Since young I was inflicted with a not so pleasant illness - constipation. So far I cannot find any medical reason to justify its existence other than it is genetic. I always have various types of medications on standby just in case I need it. I need to clear the leftover in my colon daily or else I will feel uncomfortable.
In my late 20’s I started to exercise plus jogging for about 90 minutes a session for about 3 to 4 times a week. I will need to rush back from office at about 5.20 pm after work so that I can reach home before 6.00 pm to start my exercise session. It’s a tedious routine but it help to solve my constipation problem.
Unfortunately about 10 years back I begin to feel that it was a painful task to remain standing for more than 30 minutes. I consulted my GP and have my back X-ray and was diagnosis to have ’slip-disc’. He strongly advises me to stop jogging to avoid aggravating the injury to my spine and ask me to take calcium + vitamin D daily to strengthen my bones. I am on this medication since then.
Fortunately I happened to come across a forum on the internet which suggest that drinking 1.5 liter of water every day immediately after you wake up can help to solve a lot of ailments. With no solution in hand on solving my constipation after I stop jogging, I follow the suggestion. So every morning immediately I wake up (without brushing my teeth) I drink 1.5 liter of water in less than a minutes. It help and within 30 minutes every leftover in my bowel was quickly passed out.
Unfortunately this solution did not appear to work about 10 months back without reason. Alarmed, I seek the consultation of specialist’s doctors (private and public) and even done a colonoscopy but still no solution in sight. I have no choice but to put myself on taking daily medication to flush out my colon as I feel uncomfortable if I do not pass motion early in the morning.
About 7 months back, I seek another consultation with a polyclinic instead of my private GP. It is a good practice to seek second opinion on my medical problems especially it will be much lighter on my wallet. After doing some body movements and visual check, the doctor declares that I do not have any ’slip disc’. However if I want to be doubly sure, he suggested I can go for a CT scan although he think there is no necessity. He has no objection for me to restart my exercise/jogging session however he caution not to overdo it.
So on this fateful day of 19 Oct 2009 I start my exercise/jogging at an unearthly hour of 5.30 in the morning. Waking up at 5.20 am (I set my alarm at 5.15 am and give myself 5 minutes to linger around before waking up). Take about 10 minutes to wash up and start my stretching and warming exercises for about 30 to 40 minutes (I am being cautious to avoid any injury to my spine) I hit the road at about 6.10 am after taking two glasses of water . I have jog along the following routes starting from Owen Road (near Farrer Park) and end up at an open space facing Owen Road for my stretching and cooling down exercise which take another 30 to 40 minutes. This is some of the routes I take:
(1) Norfolk Road -> Keng Lee Road -> Bukit Timah Road -> Serangoon Road (going through various side roads) -> Balestier Road -> Owen Road -> open space at Owen Road (this is the shortest route I take when I do not have ample time due to early appointments).
(2) Norfolk Road -> Keng Lee Road -> Scotts Road -> Orchard Road -> Tanglin Road -> Napier Road -> Holland Road -> Botanic Garden -> Bukit Timah Road -> Newton Road -> Thomson Road -> Moulmein Road -> Rangoon Road -> open space at Owen Road
(3) Norfolk Road -> Keng Lee Road -> Bukit Timah Road -> Selegie Road Keng Lee Road -> Bukit Timah Road -> Bras Basah Road -> Victoria Street -> Hill Street -> Eu Tong Seng Street -> Cantonment Road -> Keppel Road -> Shenton Way -> Central Boulevard -> Bay Front Avenue -> Raffles Boulevard -> Nicoll Highway -> Crawford Street -> Lavender Street -> Balestier Road -> Moulmein Road -> Thomson Road -> Norfolk Road -> open space at Owen Road
In short I have been jogging in the Central/South districts within a radius of about one hour from my home. Once I jog for about an hour I will retract back to my home which will take about an hour. So far I limit my jogging to about 90 minutes to 140 minutes to avoid over exerting myself and to keep my goal of finishing my jogging/exercises by 9.00 am
Once I reach home I will drown myself with about 5 glasses of water (equivalent to 1.5 liter) which help to clear any leftover in my colon within 30 minutes.
What are the benefits of doing exercises/jogging everyday for the last 208 days (I replace jogging with stairs climbing for about 90 minutes when the weathers were not too friendly on four occasions) :
(1) When I started I weight about 63 to 65 kgs (my height is 1.75m). My last weight by the polyclinic a week ago was 58.8 kgs. My small spare tire around my tummy has disappeared without sight.
(2) I have hypertension and high blood cholesterol however I am able to manage it effectively with exercises/jogging. The polyclinic gives me a thumb-up for my effort during the last annual check-up about a week ago.
(3) I rarely have constipation problem since I started my latest exercises/jogging sessions.
(4) I have better bowel movement and help to increase my appetite. In fact I have increased my consumption of foods by at least 30 percent.
(5) Visiting landmarks/tourist attractions at your own leisure and lesser crowds. Places visited during my jogging session - People Park Complex, Pearl Hill, Marina Bay IR, Helix Bridge, Orchard Road, Kallang Riverside Park, Botanic Garden etc.
(6) Feel more refreshing throughout the day and have ample time to think through your thoughts during the jogging session without disturbances.
(7) Helps to discipline myself. Getting up at 5.15 in the morning every day is not an easy task especially when you know you are going to run between 10 to 16 km within the next 2 hours.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we maybe old but still not out yet. Put on your running shoes and run for your health.
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