Monday, February 11, 2013

Frequently Asked Questions on Why I'm Doing This

When I tell people that I'm walking for transportation, I get all sorts of opinions on the subject. Some people high-five me and congratulate me on taking steps to better health. Others frown and begin asking questions. Here is a list of FAQs, in case you are also wondering:

"Don't you get sweaty? Do you have a shower at work?"  Yes, from time to time I'm liable to sweat a bit. But I'd rather go to work a little sweaty than go to work chubby and road-ragy. Unfortunately, I don't have a shower option at work, so I shower at home, throw my hair up in a wet ponytail, and take off. I work at a software company in downtown Austin, and my colleagues are amazingly supportive of my decision to walk to work. Instead of asking permission, I just tell my colleagues what I want them to embrace as a philosophy when it comes to my walking: "You would rather see me getting healthy and wearing workout clothes than see me dressed perfectly and unhealthy." I say this using the effective Sullivan nod, so they're forced to agree. Some days I never change out of my workout clothes, and never put on make-up, so my crows feet and pale eyelashes are on display for my 10 other coworkers. So far, everyone seems unscathed, though they may be IM'ing each other mean messages about how awful I look. What I don't know won't kill me. Other days - especially if we have visitors coming in - I bring along professional attire and change clothes in our stairway bathroom. I've gotten really good at this. I timed myself the other day, and within 4 minutes, I was in a skirt, heels, adequate make-up, and jewelry. This is good news if I ever make a career switch and want to take up the life of a quick-change artist. 

"How long does it take?" As I've mentioned before, I'm not exactly athletic. I carry a backpack loaded up with 25 pounds of stuff, and I am pokey slow. Yet the more I walk, the more I pick up the pace, so that now, from my doorstep to my office, I log 3 miles in around 50 minutes, and that includes a stop to Starbucks and several seemingly endless stoplights. Some people shake their heads at this, but a lot of the people who do this also spend 45 minutes in their cars each morning, commuting from the burbs, so I remind them that I'm really lucky to be within fair walking distance of my office.

"Will this lead to running to work?" Absolutely not. Do you know how ridiculous I would look running with a backpack? But if you want to run to work, I say go for it. Bust out some Frank Ocean and Forrest Gump yourself to work if it makes you happy. I will add that when people ask me this, it sometimes feels as if they think walking isn't good enough, or that I need to set the bar a little higher. But I'm figuring out that it's human nature for people to encourage someone to improve on a goal, so I take it as a positive thing.

"Do you feel safe?" Many people ask this, but it mainly comes from my father, a cautious man who still thinks of me as an 8-year old, so I get that. I rarely walk when it's dark, but I walk through a heavily-guarded state capitol complex, to a heavily-guarded university campus, to my house. So I'm good. Plus, if anyone tries to mess with me, I can always hurl my huge backpack at them. 

"What do you do?" Besides walk? For one, I am never without my iPhone, so I give a little gratitude nod to Steve Jobs' spirit every morning. Many days I'm on the phone with family members, catching up on the latest family dirt. I also listen to NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, thanks to one of my wildly hip and intelligent coworkers, or I create fun playlists, or I listen to Selected Shorts. Without my headphones, I am nothing. So please don't take me for an avid hiker or nature lover. I like the concrete sidewalks under my feet, and embrace most of the urban smells that I encounter on the way to work. For example, I enjoy the weird Lipton Onion Soup smell that wafts from the underground state capitol complex vents, and I like the smell of cut grass and lawnmower gas at the UT campus. And as I grow more familiar with my route, I've learned when to hold my nose to escape the sad and nasty smell of homeless pee. 

"Are you losing weight?" Yep. It's agonizingly slow in my opinion, but I am losing weight. When I first started, I told a friend who lost a significant amount of weight years ago and has maintained it beautifully, despite having a kid and a few 10-pound setbacks. "Do you think I will lose weight just from walking 3 miles a day, 5 days a week?" I asked, hopefully. "No," she said, "You won't. It's all about what goes into your mouth." At the time she was telling me this, I was sucking down a glass of wine and halfway through a piece of pizza. Oh. However, though my friend didn't give me the encouragement I wanted, she was right. This journey isn't about weight loss, though I would be a boldface liar if I didn't admit that I want that to be part of the reward. So I'm avoiding the processed junk, eating more veggies and fruits, and drinking more water. At my age, while weight loss is certainly welcomed, I'm also fired up about lowering my blood pressure, reducing stress, and having better cardiovascular health.

More questions will come, but so far, these are the most common. Later, I'll tell you about the Nigerian cab driver that drove me home last week (I haven't given up transportation altogether), who, when I told the story of walking for transportation, got very worried that I will get hit by a car. Until then, if you have a destination that's under a mile today, consider ditching your car and hoofing it, then let me know how you feel!

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