Northbound

You want to hear something depressing? Here’s something depressing. I found an article I wanted to write about, and generally when I do that, what I do is go into my blogging software (WordPress, that is) and make a draft, and then pop the URL into the draft, so that when I get home, I can blog about it. And since I have the draft open, I like to go and find the appropriate graphic for it (this one’s just about perfect, although it’s a bit small). Well, I couldn’t find a good graphic for a mile marker with a 12 on it. But I found this one, and…

Yep. I went and walked two miles today (in fifty minutes, almost on the button) because I couldn’t find a decent photo to put on the twelve-mile post. That’s depressing, I think.

(That wasn’t the be-all end-all of the decision, mind you; I did have a new ESPN The Magazine to read, and that’s important — a thick one, their NFL preview, which kept me fairly occupied and helped me keep my mind off my suffering.)

Here is the article I wanted to write about, anyway — a Wall Street Journal piece, but it’s free and you ought to be able to read it:

To stay physically and mentally tough, Mr. Watkinson’s workout includes running, lifting and swimming. He runs every other day, first thing in the morning. If he’s in Los Angeles he runs on a treadmill at the gym in his apartment complex. In Las Vegas, during the summer, he uses the treadmill at his gym, 24 Hour Fitness. When the temperature permits, he likes to run the trails of Nevada’s Red Rock Canyon, just outside of the city. If he’s on the treadmill he runs for about 40 minutes or five miles, often while watching TV (occasionally poker). He’ll run for up to 10 miles outdoors but takes walking breaks.

Mr. Watkinson says he avoids running back-to-back days to keep his knees injury-free. On off days he alternates swimming and strength training. There is a pool at his apartment complex in Los Angeles but he says it’s crowded with kids in the summer so he hasn’t been using it often. Sometimes he’ll swim in a casino’s pool or if he’s at a tournament near the beach he’ll swim in the ocean. He tries to swim for one mile, which usually takes 30 minutes.

And who is this paragon of fitness virtue?  Who is this heroic exercise machine?  Who is this exemplar of the American can-do spirit of wellness and physical exertion?  Well, he’s a professional poker player, which means he doesn’t have a real job.  Or a one-hour commute.  You let me earn my living by hanging around casinos and playing cards all day, and access to swimming pools and beaches and cool hiking trails, and… well, I’d swell up to six hundred pounds, ’cause I’d be knee-deep in the fried-shrimp aisle of the buffet at the Rio. But that’s just me.

Thirteen miles down, eighty-seven to go.