Alright. Welcome to Running: A FEVER. My name is Michael Davis. This is a podcast about fitness, diet, and medicine. My goal is to live a long, healthy, happy, active life right up to the very end. And I love my life enough to make it last as long as possible. If that’s what you want, you’re in the right place.

A lot of people are out here today, walking their dogs, walking their friends. And it’s a beautiful day at Lake Fayetteville. Some clouds in the sky, but they are the friendly white clouds, not the dark gray ones we’ve been seeing. It got down to 30 degrees yesterday; right now, it feels like about 50 or somewhere in the 50s. The sun is out, so it is a really nice day on New Year’s Eve Eve, December 30th, 2023.

After the last walk, I ate some not-so-good-for-me stuff, but I’ve been doing okay the last couple of days. This is Saturday, I did not go out yesterday, which was supposed to be the second day. But my schedule just got too cramped to do that. So it’s Saturday, which is okay. I’ve got Monday to take off or possibly do some resistance training with my dumbells at home. Normally, I guess Saturday would be the day for that, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday back when I was working out six days a week.

The air is really dry in the wintertime. I found that my mouth is getting dry a lot lately. I didn’t do much hydrating on Wednesday. And today, it was going on one o’clock and I realized I hadn’t had anything to eat today, which is not usual. I’ve been sticking to the three-meals-a-day minimum and maximum. Three meals a day, no more, no less. For some reason, today I was really tired when I got up. But I just snoozed the alarm a little more and sat in a chair doing nothing. And I had plenty of time to eat breakfast, but I didn’t. At lunchtime, I had something going on.

I’m seeing more motorized vehicles on this trail. I’m not sure if I like that or not, but now that there are e-bikes and motorized scooters and such. People say, “Well, it’s a bicycle, you know…” But it’s hard enough with the cyclists going too fast all the time, even the non-motorized ones. But that’s life. I’m not too worried about it until I get hit by one of them.

Until I lose weight, until I lose more weight, I’m going to have trouble with my back. I don’t usually notice it in my regular activities, but when I go walking here, I really notice it. It gets sore really quickly. And one of the things is getting those back muscles in shape. Maybe my posture could be better as well. I spend too much time hunched over. I need to keep my eyes on the skies.

On Wednesday, I talked a little about not hydrating well. Today, when I realized I had not had anything, I scrambled an egg right before I left. It was a jumbo egg. Eggs are normally seventy-eight calories, these are ninety calories. A little Smart Balance in the pan, salt and pepper is all you need. Mix it up and put it on a plate so it can cool a little bit. I had a glass of juice, which goes into the hydration thing. I also drank some water and have more in the car when I return.

This is probably going to be another mile-and-a-half day if not less than that. I’m already feeling my back. All this is a catch-22. It’s harder when I’m heavy to be active. And part of being less heavy is being active. So I’ve just got to go through the pain and keep on trucking, and eventually, I know it will happen. Of course, seventy percent of weight loss is diet. I’m doing the best I can there. I have to quit going off the rails. I could go a week without doing that. That would be nice.

I’m turning around at the half-mile point just because of my back. And every pound makes a difference. It’s a cycle. The more I walk, the more I lose. The more I lose, the easier it is to walk. This is the second time in a row on my Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule or three-days-a-week schedule. Second, in this week. So, I’m right on track to establishing a habit. One is not really a habit. It’s not part of a cycle; it’s just one. Now I’ve got two. It’s a big difference. Getting out that first time, getting out that second time. And the more I do it, the more I won’t even have to think about it. I’ll be coming out three times a week because it’ll be time. It’s time to go, so I go.

I should try coming the other way. You know, one starting point I haven’t used very much is Veteran’s Park in Fayetteville. I’m trying to stand up straight. My pace is slower today than it was. It’s starting to level out — it wasn’t a big hill by any means. It’s just that I’m out of shape, and it hurts and everything. But I’ve got to get out here. Stopping doesn’t do a lot of good. My back is hurting constantly. It was much better Wednesday. But you know, I got out here. That’s the most important thing — establishing a regular pattern of exercise. So, I’m just trying to power through. It’s much worse than Wednesday, but I didn’t stretch my back while warming up, and I should do that. Just bend over and stretch.

I said I remembered this feeling, and I’ve said it more than once. I was in the best shape of my life in 2018 when I was fifty-two years old. That’s absolutely true. I may be in the worst shape ever today. It’s definitely close. I may not be at my top weight, but I don’t remember ever feeling this out of shape. But it’s the effort that counts, not how far I go or how fast I get there. And today, the effort level is really high. It seems to me it should be easier to keep in shape than it is to get in shape.

This is it. This is what the Fever is about. It’s about never giving up. No matter how painful it is, you’ve got to get back out there. Unless you want to start going the other way. And we know what way that is. So, I hope you’ve enjoyed this look into how hard it is to come back.

Photo by RUN 4 FFWPU
https://www.pexels.com/photo/young-cyclist-riding-bicycle-during-competition-5687432/