Project 365 - Day 14

My Mema Made The Paper!

My Mema and her best friend Alice are celebrities! They mall walk every morning and a reporter for one of the newspapers came to the mall to do an article on mall walking. Their picture ended up making the paper and they were each quoted in the article. The bold quotes are their quotes. Way to go Mema! I put bits and pieces of the article below the picture. I took out the mall names, last names and towns for privacy reasons.

Mema is on the left and Alice is on the right. I think Mema looks great . . she will be 89 in April.

Before the stores open their doors, the Mall is buzzing with activity as walkers make laps around the half-mile loop through the mall.

Everett and Susan call themselves "huff and puff" walkers because they walk at a quick pace and work up a sweat after their three-mile daily morning routine.

"We try to get here seven days a week, and we get a good workout," Everett said as he wiped sweat from his brow. "We see all fitness levels, so that makes it interesting."
Ken , on the other hand, admits he doesn't walk for speed. The 95-year-old uses a cane to make his way around the mall.

"I walk around the entire mall one time, through all the wiggle-waggles and everything," he said. "Once around is about all I can handle."
Ken said he can feel the health benefits of the workout he repeats five times a week."I no longer have problems with my arthritis," He said. "After about 10 minutes, my body feels so much better. Walking is so good for you."

Residents throughout the county make the Mall their first stop of the day. The doors open at 8 a.m., and music plays loud enough to motivate the walkers.

"I think it's a great thing the mall does, opening up early for us to come in and walk," said Kathy , who drives from another town to walk inside the mall.

What is it about the mall that the walkers find so attractive? She likes being able to rest on the benches if he needs a break.

Susan said it's a safer atmosphere than walking along the roads near her home.

Emily enjoys the smooth, tile surface, which her doctor said would be good for her knees.

Emily H. said the climate control attracts her to the mall, especially during the hot summer months.

Most of the mall walkers said they appreciate the social aspect of mall walking as much as the fitness benefits.

After making their laps around the mall, the walkers congregate at the same table every day, to enjoy their cups of coffee and to chat with fellow walkers.
Starbucks even open early for the walkers to grab a treat after their workout."I have my regulars who order the same thing every day, and when I see them coming, I get their orders ready," said Linda . "A lot will try the flavored coffee of the day, and some even grab a cookie for an extra treat."

Walkers come and go, and the table will empty and fill several times during the course of the morning."We talk about anything and everything," She said. "During the holidays, we talked about cooking, and when it was so cold, we talked about the weather."

Alice and her neighbor, Emily, chat as they walk for 45 minutes five days a week. They walk slowly for the first lap and then speed up their pace each of the following rounds.
"It's always better to workout when you have a friend to go with," Alice said. "We motivate each other."By the time the mall officially opens at 10 a.m., the walkers have cleared out.

"This is such a great way to start the day," Linda said. "I don't know what I would do with myself if I couldn't exercise. I love the way it makes me feel."