The Dog Days of Summer (The Reading and Writing Challenge, Day 3)

The Original Post- Day 1

It recently dawned on me that there are only 15 days left in the month to complete my first 21 Day Challenge...oops!  I was so amped to begin the first challenge that I couldn't bear waiting until the beginning of July, so I started on June 16th, thinking I could end each challenge on the 15th of each month.  In the long-term interest of keeping things easy to understand, I'm going to finish strong in June and put my gold star on the Betty White calendar for all the remaining days, and then continue the Reading and Writing Challenge in July, while simultaneously working on Challenge #2- 21 Days of Walking the Dog.

Hot Diggity Dog

I know, I know- isn't walking the dog setting my sights a bit low?  Well, for me, not really.  I set out on this mission with the intention of cultivating healthy habits in my daily routine, and in all of the reading I have ever done on this subject, taking long and brisk walks is always one of the first things mentioned.  Here are some of the many health related benefits of walking, lifted from Dan Robey's The Power of Positive Habits:

"Not running, not jogging, but walking is your most efficient exercise and the only one you can safely follow all the years of your life."  -Executive Health Organization

Walking also:

- Burns calories, helps you lose weight, and can trim excess body fat
-Can help ease lower back pain (an added bonus for booksellers!)
-Can aid in the improvement of posture
-Requires no special equipment or gym membership
-Helps lower blood pressure and prevents circulatory and heart disorders
-Lessens the risk of injuries that other forms of exercise may cause
-Walking at night can help promote better sleep
-Increases the amount of oxygen in your bloodstream
-Helps elevate levels of good cholesterol
-Improves mental performance and mood
-Helps build bone strength
-Helps reduce anxiety and stress
-Helps boost your immune system
-Slows the aging process
-Helps to prevent certain cancers
-Walking regularly can help prevent osteoporosis

Do I even need to go on?  According to Robey, it's best to start your daily walks for at least 10 or 20 minutes, and continue until you are walking at least 30 minutes a day.  That should be long enough to tire Maddie out for a bit, even if it doesn't give me the intense kind of workout that I enjoy.  My abbreviated P90X challenge will be here soon enough.

I think that July will be the perfect month for this challenge, as I am leaving on vacation at the end of the month and want to make sure that she gets plenty of exercise before I skip town.  Too often I just settle with letting her run around in the backyard for a few minutes, but every episode I've ever watched of the Dog Whisperer has reminded me that it ain't enough.  There is also no better way to get yourself out of a mild funk than to spend some quality time with your mutt.  I also plan on incorporating several other canine-friendly activities into the month such as:

-A trip to the vet for her annual check-up and shots
-An afternoon at the new dog park in Wichita
-Working on her Frisbee fetching skills (not really her breeds specialty, but I'm going to keep trying)
-A pre-vacation guilt trip to PetSmart
-A visit to one of the dog friendly patio restaurants in town (I'm thinking a trip to The Anchor is overdue)
-A bike ride or two around the block with Maddie; she loves her dog runs too!

Finally, I want to give a shout out to my friend and old neighbor Vanessa, who recently started up a dog walking service for Wichita residents.  Vanessa is awesome with dogs, and is available to help take care of your pet while she is relieved of her teaching duties for the summer.  I am also lucky to have wonderful neighbors who help me out with Maddie when I am away on vacation, even on short notice.  Another shout out to the Pittmans!  Emily gets all the money, but everyone knows that Brad, Sam and Camryn do all the work.  But Emily is Maddie's favorite, by far.  I think that scented skin lotion is some kind of a drug for dogs.

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Check out the soundtrack to this post, "Two of the Lucky Ones" by Droge & Summers Blend: