In just the last year or two it has begun to occur to me: the things that came naturally when I was a teenager just don't come natural no more. Which is not to say that I can't have a strong fit body at twenty-five. But I will have to work harder for it than I did ten years ago.
While I was in Japan, I rode my bike everywhere. I didn't have a car, so my 4.7-kilometer commute to work in the morning and home in the evening was by bike. Trips to the grocery store were by bike. When I went out for dinner, it was usually by bike. For out-of-town excursions I would sometimes get rides with friends, or else take public transportation; but, otherwise, I was getting a lot of sustained aerobic exercise almost every day, simply because it was my primary means of getting around.
Since coming back to the U.S.A., I've begun to take notice of a definite change taking place in my body. I have not been putting on weight, but I have been getting...softer. Several days in a row pass wherein the most physically exerting thing I do is wash dishes. After a few days likes this, even if I've been eating well and getting healthy amounts of rest, I just feel sorta icky. In order to truly feel my best, I need to be moving around and getting some blood pumping through my limbs.
So I've settled on another goal for myself as I begin a year perhaps already a bit overloaded with ambitious goals: to begin and sustain a regular exercise routine. Running has served me well in the past, mostly because--minus the startup cost of a reliable pair of running shoes--it's absolutely one hundred percent free! I think I'll give running another go.
A necessity for successfully implementing and staying faithful to any exercise plan is accountability. And now, thanks to the Internet, I have the whole world keeping me accountable.
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