An Amusing Instructor’s Tale with Exerscuseful Seniors

I was asked to do a Walking Club starting in September at our Seniors Center. We had a Keenfit Certified Instructor come out in June and sell 20 sets of Poles. I also decided to become a Keenfit Certified Instructor after I bought Poles from this gentlemen named Ken.

I have lost 5lbs a month and am down 30lbs since using my Poles. I walk my 2 dogs and 2 cats down to the boat launch ever morning and night. One day I decided to count my steps and it worked out to 830 steps each way with a break and a sit down and a bit of yoga on the beach looking at the fishermen and Elk Island and some chit chat with neighbours.

My first class went well with 8 persons showing up. I walked with another fellow named Ken. He is approximately 40 lbs overweight and has a heart condition. We went to the Post Office from the Senior’s Center. The same distance as I walk to the boat launch from my cabin where I live.

The other seniors took off and went 3 times the distance we went. When we got back they said we cheated. I commented that was the distance I had been walking to attain my weight loss and that they were bullying us.

The second class produced the same amount of seniors but with a new person named Bev and she is approximately 30 lbs overweight. She walked with me and said “If this was all the distance I walked then it wasn’t worth the effort of getting up and meeting us” I said it was okay for her to walk with the other seniors. P.S. She has only come out 3 more times for she is too busy. I see her daily and everything is aching and she is putting on more and more weight. She says her back is bothering her. I asked her to bend her knees to stretch her hamstring and she says it hurts too much. She is an old friend and was a lifeguard with me years ago.
I am going to convince her in time. I cross my fingers.

I got home and thought about what happened and realized that I was 249 lbs. and 5’7″ when I started and without the Poles could not have walked to the boat launch like I had been doing for 5 months. The realization was I was carrying in reality approximately 100lbs of potatoes on my back walking any distance. So the amount you are overweight is the amount extra you have to carry around all day long. So the seniors who left us in the dust should have been fitted with 2 sacks of potatoes under each arm and see if they could walk even 830 steps.

My daughter has 18 month old twins and they weigh the equivalent of 52 lbs, imagine carrying them a full city block. Dream on I say.

I then called my 81 year old mother and asked if she was using her Poles.
She said no for her legs hurt when she was using the Poles (which is actually the opposite of what happens when most people use Poles.. they help your legs hurt LESS or not at all!). She has put on at least 35 lbs. in the last 2 years and she said it is okay for she is old and loves to eat. No I told her to stretch first and walk only 200 steps per time and see. Well it is day 4 and so far okay. By the way she is in great health but putting on weight everyday. My mom can walk on in the hallway where she lives. When she got the Poles in August, she was keen and 3 other friends also bought Poles. She walked too far and gave up for she never had time. She didn’t realize she also was now carrying 30 lbs of potatoes.

Her one friend Nancy is 120lbs overweight and asked to walk with them and my mom said no. We can’t walk with her she is too slow and can only walk a short distance. I said that was okay let her come with you and then pick her up on the way back. Well my mom stopped walking because of her extra weight and walked too fast and too far and of course Nancy had no one to walk with and personally was probably scared of falling down and being alone so she quit.

Wow I sure am working hard with this group. I am determined to see this through.

Angeline

An Angie Update:

I am fine and have lost 4 clothes sizes and dropped 1/2 a shoe size. 8 – 7 1/2 I feel great. The male friend of mine is now busy fishing and then hunting starts. Perfect, I love the fall. My girlfriends and myself fish off the pier. Cocktails and munchies and comfortable seats. We will be going out Pole Walking today. We catch pickeral, sunfish, bass, perch.

Talk later
Angie