One thing I remember is that I lived in an urban village now referred to as Norwood Grove. It definitely has a lot of old growth trees, and to tie this in with my Cross Canada Challenge, Norwood was entirely walkable: I walked to school, to the hockey rink, to the rowing club, and to hang out with my friends in the park, aptly named Happy Land.
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I guess you could say that during my formative years I discovered the pleasures of walking long before I would come to learn of its health benefits. Today, walking has, for the most part, relaced my exercise regime, and I am reaping the health benefits.
Looking back at the last six months and the 2575 kilometers that I have walked, the equivalent of the straight line distance between Halifax and Winnipeg, I can say that I haven't felt this good since I was in my early twenties. I sleep well, manage my work stress, eat healthy, and have more energy than I know what to do with.
With regard to the changes to my body measurements, I thought that I would have dropped much more weight than I have, only three pounds to date. However, on closer examination, the lack of weight loss has been offset by a change in my body composition. Since the beginning of the year I have lost 8.5 lb of body fat while gaining 5.5 lb of lean body mass. Not bad at all. Not great. But definitely moving in the right direction: a healthier, fitter, leaner me.
Probably the biggest change that has occurred during this trek is the manner in which I think about being active and exercise. I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. For example, I now realize that it is far more important what I do during all of my waking hours than what I do in the gym. It's good to spend an hour doing resistance exercises, but it's all for naught if I spend the rest of the day sitting in front of a screen. So, in keeping with my not so recent discovery, I am writing this blog while standing up.
All in all, I think the real test is coming when I get to compare by blood tests from two years ago to this year's. Hopefully, I will see some improvement.
In any case, it has been nice chatting with you, but I need to get back on the virtual road and head off towards Regina.
Talk to you later.
