Well, for all intents and purposes the holiday season is over. We’ve made it through all of the parties, the shopping, the stress, the cookies, the drinks, the turkey and dressing, the pies, the cakes and cookies and a few tons of Christmas candy!
One more night of dinner and drinks and maybe a well placed New Years Eve party and it’s back to normal living again. Yah, Right! Most of us are now suffering from some form of Post-Christmas-itis! With credit cards melted around the edges from over use, and clothes fitting a bit tighter from the effects of over indulging, life will be far from normal for the next few months.
In the next few days, we will all be sitting around with friends and family make plans for the new year. Among the topics of discussion will be resolutions to stop smoking, eating fatty foods and loosing weight.
Several years ago I was one of those people who resolved to drop some weight as well a few pant sizes. The plan was to eat better, eat less and walk several miles a week. The result was to be a gradual loss of weight that would be easy to keep off.
With the help of my German Shepherd Neka, and more recently now Patchs, I have been walking regularly and clocking up to 15 miles per week. We were biking together for a while, but if you have followed me on Facebook for any time at all you know that that didn’t work out very well. The overall results have been that I am still “on target” to hit my goal in the time I had set for myself.
Oh sure, there are set backs. In my case it was the biking incident, but the point is that I keep going forward. And the dog is much happier for it too. She lives to go for walks! After she gets her leash put on, she gets a bit wound up. She can’t sit still and she wines and squeals with anxious anticipation.
Until we get a few houses down the street she tends to try to encourage me to move a bit faster than I am. But when she gets into her zone we can really cover some distance.
Other than loosing weight, our walks help me in other ways. It builds cardio, it allows me to sleep better, it removes stress, and I also get to meet people when we are walking. Patchs gets some great benefits too. Besides exercise, she gets mental stimulation and she gets a chance to socialize with humans and other dogs.
So if you are thinking about dropping a few pounds in the next few months, consider doing it with your dog! You’ll save money on Gym fees, you won’t need to buy a bunch of workout clothes and you’ll get a chance to bond more deeply with your dog!
Best Wishes in the  #12 …Help yourself, Help a dog!