It may seem not right to suggest that Thanksgiving won’t be complete without the trots and runs, but it’s true. Imagine going out for a nice run — a 5K, an 8K, a 10K or even a half marathon —before settling in for a day of Thanksgiving feasting.
Two-wheeled therapy for a stress-filled world
I once told someone I could tell how I was doing mentally by my last mountain bike ride. If I’d taken an aerobic ride on fire roads — one where I could go relatively fast without paying much attention, one where I could let my mind drift — I was doing pretty good. I was still doing pretty good if the ride was half fire roads, half more aggressive, aggression-relieving singletrack. If the ride was all singletrack, all aggressive, all manic, all fast, well, then the bike was saving me $100 an hour on a leather couch.
This weekend, a bird walk, a ‘lights’ bike ride, a trail run
Among your active options for this weekend in North Carolina …
Coast
Wings Over Water may be over and the tourists may have left, but the star attractions — the birds — remain. Check out the nearly 400 species of birds who call the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge home — either year-round or seasonally — on a guided hike Sunday at 8 a.m. Specifically, the hike will explore the refuge’s North Pond. Bring a field guide and binos if you have them, otherwise you may be able to borrow. Meet at the Pea Island Visitors Center. It’s free, 252.987.2394 if you have questions.
Run from that cold!
Another reason to exercise: You’ll keep from catching cold.
You’ve likely heard that from your friendly, local robo-athlete, the guy or gal who works out with machine-like efficiency pert near every day. Well, he/she now has a study out of the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State’s North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis — quick breath so we can finish this sentence — to back him/her up.
Schmooze, you news
I need to get out more.
I came to that conclusion this morning at the 10th anniversary celebration of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation. The occasion marked a chance for the Foundation to look back — at the more than 440 grants totaling $67 million that the Foundation has given health-related non-profits since its inception in 2000 — and to look ahead — with the granting of another $1 million to 10 non-profits, ranging from the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle and N.C. Association of Free Clinics to Access East and FOGGNC (Friend of GetGoingNC) Be Active North Carolina.