I got home was work in my garden. He loved to garden too and it was one thing we spent hours talking about. He never saw my new home or garden but whenever I am in it I have conversations with him and I can hear him say this would look better there or that over here or what’s this mom. We both loved finding plants and flowers that were unusual. He would send me seeds from his favorite ones to see if I could grow them in my climate. So God used my love for gardening to help me get up and out and then gave me a whole summer to enjoy it. Gardening has always been a source of exercise for my mind, body and soul, I pray and talk to the Lord as I plant, dig, and weed. I love when I water the garden down after I am done and everything looks so fresh and new. It reminds me of the things to come when there will be no more sorrow or pain! ~ Blessings ~

  • Physical activity is my natural anti-depressant as well. I walk, care for the animals on our farm and make sure I am tired each day when I hit the bed. It has been my lifestyle for over 20 years but became my lifeline after losing Dominic. Thanks for sharing.

  • Love that you do know the importance of exercise and put it into your week. Some people will just refuse to exercise and it is so good for you. Excited for your big bike ride! The wheels on the bike go round….Love and hugs!

    • I started doing tri’s after I cared for my sweet mother-in-law Rita in the last months of her life. I was physically, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted and primed for depression. My friends helped me get started and five weeks later I did my first triathlon. I came in last but I finished! I knew exercise is the best medicine to ward off depression.

      That same friend came by the house twice weekly to walk with me after Andrew died, again, keeping me from dipping into depression.

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