Being Young and Active - Again

Is it just me or do kids these days seem to think using their thumbs for video games and texting is exercising?

When I was young in Brevard County, my friends and I spent all available daylight riding our bikes and playing improvised games with whatever equipment we could muster. My boyhood activities consisted of endless energy expenditure: Playing baseball on a field that didn’t have a second base, walking along the river or rowing boats scavenging for flotsam we could sell or use to build a fort, playing hide-and-seek amid the orange groves.  

This got me thinking. Suppose I try to get in shape again by reliving my childhood by doing some of the things I used to do outside. It might even be fun, again.  

So, I dusted off my bicycle. But this would be no typical ride. This would be a stand-up-and-pedal-faster-once-in-a-while-to-catch-up-with-those-friends-from-yesteryear-who-had-gotten-ahead-of-me “kids” ride.

It was fun.  

Now, at least twice a week, I use my little two-wheeled time machine and exercise those long dormant leg and back muscles. When I do, I reminisce about the friends I rode and laughed with. Sometimes I crack that carefree smile I haven't shared in a long time. I’m considering giving my bike a name. I will resist attaching playing cards to my spokes with clothespins; the neighbors might begin to talk.  

Returning to another youthful activity took a little more thought. I used to row a lot, but don't have convenient access to a body of water. My solution was to buy a second-hand rowing machine. Now, I look at old home movies I converted to DVD and row back to my youth. It’s great fun.  

Walking or hiking was another activity I did a lot before I could drive. As kids, we walked with a mission. To see a friend a few neighborhoods away. To play at a baseball field with all the bases. If you see an adult walking, it is usually to do a circuit or two around the block. Boring.  

Then I recalled geocaching. By downloading an app on my phone or handheld car GPS, I could find any one of thousands of hidden “treasures” right here in Brevard.  

And so I did.  

My first “geocache” hunt took me to Wickham Park in Melbourne. By following directions on my phone, I walked off the beaten path and found a small container hidden near a fallen tree. There were messages from others and several small trinkets, some of unique value. Not having a trinket to leave behind in exchange, I admired them, but left them for someone else.  

Geocaching is guaranteed to make you want to get up and find some fun. You can set your own limits of terrain, complexity, and container size when loading searches. Learn more at www.geocaching.com.  

So, what fun things got you out of the house as a kid? With a little thought, I bet you will enjoy duplicating those activities again.  

Gotta go. Time to go out and play.  

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