We are doing two shows a day at The Comedy Barn Theater now. Summer is one of our busiest times of the year. From the first of June to the third week of August we do two and sometimes three shows a day. It's a grind, but lets be honest, it's not nearly as hard as the farm work I used to do. I've worked much harder. As a matter of fact, it's a fairly sedentary existence.
Over the last week I've been walking between shows with my friend, Clyde Foley Cummins, who plays keyboard, guitar, mandolin, trumpet and harmonica (among other instruments) in the show. We picked a spot a half mile down the parkway and started walking there and back at a brisk 4 mile an hour pace during the fifteen minute break we have between handing out the videos of the first show and beginning seating for the second show. It takes us exactly 15 minutes to make the one mile walk and by the time we get back to the barn we are pumped and ready to meet the next crowd.
As we walked yesterday we were talking about the amount of calories we were burning. I told Clyde that, according to MyFitnessPal, I was burning approximately 125 calories on each of our walks. Being about 25 pounds lighter than me, he is burning less. He said, "Is that all?"
Its very easy to look at things like that. "Is that all?" You might say that as you eat a candy bar with 235 calories. "Hmm, is that all?" But little things add up, especially when they become habitual. Regularly snacking on the same candy bar can become a chronic problem. If you eat that same candy bar even three times a week you can add as much as 15 pounds to your weight in the course of a year.
Lets look at the walks Clyde and I are taking. If I walk 15 minutes a day at 4 miles an hour and burn 125 calories each time I do it, that adds up to 45,625 calories over the course of a year. 3500 calories is a pound. Burn 3500 calories and you lose a pound, eat 3500 calories and you gain a pound. So, that 45,625 calories equates to slightly over 13 pounds. If I keep up the daily walk for a year I should be at least 13 pounds lighter by this time next year. If I take a 30 minute walk every other day I will accomplish the same thing.
How do you eat an elephant?
One bite at a time. Little things add up.
