See You in September
Outdoor living coupled with the ability to exercise outdoors most of the year were but two of the reasons toward the top of the list as to why we decided that the Lowcountry was the place to choose for our relocation back in August of 2021. What we quickly found out was how different perception is from reality.
I was very excited thinking that going out for a run or a long walk would not have me worried about slipping on ice (well, almost never since just last January we did have a very minor event where things did freeze-melt-freeze-melt and so on for close to a week) or gearing up with gloves, hats, vests, sweats, leggings etc. only to break into a sweat part way into the run.
The other option, of course, was to “gear down” and endure the frigid beginning while hoping the body would take care of warming itself up early enough into the run so that it would be enjoyable. While both of those options are a matter of personal preference, they both are ways that allow for keeping up outdoor activity throughout the year, just be careful about that pesky ice.
What I discovered quickly here is that there are no suitable options to mitigate the discomfort of a run or a long walk during the months from June through most of September, where visions of working out on the surface of the sun feel close to reality.
Playing golf 12 months of the year was also a draw for me, yet the realization that golf, though available, was also much more difficult during those same times both for the oppressive temperatures and humidity but also for the almost “you can set your clock to it” time of day where a serious storm will roll in and roll out.
If you’ve read any prior pieces you know that I also love to swim laps, but even that during the summer here is tougher as the pool becomes so hot that, believe it or not, you overheat far earlier than you’d like to causing it to become unpleasant unless you are done by 9 AM which is not always my first choice.
So, you ask, is there a solution? The answer is a resounding yes, and I found it courtesy of my wife Sue who became enamored of using a virtual reality headset to work out using a program called Supernatural.
The skeptic in me made fun of what I saw for a long time, watching someone from the “outside” gesticulate around waving their arms and turning, ducking, raising their legs is, frankly, comical. Sue would emerge from her workout bathed in sweat and completely red faced all the while being able to do it in the comfort of the air-conditioned house and kept telling me I should try it. I just smiled and said it seemed so silly, but I would be interested in trying the VR world if there was an interesting golf game.
Well, she found Golf+VR and downloaded it for me. I was hooked from the first day, so much so that when they released Bethpage Black (a course I had played many times and you can find out why it was so dear to me in a prior piece) I bought my own headset and have spent the heat of the summer playing multiple rounds a day on some of the best courses throughout the world. Courses like Pebble Beach, The Ocean Course at Kiawah, The Old Course at St. Andrews and even our very own Harbor Town all incredibly life-like and not requiring you to travel or break the bank for greens fees or worry about the weather for your tee time. Can’t sleep? Wanna play 18 in Ireland at 2 a.m., go right ahead. Want to play alone, great. Want to play against others in real time, you can do that as well.
A funny thing happened after I became so enamored of the VR golf world, I gave Supernatural another try and guess what…I love it as well. I use it almost every day now to loosen up for my golfing adventures.
I also find it has many great aspects I did not realize until I was fully immersed in it. You can increase your levels as you go so you can up the ante on your efforts, it also requires you to be very sharp as you have to focus on the targets and the various instructions. Each workout has a trainer guiding you so you are never alone. You can also do workouts in real time, with others each at your own level. The bottom line is that my incredible wife did teach this old dog a number of new tricks while allowing both of us to do something we totally enjoy throughout the year.
So now that we are getting very close to that golden time where actual outdoor living and exercise returns to all that we hoped for, where dining outside, sipping a cold one outside at Lot 9, enjoying some wine as the breeze blows on the patio at WineTime, a burger at Tin and Tallow, among many outstanding options, and maybe even having to wear long sleeves, it is still great to know that there is now, for us, a supplement that will allow us to enjoy all the we have during the best times. My final take away is courtesy of my wife to not summarily dismiss what appears to be silly without looking further into it facts matter.
As Dan Fogelberg so eloquently put it
“Life here is easy, I’m sure you recall”
Kevin Fitzpatrick is a retired teacher who, along with his wife Sue (also a retired teacher) is enjoying exploring life in the lowcountry and all it has to offer.
