Are you moving?

[SRMGrandma]

Happy December! This is a really busy month for many of us, and so the great news is that it is probably easier to get those 10,000 steps/day. We all know that sitting is the new smoking. Heart disease and cancer both increase with sedentary lifestyle. So I am wondering how many of us wear a Fitbit or some sort of pedometer or tracking device.

I've been using a Fitbit since January and one thing I notice is that my normal day is about 8500 steps and I have to put a little effort into getting over the 10,000. One place where I am over the average is in flights of stairs.. My tracker tells me that most days I go up and down 18-30 flights , which my cardiologist loves! I have not the best knees since I was a kid, and so my physical therapist even likes me to take them 2 at a time to build up my quads to make my knees stronger.

When I was first diagnosed with AF my EP's parting words that day were, "now exercise the h*** out of that heart" I'm still trying and the more I do, the better my heart behaves. I should have listened sooner.

Here is wishing you a great month of becoming more and more heart healthy!

[Hidden]

Hi SRMGrandma,After my pacemaker fit June last year and my ablation the following August the Dr said to me now get walking it,s the best exercise you can do.So slowly over the last 15 months i,v been building it up and now I walk 3 miles every day half of it power walking and I must admit I feel loads better,I can even walk up steep hills and hardly get out of breath,So I agree with you,get walking. everybody.

[SRMGrandma Volunteer in reply to Hidden]

Good for you, argzxoni61. That is exactly what I am talking about. Walking and moving improves how you feel in every way. Well done!

[Rellim296]

That's a lot of walking SRMGrandma - about five miles a day, I think! Our house is built on a slope, so we have plenty of stairs. But actually I was just thinking about cutting down on walking in order to find time to deal with that Christmas Card marathon that is now looming.

[SRMGrandma Volunteer in reply to Rellim296]

Rellim 296, I think the holidays are the time I need to walk even more to deal with the stress and the (strong) possiblilty of extra holiday calories Do those cards and take a walk! Be well!

[Rellim296 in reply to SRMGrandma]

I like to walk a mile and a half uninterrupted every day. People who have dogs claim to walk a lot but it's walk ten paces and stop and walk a bit more and stop again. I try to get my heart going steadily for a good twenty minutes.

Unfortunately my drop of Scottish blood makes me feel I have to get my money's worth from a card and the postage, so I have to write a few (if not more) personal lines to everyone. If you just sign a card, what does it say - apart from we're still alive? Someone described the Round Robin here's-our-news things as Boast By Post, so I don't do one of those.

I won't be hitting the calories until after I've completed the cards.

[Rellim296 in reply to Rellim296]

PS Have just looked up Fitbit and have emailed details to my other half as one would fit nicely in my Christmas stocking and would be very well received.

[SRMGrandma Volunteer in reply to Rellim296]

That's great! I'm telling you, it really helps to motivate me. Also, the company has been a very good one with which to do business. I lost my Fitbit in September and after explaining to them how it happened and using the Find My Fitbit App on my phone to no avail. They sent me a brand new one at no charge, so thumbs up on the customer service. There are lots of other brands on the market but for me, this has been great. Hope it's in your Christmas stocking!

[Rellim296 in reply to SRMGrandma]

Now that's what I call customer service! Many thanks for the introduction. I think the message has got through loud and clear.

[Hidden]

Hi Grandma!

I have a Fitbit, and was doing pretty well, then the weather closed in a bit and I've not done so much. I must get back on track I know. My biggest issue is that my right knee is badly arthritic and I'm overweight so if I walk a long way it punishes me badly. I don't want to have it operated on and I am horribly bad at losing weight. I know, got to do something! I will get back on my little walking machine and try to pick up the pace again. I just need everyone to poke me regularly and get me moving :D. Writing is such a sedentary job that even with the dog I can easily not move much, particularly if I have short deadlines - and the dog's getting older so we're both old wrecks now haha.

Lis

[SRMGrandma Volunteer in reply to Hidden]

You always make me smile, Lis! Knees definitely function best when their owners are at ideal weight. A sedentary job makes it really tough to keep moving. One thing I've noticed is that the more I move, the better food choices I make. There is a really strong correlation there. I think the Fitbit really does keep me honest, because I always think I have been more active than I have been. And for me it is a fine line between doing and overdoing! Have a great day!

[Di1962]

I know I need to walk - i used to be in much better shape - I've let myself go since my afib and now I have developed a fear of feeling awful and not able to keep going when I am out walking. It seems like each day I tell myself I will walk and then my heart goes wonky during the day and I chicken out. What is worse I how much weight I have gained. I have used a fit bit in the past perhaps I need to use it again and start slowly. Somehow get past the anxiety.