Yeah, I know. Spending a lot of time on a treadmill or trail running, lifting weights and doing belly work is a pain. Sometimes literally. But.
I feel better and sleep better when I get regular physical workouts. Doesn't have to be in a gym: cutting wood, smithing, working through woods, pretty much anything that wears me out does it. But there's often not a way to do the fun stuff, so it's off to the gym.
So, I run or ski and lift and situp and so forth.
One of the 'better off than we used to be' things is glucosimine. Some friends recommended it to me a few years ago when I mentioned that my knees were killing me. Whether it's normal wear of some of the stuff I've done over the years, they were increasingly troubling. I used to go to a local folk dance group pretty regularly. First hour was warmup and beginner stuff, then teaching and requests for the next two. It had gotten bad enough that I'd have to quit after the first hour. Also, they told me- in no uncertain terms- when the next cold or warm front was moving in. After several of the people there told me about it, I started taking it. It took about 2 1/2 to 3 months to notice the difference, but it was a BIG difference. So I'm taking it still. And without it, I wouldn't be able to do much workout with my legs, and suspect other joints might be worse than they are.
About six months ago a mix of things came together. Cost of gas, time, and a troublesome tendon in my elbow combined to make me say to hell with it for a while. Then, about two months ago I decided, all things considered, to get back into it. It's a pain, as I said, but I can feel a difference.
As far as running, I prefer outdoors to a treadmill, but when it's cold and wet/icy outside, I ain't going. And I cannot run on pavement; glucosimine or not, it beats my legs up. So I have to find a trail to do that part on.
And now I have to go stretch for a while before I go to bed.
(good side effect of stretching? it amuses the cat)
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