What Is On Your Bucket List?
I don’t think I ever started a bucket list. I’m still not sure I have one. However, in the past few years my husband and I realized we had been to a great many of the fifty states and decided to visit the rest of them.
As a child I took many road trips. Some were in my home state of California. Others were to visit my grandparents in the Midwest. I drove cross country to move to Baltimore for graduate school and back again on a more northern route to take my first job in Berkeley, California.
I met my husband in Berkeley and we got married while we lived there. My husband and I took a couple of road trips before we had children. We later traveled with our children each summer to various parts of the country. My husband thinks as a family we visited at least 25 states.
We recently returned from a road trip visiting the states we had not been to before. We now have each visited all 50 states (46 of which we have actually visited together). I feel like it is quite an accomplishment – just like crossing something off of a bucket list.
We spent a lot of time driving on this trip. On this last trip we covered over 2200 miles in nine days. We averaged 4-5 hours a day in the car. So how did we spend so much time driving and still get some exercise? We simply made sure to include time each day to be outside, often on hiking trails, in our itinerary. Sometimes that meant a 90 minute hike and sometimes it simply meant doing a quick five minute exercise routine while at a rest stop.
In our last state, Michigan, we found ourselves at a place called Weko Beach in the southwest corner of the state. Behind the parking lot I noticed some stairs. How could I resist? As I was navigating them I noticed others there completing their daily routine. I caught up with one man, about my age, and asked him to take my picture. If you look closely towards the upper left in the picture, you will notice another person. He kept making laps up and down the stairs. He too was about my age.
Not everyone has a bucket list. But many have goals they want to reach in their lifetime.
How can goals be reached? Keep moving. Just keep moving. Once you stop it is hard to start again.
Moving:
Maintains some physical strength.
Promotes better sleep
Reduces stress and increases brain health.
Helps to control weight and blood pressure
In summary, moving keeps you healthy inside and out. Whether you have a bucket list, big goals, or just want to live well, being healthy allows you to move toward those goals.
What is on your bucket list? I can help you get there.