?This morning it was in the low 70’s with light clouds. The air was fresh, almost crisp. I looked around, wondering what happened to the fall this year. Why wasn’t it here yet? Hmmm… I looked closer at the trees, noting that nothing has yet to resemble fall foliage. I mean, what else are you going to do on a walk, other than try to distract yourself from the chore of exercising? Most of the leaves were still green, and only a small number of trees were somewhat bare. Apparently, I’m spending too much time in front of the computer; otherwise, I would have noticed this before, and now it’s mid-October.
 
As I progressed I started feeling the stress on my hips—that’s what happens when people are overweight. Next, came the pain. I slowed down a bit, mentally slapping myself for the bad shape I was in—it’s totally my fault. Once I reached the top of the hill and started to walk on a level surface, the stress on my hips decreased and the pain subsided. I accelerated my pace. It didn’t take much to increase my heart rate. Clearly the situation is more severe than what I realized. Shame on me, I thought.
 
I checked the time. It had been 15 minutes since I started walking. I turned around, thinking about the return trip back home—especially that hill at the end.