Friday, March 20, 2020 – Everyone Exercises

This afternoon I see a family with two girls—one who waved and said hello twice— riding a pink bicycle and a tricycle. Later, one of the girls climbs on a concrete pillar in the park overlook. A boy bounces a ball against a wall, catching it with a catcher’s mitt.

There is a couple using their resources to improvise a workout. They attach stretchy cords to a park bench and pull on them to strengthen arm muscles. I watch them lift backpacks over their heads as weights. They run up and down stairs two at a time. The stairs from the lower level near the water to the upper level of the bridge look like those in the movie “Rocky.” They are steep and seem impossible to navigate. In reality, there are two sets of stairs with a small flat space in between. I have walked up and down these stairs many times. On one side of the water the double set of stairs has 17 stairs each with the landing in between. On the other side of the water, there are 18 stairs with a landing and then 16 more stairs. Not sure why the engineering is different.

A woman in skintight leggings and a crop top sets up a CD player on one of the tiny islands in this development and proceeds with an aggressive aerobic workout. And finally — the pièce de résistance — a young girl in a long, blue gown like Elsa’s in the movie Frozen; short, white fur jacket; and tiara sparkling in the sun speeds past me in her pink tennis shoes.

Exercise takes all shapes and forms. It is for all ages. Missing your gym workout? Be resourceful. There are many ways to get the cardio and strength training you need.