My New Year's Resolution

By Robin Kaye

Okay, I know it’s the first day of February. I’m late. It’s the story of my life but we won’t go there. Today I’m thrilled to be taking the first steps in accomplishing my New Year’s Resolution. I’m finally going to lose weight. I know, you’re all waiting with baited breath to hear how I’m going to do that, right? I’m walking while I work.

It all started last July. I was in Chicago to meet with my publisher. I spent some time with one of my favorite cousins who lives in the area. Dr. Diane Wallis is one of the top cardiologists in Chicago and a real sweetheart. We were talking about why I have such a hard time losing weight. I mean, I do all the right things, I work out, I eat right, I don’t snack, I don’t drink much, but I’m still overweight.

She said it was because I have strong genes. Like that should make sense to me. When she saw I had no clue what she meant, she explained that when man was designed, we were meant to be a nomadic people and walk eight to ten hours a day. Since my genes are strong--or the way I’ve begun to think of them, stubborn--my body needs to do just that in order to stay fit. Diane explained that working out and running—not that I ever ran but I was big into the elliptical machine—doesn’t work since we weren’t designed to run long distances, only to run fast enough to avoid being eaten by predators. Now, I don’t know about you, but sadly, I can’t remember the last time I had to run to avoid being eaten. Therefore, because I sit on my butt for eight to ten hours a day writing and driving, I’m never going to lose weight unless I start doing what my ancestors did.

So where did that leave me? I was not pleased because really, how could I spend eight to ten hours a day walking? That’s insane.

“No, it’s not.” Diane said, “You can walk and work at the same time.” She’d heard of a doctor, Dr. James Levine from the Mayo Clinic, who designed a desk with a treadmill beneath it. Supposedly, this allows you to do anything while sitting at a desk—type, use the phone, drink coffee, surf the Internet, check your email, and play spider solitaire—while walking at a treadmill desk. Just this morning, I found out first hand, he was right

.My husband, the Domestic God, and I agreed that whatever I was doing to stay in shape wasn’t working and it was worth spending a little money to see if this would. I got on the Internet and found a company that sold this type of desk. Because my husband is not only a Domestic God but handy with a hammer, looks great in a tool belt, and can build anything from furniture to football stadiums, we decided to buy the treadmill and the mechanical desk legs (they allow the desk to raise from sitting height to standing height) and he’d build the desk top and platform. Today, after a slow start—-yes, I did order everything the first of January in keeping with my New Year’s Resolution—-everything came together. I’m walking while I write this. The platform isn’t finished; it’s plain plywood but Stephen said he’d cover it with something lovely like hard wood or carpet soon. The important thing is that it’s serviceable. It’s there so you can sit at the desk using a desk chair or, in my case, an exercise ball without falling off the treadmill. If you’ve ever seen me bouncing around on my ball, you’d realize it’s a true necessity. So far, in the time I’ve taken to write this blog, I’ve walked over two miles and have burned about over 250 calories. All I can think of is how many calories I can lose by walking while I write my next book. I’m going to try to keep track. I’ll let you know.



My question to you is: Do you have strong genes and if so, what are you doing to stay in shape?






I just received some amazing news! Romeo Romeo has been chosen as one of the Best Books of 2008 by the reviewers of The Long and the Short of it. There's a poll running this week for everyone to vote on their favorite. I hope you'll consider voting for Romeo, Romeo. Here's the link in case you feel so inclined:
http://www.longandshortreviews.com/LASR/BB2008.htm

But that's not all! Romeo, Romeo has also been chosen by All About Romance as one of 2008's Buried Treasures. These are books that may have garnered good reviews, but for whatever reason seem not to have received as much attention from readers as All About Romance thinks they deserve. You can find the complete article here: http://www.likesbooks.com/blog/?p=806#more-806