So, yesterday was "rest day" at the gym. So, I went to the gym and rowed 5,000 meters.

     That may not sound like much of a rest, but I found that I didn't really want a day off.  I wanted to keep moving.

     There's something about exercise...especially for people my age.  Once we stop moving, it is SO easy to just settle into the recliner and doze as time goes by.  It is easy to stop moving.  It is TEMPTING to stop moving because for many of us, moving often hurts.

     Most of us have aches and pains.  Osteo arthritis is common in folks our age.  We wear out...as is illustrated by the number of knee replacements that are done every year in this country.  We are the bionic generation.  Thousands of Baby Boomers are walking around with titanium knees, hips and shoulders.  Others sport pacemakers and defibrullators.  I read an article the other day that said that soon heart transplants will be a thing of the past as artificial hearts will become smaller and more technologically viable.  It's truly amazing.

     But, none of the medical breakthroughs really matter if we spend our days sitting.  They say sitting is the new smoking.  It's dangerous.

     So we have to get moving.  And to do that, we have to get out of the recliner.  It's that first step that is so important.  I found that once I got moving, I now WANT to move.  I didn't want to miss a day of exerting myself a bit.

     So, I went to the gym and rowed.  And as I rowed, I realized that just a few short weeks ago, rowing 5,000 meters would have been impossible.  It is AMAZING how quickly the body begins to strengthen.  I don't even have any sore muscles today.  And I think that's because the natural state of being for us is movement.  We weren't meant to be couch potatoes.  We were meant to be constantly moving, bending, stretching, twisting and using our heads, hearts and hands.

     And I gotta tell ya...it feels good.  In fact, I'm going back today!