My slow but steady fitness quest

Since mid-August I have been trying to ease myself into a healthier routine because the aches and pains have become more prevalent and I found that Chair Yoga was straining my back too much. I finally decided to start a regular program of walking - one of my least favourite past times - and this is how I have done it so far. 

At first I pledged to myself that I would walk at least twice a week for 20 minutes at a time, and I did that on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4 weeks. Then I increased to three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and I did that for the next 4 weeks. Now I have moved on to walking every other day of the week, still for only 20 minutes a day, and I will do that for the next 4 weeks. 

Once I have established a routine of walking every other day no matter what, I may try to extend it to 30 minutes a time, but I don't want to over-extend myself. In the past I have been over-enthusiastic, tried to do too much exercise too quickly, exhausted myself and given up. 

I made a few little rules to keep me honest, such as, if I miss a day because of bad weather or lack of time I have to make it up the next day, and so far I have kept to that plan.I also allow myself the smug satisfaction of recording in my diary when I walked, how long I walked and sometimes a note of where I actually walked, and that definitely works for me. 

An added bonus of my walking regime is that I can watch these
grafted white and pink blossoms come into flower.

I have found that walking as soon as I get home from work and before lunch is usually the best time for me: I mentally prepare myself on the 10 minute drive home and by the time I arrive I am motivated to walk. Also, the thought of lunch always spurs me on to do my 20 minutes as soon as possible. I know that if I put off the walking until after lunch it would be much easier to find excuses not to go.

So far I have been a tentative walker, rarely venturing far from home, content to stick to familiar paths, but I feel I am becoming more adventurous as my walking confidence builds. Today I even found myself imagining a walk along the banks of the Wollondilly River, something quite out of my comfort zone, but now that I have thought about it I may well do it one day. The walk I am thinking about follows the riverbank from Marsden Weir to Riversdale, definitely not the full 18kms described here.