Your excuses are killing you!

"I can't exercise because I have a bad knee.... I have a bad shoulder.... I have a bad back." I have said all of these things in the past. While it is true that I have had two knee surgeries, shoulder surgery, back injections and physical therapy (a lot of physical therapy), not to mention the gallbladder surgery and c-section surgery, I will NOT allow those issues to stand in the way of a healthier life. I have watched mouths drop when I begin to tell how many surgeries and injuries I have had over the years. One lady said, "...and you are walking every day??? How?" Well, the short answer is, by putting one foot in front of the other. (Not to be a smart mouth, but it is true, even with pain, slowly you can walk or ride a recumbent bike or do another modified exercise until you rebuild the muscles around the injury site.) The longer answer is, I decided to get my injuries FIXED and not allow them to debilitate me for the rest of my life. I had a doctor tell me that, because of my size, I would have to live with knee pain, injections, and eventually, pretty soon, a full knee replacement. I thought about that for about 5 minutes and I said, "No, I won't!" I then found another doctor and another doctor until I found one that said, "I will go in and see what I can do to fix it." Long story short, it has been FIXED! It has been rehabilitated and it works GREAT! If you are living with injuries or other problems that you have been using as excuses for not moving your body, get them FIXED! If your doctor says you have to live with the issues, get a second and third opinion. My best friend, Jennie, has had back pain for as long as she can remember and knee pain for the last year or so. She finally decided to get it checked out and discovered on a MRI of her back, that she had a volleyball sized tumor in her abdomen. Her doctor decided that taking the tumor out was more important than the knee and back issues and surgery was scheduled. A few hours after her surgery to remove the tumor, she was up and walking around the hospital with me and her husband. I asked if she had any pain and she said, "No, my back pain seems to be gone. But maybe that is because of the pain meds." I am happy to report that she still has no back pain (and no pain meds) and with the exception of fatigue after exercise, no knee pain. The tumor had caused many issues in her body that are all clearing up. You never really know the root of some problems until you have them checked out! Medical science has come a long way and they can really do wonderful things. Sometimes you just have to find the right doctor. I am certainly not saying that someone with a knee or back injury should go walk up Stone Mountain today (although I would LOVE to do that) or walk a 5K anytime soon, but I am saying that you can get up out of your chair, couch, or bed and begin slowly moving your body. Moving your body more and more every day until one day you call me and say, "do you want to go walk up Stone Mountain today and do a 5K with me in two months?" No matter where you are physically, you can begin to move your body and you will be amazed at the fact that the more you ask your body to do, the more it CAN do! Try it! Baby steps is where you start and giant leaps are what you will see when you look back! When you decide that the time is right to change your life, set your mind to focus on your goal and no excuses will stand in your way.