Walking: Miraculous, life-giving exercise
By Yi Woo-won
I've been living by myself since I lost my wife to cancer three years ago. In my grief and solitude after her death, my health steadily deteriorated and I was a virtual recluse for years. I turned 90, becoming a nonagenarian, in March of this year.
Quite unexpectedly, during that same month, I met a reader of my Thoughts of the Times piece in The Korea Times, via her tender-hearted email to me. She is from Florida, in the United States. Her message was long, courteous, sincere and deeply sympathetic. In brief, she urged me, instead of feeling alone, to go out and meet people, saying, “Reach out and hold hands with everyone else. The comfort you still give will be the comfort you receive.” She was truly angelic.
That was what motivated me to get out of the house and walk, meeting people to chat with and listening to their thoughts on worldly affairs. As I've been practicing this daily routine of walking consistently for almost five months, I suddenly realize that I haven't had much time to be alone in the house, immersing myself in endlessly dismal thoughts or melancholia. More significantly, I began to feel recently that my health was improving to a great extent. I was glad I had started this new mode of living ― walking and socializing ― though a bit late.
Indeed, I feel good about myself these days, for the first time in years, physically and mentally. I strongly believe that this good feeling is a benefit of walking. The insomnia and loss of appetite that I suffered for years are nearly gone, simply by walking. I sleep better and enjoy eating now. And I'm almost freed from the fetters of ugly depression. I think I have found reasons to live, and I will try to make my life worth living each day.
Experts and researchers say that walking is a great way to improve or maintain your overall health. Just 30 minutes of walking every day can help you build stamina, burn excess calories and make your heart healthier. Especially for seniors like me, walking is the only and best exercise because it has a low risk of injury and it's easy on the joints. Besides, walking offers an easy way for seniors to meet up with others, engaging with them on a daily basis. It can help you feel more positive about life, reduce anxiety and boost your mood to improve your mental health.
If you prefer an easier and carefree regimen of walking, you can simply go out and walk around your neighborhood, or go to the shopping mall to look around for a while. I know a kindly, polite old lady who is about my age and lives in the same village. She has never been seriously sick for the last four decades we've known each other, except that she suffered from mild dementia a few years ago. Her secret is that she walks every day, rain or shine, around the neighborhood more than 5 times a day. Whenever I leave my house to go somewhere, I almost certainly find her out in the alley, walking leisurely and thoughtfully with a cane.
I'm absolutely thrilled to be able to walk alongside the majestic Nakdong River these days. I feel great out here: the open sky, cool and fresh air, beautiful scenery in every direction, the well-managed, huge flower-beds in which a variety of pretty flowers bloom all year round, and peaceful serenity. This area is my little corner of paradise on earth.
I get up at 5 a.m. to beat the intolerable heat after sunrise. When I arrive at the riverside, which is only a 15-minute walk from home, I see half a dozen others already out walking on the path between the flower beds or on the bicycle lane. I've made quite a few friends out here, including two disabled people who both suffer from hemiplegia. Young walkers walk fast and briskly, outpacing me easily from behind, but I stay at my usual pace, which might be a bit too slow. I can't do any better because that's the limit of my stamina. But I'm happy and grateful to be one of them, regularly and delightfully walking at my age.
Yi Woo-won(
yiwoowon1988@gmail.com
) lives in Waegwan, North Gyeongsang Province, Korea and is a regular contributor
.