walking

All I Can Do is Take It Step By Step

Posted on by wkennar

I recently finished reading Claire Cook’s The Wildwater Walking Club: Step By Step. It was a fun, easy read. Exactly what I wanted. 

The book is meant to make readers feel good. To transport readers into another world, Noreen’s world, as she walks with Tess and Rosie and navigates life as a newly certified health coach. 

So, why then, were there times I felt sad? 

Why did this feel-good book leave me feeling a bit down at times?

It took me a while to figure it out. 

And then I realized – it’s the walking. (Which is a big part of the book.)

I no longer know the easy joy and pleasure that comes from going on a daily walk.

I do continue to walk each day in my neighborhood, but they’re not always joyful. Not always pleasurable. 

I walk. Certainly not at a quick pace. And not to count my steps. 

But to walk. To exercise. To spend time with my family outdoors. To observe our neighborhood.

But my walking is … I struggle for the right word. Difficult? (Sometimes.) Unpredictable? (Sometimes.) Pain-inducing? (Sometimes.) Exhausting. (Sometimes.)

I don’t always experience more pain after a walk, but sometimes I do.

Sometimes I experience random pain during a walk. A step off a curb that sends a jolt up and down my left leg.

A sudden gripping pain in my calf, that causes me to stop and wait and hope it will pass so I can continue walking. But then the walking has a bit of limping to it. 

If I walk while in pain, it’s still walking. 

And so I keep doing it. 

Because some days are better than others. 

And I walk, step by step, hoping for one of those better-pain days.

 

Why Do You Enjoy Reading?

Posted on by wkennar

A born reader! Ryan at 18 months old!

Recently, while on a walk with my twelve-year-old son, I asked Ryan what he would say if someone asked him why he enjoys reading.

(By the way, click here to read a recently published essay about our walks called “Yes, Walking Is Exercise.”)

Ryan took a second and then answered, “Because it’s fun. And it’s interesting.”

He continued, “It depends what I’m reading. Like Diary of a Wimpy Kid is fun. And biographies are interesting. I learn new things.”

I smiled. 

“Great answer,” I proudly replied.

I share this story with you in honor of National Book Lovers Day coming up on Sunday, August 9th.

Keep reading. And wearing those masks!

 

One Step At a Time

Posted on by wkennar

The day a stranger told my husband and me we were walking slowly was the same day I found out I’d earned my “Serengeti badge.”

Now let me explain all that.

For my birthday a few months back, a good friend gifted me her Fitbit Alta when she upgraded to a Fitbit Watch.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about this gift, honestly.  On the one hand, I was curious to learn how many steps I take each day.  But I wondered if this new wrist accessory would show I’m not as active as I thought I was, in which case, my levels of pain and fatigue would be even harder to explain.

Turns out, I usually have one day a week (Sundays) when my step count is lowest.  And, I’ve found out that more steps doesn’t always equal more pain.  There are some days when I have walked more than 10,000 steps (our day at the San Diego Zoo comes to mind) when pain was at a high.  But there are other days, when pain is quite intense and I’ve taken about 6,000 steps.

Walking is my main form of exercise and during the school year, I arrive near my son’s school at least twenty minutes before his dismissal, park my car, and walk through the neighborhood at what I consider a leisurely pace, but apparently what others consider slow.

The other day, my husband and I were strolling hand-in-hand when a resident of a home we walked by was out front and commented that we were walking slowly.  (This isn’t the first time someone has told us that.  You can click here to read my blog post “Change” for more on that story).   

We continued walking, but once we turned the corner, my tears dripped below my sunglasses.  If I walked with a cane, I doubt this man would have commented on my speed.  But because I live with an invisible disability, my pain and struggles are not evident to others.

Then later that same day, I received an email telling me I’d earned my “Serengeti badge”  — meaning I’ve walked 500 miles, the same distance as the Serengeti according to Fitbit.  (Though to be honest, I did wear a Fitbit for a while a few years ago, and I think my new badge is the result of the combination of my old and new miles).

In any event, I think 500 miles is pretty impressive.  500 miles of walking.  Even when I’m hurting.  Even when I don’t feel like walking.  Even when I’m walking slowly.