My husband would rather walk than drive. Not that he doesn’t enjoy a long road trip, he does, but why drive to the coffee house when you can walk? Why drive to the store if all you need fits in a backpack? Walking is his mode of transport. I enjoy walking but do not have the habit like he does. I spent too many years going to and from an office with files and a laptop. Since my husband works at home, his walks are also a way of getting out and seeing people. Today I joined him and we headed into town. We checked out the new Mexican market, they have a great meat counter and fresh produce on Thursdays and Fridays (which we will have to come back for). After a couple of iced drinks at Starbucks, we made the trek home.
I wasn’t in the house for ten minutes when a friend called, asking if I wanted to join her on a little hike with her grandchildren. Another friend had also joined us, with her two dogs, and the combination was pure entertainment. The kids were having a blast. Our little hike turned into two hours on the trail.
That’s the good news. The bad news: all that exercise made me hungry. I started my day with a green smoothie. Good stuff. I had a nice piece of fish between walk one and walk two. More good stuff. But now it was late afternoon and my resolve weakened. An ice cream bar, chips, watermelon, a small yogurt with a bit of cereal mixed in, and some other salty snack that looked appetizing. Not all bad, but I am sure I used up the calories I had burned earlier. Now I am full, uncomfortably so, and don’t feel like having dinner.
Too much exercise, when you are not used to it, can mean an increase in appetite. This doesn’t happen to my husband who walks daily. Tomorrow, I will hit the road on foot again. I won’t eat chips when I get home (we are out of them) and perhaps I will see results from my efforts over time.