Original title of this blog post was The Importance of Play and Exploration in Fitness–Even for Grownups, but I though that sounded too academic, especially since I wasn’t going to throw around any stats.
When most people think about fitness, images of gym environments and machines may pop into their heads, or maybe P.E. class, or maybe even weight loss advertisements. Lately there’s been more talk about fitness as a means to being able to enjoy life more fully, especially for those of us who are not exactly 20 anymore. Maintaining and increasing our fitness levels will help us enjoy life in and out of the “gym” that much more. Last Sunday I donned the SPF70 and joined a friend for what ended up being a fairly long walk. We wanted to explore the Orlando Urban Trail, something that had slightly hinted at its own existence with little signs on a short stretch of 17-92 near the Art and Science centers. “Greater Orlando” isn’t necessarily the most “walking friendly” place… so the idea of being able to stroll to fun destinations along a decent path was definitely worth checking out. Fortunately, the Orlando Urban Trail is really nice and seems to stay in safe, interesting parts of town that I enjoy… Added bonus, many of these places seem to have limited parking, so between that and the fact that it kept me from buying extraneous stuff and/or groceries, I may have actually ended up saving money. As some people already know, “walking around and checking things out” is a favorite activity of mine, and one of the reasons that I like large metro areas all over the world, especially foodie-inclined areas. This was when I realized that Winter Park / Ivanhoe had some further potential. Besides everyone knows that parking on Ivanhoe can sometimes be a drag, arriving on foot would feel vaguely victorious.
We started at Mead Gardens, and continued through a neighborhood which attaches towards the Art center, opting for that rather than the urban trail just yet as it was sandwiched between the lake and a tree-less merciless stretch of 17-92… as much faith as I was already placing in Neutrogena, it seemed like walking across the face of the sun. Soon we got on the trail near the art and science centers and were treated to a neat footbridge over a small corner of lake before reaching Fresh Market for beverages. Note to self: don’t pack a picnic just pick one up here if necessary. Since it wasn’t yet time for lunch, we decided to continue along the trail to see exactly how far it went towards downtown. On the way there I decided to try some one arm “Aussie” pull ups on one of the circular bike racks on the trail. The wind decided to give me “troll doll” hair.
We found that the trail ended at Magnolia, but I remembered that there was a “fit trail” of little workout items all along Lake Ivanhoe… surely we could work up a good appetite for lunch by doing calisthenic exercises all along the way towards the Greek restaurant at the other end of the lake?! Amusingly, this idea was met with a road sign proclaiming that this is a “playful city” (see below). I took that to mean “yes go ahead and climb all over stuff.” And yes I did attempt more tree climbing too.
First stop was a sort of pull up bar and stall bar hybrid station, the bars were ALMOST the right distance for stall bar flags, but not quite, definitely close enough for some good practice though, not to mention pull ups and chin ups. I’m notorious for “let’s make a workout from the fit-trail but totally use the stuff for unintended moves!” so this was not unexpected. Fortunately there was a more dedicated pull up bar station which also had dip bar height parallel bars… though all were oddly configured enough to discourage certain forms of advanced variations… regardless I did a few noxiously chicken-winged muscle-ups just because. After wandering to the end of this fit trail we were certainly ready for Greek food, but there had been a fair amount of entertainment on the way, the paddleboard people were out, and balancing dogs on the end of the boards… the dogs were more interested in swimming it seemed.
After lunch we started to look at other possibilities, espresso of course, then, we could take the same route back or I remembered either a long or a short cut and an excuse to keep walking and tasting things. A stroll up Nebraska to Corinne drive took us to the East End Market and glasses of incredibly refreshing local lavender kombucha at the Skyebird booth inside. They also had a lot of interesting raw food items and books which reminded me of a sordid tail from long ago where I somehow ended up with a sandal full of Braggs Liquid Aminos (I’ll only tell this story in person). If you’re curious about complex raw food preparations without first dropping a fair amount of $ on a dehydrator and various kitchen appliances (that I secretly covet). Actually, while I’m not even anywhere near being vegan these days, I do still enjoy a number of recipes which happen to be vegan and/or actually raw vegan, but will admit that I like them much better when someone else has gone through the trouble and investment in gadgets to make them. No matter how you eat though, “noodles” made from shredded vegetables are really good. And the desserts are also really great. So now I know, when I get a craving for some kind of special raw item, I’ll just go to Skyebird and gladly pay what they’re asking. Besides the market is small but a lot of fun… and parts of it might make you laugh for the same reason I did… “OMG Pinterest has come to life!” which is how I’d describe the general aesthetic. It’s very “Pinterest Perfect” which some of you know exactly what I mean. And others will get this joke: “Put a bird on it!”
Outside is a fairly sizable garden complete with all sorts of fresh things growing. There was a spiky dark green and purple plant that I couldn’t find a tag on, and which looked like it should have been growing peppers (but wasn’t)… a few days later I was at the market again and saw someone inside packaging the leaves… turns out they are SOFT and something called Okinawa spinach. Surprisingly mild tasting and textured, she said that the leaves were good raw or cooked however you cook spinach. Next time I’ll have to get some… it’ll be an epic salad or omelet addition for sure.
Finally we took our last bit of our trek home, trying to walk near as many lakes as possible. All in all, we’d gone about 11 miles, which is pretty good! Definitely going to do this one again, and am considering coming up with “trail routes” that other people might enjoy for walking, snacking and maybe even some calisthenics too. If nothing else, NOT having to find parking in some of these places was reward enough!
Do you have a special trail or route in your town for fun, fitness and maybe even some food too? If so, share it below in the comments section! 🙂
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