-Haley
Many months ago I had seen a segment on the Today show about more Americans being fat and lazy (of course) and one man's idea to do something about it. He made a treadmill desk for people to walk on while at work. Brilliant! While not a quick-fix to lose weight, it gets people off their bottoms and doing what we were made to do: walk.
I loved this idea, but did not love the price tag. First, I didn't have a treadmill and then I didn't want to spend $400-500 on the desk part! You're looking at 2-3 Ironman race entries for the price of both of those! Or many car payments...whatever.
Now that I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel regarding my injury, I decided I was bored enough to start looking at Craigslist for used treadmills. Inspired by my friend Jess who made her own with a new treadmill, cardboard and old wood flooring, I knew I could do something similar. I came across a gem of a treadmill for $120 being sold by a militar
y family moving from Ft. Belvoir to whoknowswhere. I went to look at it and found it was clean, free of dust, yet surprisingly unused! SCORE!
Since I can't really walk still, I wasn't in a rush to get this thing set up. I had time so I was browsing Craigslist for several days looking in the "free" section for some kind of base to absorb the vibration and an old shelf or piece of furniture someone was leaving on the curb. It wasn't happening, so I decided to hit Home Depot. I found a very cheap shelf and a piece of insulation foam. Total: about $7.
Got home so excited about my fiscally responsible purchases (well, in the athlete world I guess) I got to work. I had the treadmill opened (it is a fold-up one) and without measuring cut the foam perfectly and I guessed the right size with the shelf!
I can't remember the last time I've been so proud of myself. (Yeah, forget keeping a good attitude about being injured, getting sent home from Iraq, or even joining the military...pashaw! This is way better.)
So, while I can barely walk 250-400meters, it's better than where I was a month ago when I couldn't even do that much. Progress...it's slow, but coming. I did walk 5min. on the treadmill last night (sssshhhh, don't tell my Dr!) and while it was uncomfortable, I did it without falling or doubling over in pain. One step at a time...one step at a time.
While I don't expect this to be "exercise" it is something healthier than sitting at my desk when I goof off on the internet. In the spring and next year, this is where I will do schoolwork. In fact, I'm standing on it while typing this post and having my morning coffee and perusing the new Pottery Barn catalog.
With CrossFit, walking and some biking...I will be an Ironman.
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