Bundle Up and Move Around

Ice skating is a wonderfully human activity. To go from "WHOOOOAAAHH ooohh nooo...gaaah...it's COLD and this ice is SLIPPERY!" to "WOOHOOO! It's COLD! And this ice is SLIPPERY!" is just about as optimistic as a mammal can get. It's cold, it's slippery, we're stuck inside....let's strap some steel to our feet and slip around on the lake for a bit.

That's what we did yesterday, the boys and I. Except it was more of a parking lot than a lake. We rented skates. The bigger boy got into it right away. The smaller boy kept falling on his bottom. Me, I gracefully stumbled around the rink like a massive drunken cupie doll. Good for morale for the boys to see their father as uncertain on the ice as they are....or maybe more uncertain on the ice as they are. At least that's what I told myself.

Anyway, the point is, it was a concerted effort to get out of the house and move around, and darnit...it was fun. I burned about 500 calories and spent some quality time with my wee boys.

The notion of working out at a gym is great and all. And I highly recommend it...**cough** for myself, as well. But it can be intimidating for some of us who are a bit on the doughy side.

Even in the winter there's stuff going on:

- sledding, which is free if you get creative with the sleds. Or you can get a nice plastic one for under $8.
- ice skating, often for the price of skate rentals - used skates can be found at the local second hand stores if you shop around for a bit.
- trudging through the snow
- ice fishing....which...is really more about drinking beer while sitting on the ice than exercise I guess.

Bundle up and get out there. I'm going to try to do the same.