Summer is in full swing and what a great time to be at the beach! That’s where I am right now and it’s sunny and HOT. The first couple of days were overcast and windy, so the heat wasn’t too bad and it was wonderful to walk on the beach. So this week, I’m walking and doing intervals in the sand to get in my cardio and I’ve noticed a thing or two.
When I first wake up and look at the beach from our balcony I see the serious exercisers. They’re the only ones on the beach and they are either running, jogging, or walking at a great intensity. They want to get out there before the heat of the day sets in making exercise much more difficult and potentially dangerous, especially without adequate hydration.
As the day progresses, most people are more sedentary. They sit in their beach chairs with their coolers next to them and may get up to walk to the water to get wet and cool down. Then it’s back to sitting and relaxing. Don’t get me wrong, there are advantages to sitting and relaxing. The problem I’m seeing is that the majority of the people that I’m currently observing on the beach have done a little too much of it and it shows.
Child-like Wonder
I really enjoy watching the kids. Most of them are very active and having a great time. I watched one little boy make trip after trip to get water from the ocean, only to dump it out repeatedly to help his sister form a moat around her sand castle.
Another child would chase the waves as they went out and then when one would return she would run to try to keep ahead of it. This game seems to keep her entertained for a very long time and will probably help her sleep well tonight.
As I’m writing this a summer thunderstorm is sending most of the sedentary people scattering for cover. At least they’ll get a little bit of exercise before returning to get the remainder of their beach paraphernalia.
How about you? Are you going to have a sedentary vacation? Or are you going to take the opportunity to use your increased free time to make some healthy activity choices? My suggestion is to take a lesson from the children–play, have fun, and be active. Please feel free to comment and let me know!
