Frugal Health Spa

When we first moved here we had no riding lawn mower. We had to mow about 3/4 acre with a push mower. Because I didn't want Bill to have to mow it in the evening when he got home from work and take away from our family time, I mowed the lawn. There are three rather distinct sections to our yard. Each section took about 45 minutes to mow. I would mow one section of the yard Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (unless it rained, then I would have to adjust my schedule) In this manner, I got an aerobic workout three times a week and the whole yard was cut each week, and I didn't mind cutting it in the least.

Then around five years (or so) ago, my father-in-law found out what I was doing and decided we needed a riding mower. No matter how I tried to explain that this was like a cheap substitution for going to the gym for a workout, he just couldn't accept my explanation. Nothing would do until he took Bill to buy a mower. I know he was just being kind and generous, but it was my downfall. Once we had it, I felt ungrateful if I didn't use the riding mower. I didn't want him to have wasted his money. Pretty soon our son was old enough and took over the lawn chores.

This all sounds great I know, but there was a down side. Over the past couple years I began picking up a few pounds of extra weight each year. I finally realized that my summer mowing routine had been keeping at bay those couple pounds I would gain over my more inactive winter months. The cycle went like this: pick up a few pounds over the inactive winter, lose the weight over the summer from my "frugal health spa" (a.k.a. mowing the lawn). In this manner while I certainly wasn't thin, still I was not gaining accumulated weight. Once the mowing duties were relegated to riding mower and son, I began to add on just a couple of pounds each year. Multiple that times 3 or 4 years and well, you see where this is going.

So this year I am back to mowing the lawn with modifications. I mow the back section once a week, my son does the rest of the yard because he needs to know that he is helping with the upkeep of our family's property. I'm a firm believer that kids need chores, because everyone one needs to know that they are a contributer and not a taker. God has designed us for work. Don't worry mowing the lawn is NOT his ONLY chore. . . . Okay, back to me now. . . The days I don't mow,I have been going for a 40 minute brisk walk.

Hopefully, this will begin to reverse this weight gain. I couldn't find a cheaper "health spa".