On vacations, grandchildren and other calorie burning activities......

This week it might be tough to get in my regular five times a week workouts.  I managed a long beach walk on Saturday and a good session on the ellpitcal trainer on Monday, but Tuesday I worked a seven hour day and then traveled to North Carolina to visit my daughter, granddaughter and son-in-law. 

Yesterday was a day spent tethered to my laptop, as I had to work. The rest of the week is mine - I am officially on vacation!  And although I don't want to use that as an excuse not to work out, I know that I may just have to get my exercise in other forms.  I may be taking my granddaighter for walks in the park, for example.  Those will not be my normal, calorie-burning, fast-paced walks, but they will be walks.  And they will be wonderful because they are spent with my precious, intelligent and always amusing granddaughter.  I will still count them as exercise, even if they aren't the biggest fat burning exercises, but because they are emotional exercise, which is equally important in life. 

Reconnecting with a grandchild that I haven't seen in six long months has given me the emotional equivalent of the biggest endorphin rush known to man.  Hugging my beautiful daughter and having long talks and slow walks will be equally as beneficial to my health as running a marathon.  Wait - scratch that.  Running a marathon would probably kill me.  So maybe the experience would more be akin to one of my epic beach walks.  But it will do my heart as much good as a cardio workout.  Because I have missed my family terribly and I already feel lighter.  Lighter of heart, lighter of spirit and maybe a little lighter in weight.  Because my daughter's scales weigh lighter than my new scales.  I knew there was a reason I like to come here......