XVI - Staying in shape

I like sports. I like moving, dancing, bicycling, climbing, swimming, trekking, walking, lifting; I can even make do with running if there is no better alternative. Especially during my time in USA I discovered that I love exercising. It simply feels good! For me, physical movement is the best balance for a (stressful) everyday life.

As I work a lot in India I certainly have enough stress. Although I am not the kind of person that is easily effected emotionally by a high workload I do need my exercise to keep it that way. Unfortunately, I have to admit that all the exercise I get right now is walking to and from work (admittedly, it is 2.5 km each way, so it is more than just a stroll in the park). In order to increase the difficulty a little bit I load down my backpack with 5 kg of water. Sadly, this is pretty much the only exercise that I feel fit enough for.

My body is pretty exhausted from frequent sickness. After my accident in July 2015 I slowly started putting on muscle again, which I had lost a lot of during recovery. I was on a good way to getting my full strength back when I came to India. Here I got very sick within the first weeks, lost a lot of muscle and body mass and have since not been able to build up my strength and endurance because every time I saw a little progress after several weeks I fell sick again, putting me back to where I started.

The Indian cuisine most certainly does not help with staying fit. I don't want to bash vegetarians here. I truly respect people who can live without eating meat and maintain a healthy and fit lifestyle at the same time. But if you fall sick frequently and have to build up muscle mass deep fried carbs drenched in sugar is not the way to go. There are also a lot of beans and veggies in Indian cuisine and I would eat only those if it was not so spicy. In order to make the food friendly to my taste buds and gastrointestinal tract I have to mix it with lots of rice and bread. Not very nutritious.

Chicken kabab and chutney: One of our favorite Indian dishes

Frustrating as it is I try to stay healthy, stay away from street food and eat chicken or mutton at least twice a week. Every little strength that I gain makes me feel better, more healthy, more happy. And luckily, Lex is not only supportive of physically and emotionally strong girls, but also takes me trekking, an important part of regaining my strength.

I love trekking with Lex