Saturday, June 4, 2011

My neighborhood park

 I feel lucky that I live in a residential area that is only a 5 minute walk to a four-mile square county park. When I am not traveling, I usually go to the park to take my daily two hour walk. At a moderate walking pace of 19 minutes per mile, give or take half a minute, I easily cover 6 miles a day. The only thing is....it is all level ground. I used to do my walk/hike at national parks where the change in elevation is enough to wear me down if I do not take long breaks. Nowadays, especially with the ever rising cost of gas, I don't feel like driving an hour or two just to do my daily walk, besides I am getting too old for those strenuous hikes.

A few months ago, the local park authority added a series of exercise stations along a section of the 3 mile walking trail inside the park. I decided to give it a try. I've been on it for a month and a half now but my progress is disappointingly slow. The course is not as tough as in some of the other parks in the county that I have visited but it is a decent start for a physically inactive oldie like me LOL.


























I find this hard to execute.





A month and a half and I still can't pull my body up to chin level! I need to lose some weight!





I can do 30 push ups at the lowest bar setting.


No way Jose, I can't walk with my arms to the end and back!


Maybe I should just take a vacation to Libya and join the rebels so I can do my run and duck exercise LOL.


Better still, I'll just strengthen my arms by casting a heavy rod during the day and lifting mugs of beer at night LOL. Have a nice weekend or what remains of it!


26 comments:

rob said...

.. looks like a nice park and i also love walking as a form of exercise. well you have other choices now aside from libya if you're planning to take a trip there - like yemen and syria. hehe.

.. a great weekend to you too, bert. :)

bertN said...

You are right about those alternate choices LOL.

sheng said...

I do walking at a mall close to where we live. The mall is still close until 9.30, that's the time when joggers and brisk walkers frequent the surrounding area. When it's open, diretso na kape!

Reena said...

That's a nice park! Ang ganda ng idea to have those exercise nooks. I run/jog/walk at least three times a week here in our village, but i walk on the streets lang. Sana we have something like that nearby. Enjoy your walks!

bertN said...

sheng,that's what I do when it is too hot, too cold or it is raining. However, I find walking inside the mall detrimental to my wallet's health LOL.

Reena, I jut take long walks. I don't run unless I am being chased by people who want to do me harm LOL.

Photo Cache said...

yap those little installations at regular intervals are a nice diversion as much as they help out in stretching as well.

bertN said...

Photo Cache, they certainly do. I can't do them all but I am trying LOL.

Pinay Travel Junkie said...

Heya! I just checked your profile and you're from OC! I actually saw most of the residential areas only. We stayed a few days on Reseda Blvd, cause hubby's got work. I wasn't able to visit the usual tourist areas. Met a lot of relatives in CA too (SF, Sacramento), so the trip's mostly gatherings in their respective homes.

docgelo said...

"I still can't pull my body up to chin level! I need to lose some weight!" ouch! ouch! ouch!
I hate this lines, it struck me! hahaha!

bertN said...

Pinay Travel Junkie, that was one heck of a short trip for you and your family. Between overcoming jet lag, meeting/visiting relatives and your hubby's work schedule, I'm surprised that you were still able to take a peak of what California has to offer. It takes a veteran traveler to do that!

docgelo, it can't be that bad for you! Your pics say you only need to lose a few pounds in strategic places LOL.

docgelo said...

i am LOL when i read your reply! :p

Anonymous said...

if there is a park as good as that near me i think i would be walking more too! i wish you can lift yourself up those bars though! kaya mo yan practice pa!

Kura said...

I wonder if there is a park in manila close to that. We badly need it. parang extra challenge every step of the way. hahah! Nakakapressure. Sanay na ko maglalakad. And I agree! mahirap maglalakad sa mall, nasasacrifice ang bulsa. hahaha!

Give it your best shot. Kaya yan! thanks for visiting my blog.

The Nomadic Pinoy said...

Who needs a gym now if you've got those? - a walking path in a park and those "exercise stations" in between.

Happy father's day Bert!

docgelo said...

off topic : Maligayang Araw ng mga Tatay, Sir Bert! Cheers! :)

bertN said...

prinsesamusang,thanks for your visit and your encouragement.

Malditang "Kura"cha, one of the things I really feel bad about our country is the lack of decent parks and free recreational facilities. It does not help also that many of our beautiful beaches are privately owned and can only be enjoyed by the public for a fee.

The Nomadic Pinoy, I'm allergic to gyms and their intimidating exercise machines LOL. Thanks for the greeting.

docgelo, same to you! You are one great father to Gabby. How about another one to share Gabby's luck? Is there a negotiation in progress with your "one and only"? Just teasing.

Rio said...

Sir Bertn, dumaan lang po para batiin kayo ng Happy Father's day. :)

bertN said...

Rio, thanks a mil for the greeting and another mil for dropping by. Wala ng "Sir"....please.

Rio said...

pwede po bang tay bert nlang?hehehe:)

bing said...

hello, bertN. o, ayan, alang sir o tatay ha ha

belated happy father's day to you. so many things to do that i had been missing a lot about my blog friends lately. :-(

that is a nice park you have there. i want one near our place! (parang ke daling mangyari ha ha) anyway, we used to go to UP to do jogging and walking, and yes it's far from home. recently, mag iisip ka na rin kung pupunta ka pa e ang mahal ng gasolina!

sana me parkeng tulad nyan dito.

bertN said...

Thank you! You make me feel a lot less older.

I just saw a video of UP taken by my high school and college buddy from that school. The campus looked so different now! I can't blame people taking the extra effort just to be able to walk or jog there.

RIZALENIO said...

Parang wala pong mga tao? Sa QC circle and UP, enjoy din ang magjog at maglakad. Many people are doing the same (umaga or gabi).

Stay healthy, Sir. Glad to see this part near your home. :)

bertN said...

Rizalenio, during weekdays there are hardly anybody in the park. It is only on weekends that the park comes alive with people and activities.

I'm trying to stay healthy by hanging out at the beaches a lot LOL. If nothing else, my eyeballs get plenty of exercise LOL.

thepinaysolobackpacker said...

wow! the park is so clean, looks like a refreshing place to walk nga or go biking.

bertN said...

thepinaysolobackpacker, they regularly stock the two lakes inside with catchable fish, too.

Bob Crunch said...

Got some really great photos there. I should probably go there as well. I could afford to lose a couple of pounds.