Old treadmill out, new one arrives

Our new Weslo treadmill was up and operating in late February

The old Weslo treadmill was purchased in 2007

        After 13 years of service the old treadmill has been replaced.
This fitness-crazed 62-year-old ran the Weslo Cadance DX9 into treadmill heaven. The belt is a bit torn, and the motor liked to stop once in a while, pitching yours truly back and forth.
But the price-conscious Weslo brand is still in business, and the 2007 model has been replaced by a new Weslo model, with a nifty look.
We got the new one for about $300, from Wal-Mart, online. The old Weslo was purchased for about $200 from K-Mart.
The point is not about cost, but about using the device. Regular exercise is still the only way to help ensure good health. It's the silver bullet of preventative care.
No, it does not always work. Think: Jim Fixx. A runner, Fixx helped to start the fitness revolution by writing a best-selling book, "The Complete Book of Running." He died of a heart attack in 1984.
But it's the best practice we have right now.
And so we invest in a treadmill, and use it. This one comes with an electronic coaching option, kind of like you see in the Peloton ads, but we tend to watch television or listen to music while working out. I prefer walking and running, both, as I hope to do a 5K race this summer.
Regular exercise is one of the first topics I wrote about when I started this blog, and it's still keeping me pretty fit and nearly always healthy. I got a couple of colds, last year, but nothing so far this year (fingers crossed!).
Not only does regular exercise help the waistline, it also benefits the brain. According to the Mayo Clinic (online: mayoclinic.org), walking and and other moderate exercise "has been shown to stabilize your mood and help with depressive symptoms." Other studies show that exercise also helps people to better control stress and regulate emotions. Who doesn't need that?
In addition, regular exercise enhances learning, the Mayo Clinic reports, and will sharpen memory, especially for, say, Baby Boomers. Brain size decreases with age, but research shows that exercise can help to reverse that. Finally, regular exercise also helps to improve vision as it stimulates neurons in the part of the brain that helps one to sort out and understand what is being viewed.
While I work out almost daily that is more than is needed to realize brain benefits, the Mayo Clinic states: Just walk briskly 30-60 minutes, 3-5 times a week, and there would be measurable brain improvements.
Regular exercise need not be pricey and it's not too time-consuming either. Like the Nike ads used to say: Just do it!