I have been a lover of animals ever since I was a tiny tot. We grew up with cats, a bird and a handful of goldfish for pets, but I never experienced the joy of dog ownership until I was in college and my roommate got a miniature daschund that I helped care for. I would feed her, play with her, take her out in the middle of the night, and take her on long walks each day when my roommate was away at work or class. It took dedication, work, and an adjustment to my schedule, but I loved that dog, and the benefits of her companionship made it all worth it. When my roommate and I went our separate ways, I knew I would have a dog of my own someday, but not until I was ready to adjust my routine and lifestyle to best accommodate the dog's needs. However, things don't always go according to plan. Just a few weeks ago, my fiancé, Evan, found a stray dog near our home. It's not uncommon for us to chase down stray dogs, check for tags, or keep them in our fenced-in backyard until we can find their owners, so I didn't think much of it. But no one was looking for this dog that was very underweight and seemingly untrained, and by the time he had moved her from the backyard to our basement, I had a feeling she was here to stay. I wasn't sure that we had the time to care for a dog. I had always envisioned getting one in the future, maybe if I stayed at home or worked part time—not while we each worked full-time and part-time jobs that keep us away from home for long hours. After much planning, research and discussion, we adopted Ginger. My how our lives have changed over the last few weeks…  Ginger, our new fitness buddy Evan now wakes up an hour earlier on three weekdays to walk Ginger. On the other two days, I no longer hit snooze before my morning runs—because Ginger is ready to go and needs me to exercise her. I find myself sneaking away from the office during my lunch hour to check on her and take her out for another short walk. And we take turns (based on our work schedules) exercising her every night as soon as we get home. We agreed to commit to walking (or running) our new dog for a minimum of 30 minutes, twice a day, but often, we go for 45 minutes—sometimes a full hour. On the weekends, we usually go out three or four times instead of two, and I've even taken her on a 90-minute hike with me as I trained for an upcoming Grand Canyon trip. I also find myself staying in to cook more dinners at home because I don't want to leave her alone at night, so I'm eating even better, too. Each time I lead Ginger down the block (channeling my inner Dog Whisperer of course), I think about what a pleasure it is to spend time with my new companion. I also think about what an amazing exercise tool a dog can be. If you want to get in shape, get a dog! (OK, you need to meet a few more criteria to be a good dog caregiver, but you know what I mean.) I have a new hunch that there may be no better exercise buddy than your four-legged friend is, and recently I discovered a recent study that backs me up. When researchers from the University of Missouri assigned older adults from an assisted living home to walk with either a human companion of their choice (friend, husband, etc.) or a canine companion (from a local animal shelter) five days a week, the dog walkers showed better improvements in fitness, exercise consistency, walking speed, and balance. Researchers say that it's easy for human fitness buddies to make excuses or discourage their partners from exercising. But dogs acted in an opposite matter: they were always ready to go each day and that seemed to help motivate their human partners to get going, too. The older adults who walked dogs increased their walking pace by an unheard of 28% from the start of the study, and many even stopped using canes and walkers as their balance and fitness improved. In contrast, subjects who chose human walking buddies only increased their pace by 4%. Ginger is a great fitness buddy in that regard. She doesn't let us sleep in or plop on the couch because she has energy to burn and will let you know if she needs some exercise. I've always considered myself to be a pretty fast walker, even when I'm just taking a stroll or walking through a mall, but Ginger forces me to walk even faster than my normal pace, which usually elevates my heart rate into an aerobic range (about 55% of my max)—higher if we're climbing up the many hills around my house. On average, I'd say that walking Ginger has added about three more hours of physical activity to my week, and I'm happy to reap the many health and fitness benefits of that new activity. If you own a dog but haven't walked him or her consistently, consider this a reminder that it's vital and beneficial for both of you! Just be sure, whether you're new to dog ownership or have had your companion for awhile, that you gradually increase his or her exercise time, speed and distance—just like humans should. You can't go from couch potato to marathon runner in a week, and neither can your dog. This article by Coach Jen explains how to gradually build your canine's endurance. If you and your dog are consistent walkers and feel ready to kick it up to jogging, check out this dog-running guide from Runner's World for tips and ideas. Do you think dogs make better fitness buddies than people? Pet owners, does your dog encourage you to get more active?  You will earn 5 SparkPoints
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the second one - well, if you have a young golden retriever and you don't have a 12 yr old kid around your house, you need a 2nd dog to help keep the first one entertained. So we heard about a stray hanging out at a school. All the parents were feeding him, but nobody could give him a forever home. We took Obie over to meet him - best friends from the moment they met.
the 3rd one was unplanned. I was at the park getting some morning exercise one Saturday (on my birthday!), and there was this little puppy sitting under one of the exercise stations. His eye was a mess. There were no other cars, no other people anywhere in sight. I called my husband and told him about the dog, and he said "do what you have to do". So I took him with me, got an emergency vet appt, and that little adventure started. He ended up losing one eye. Nobody replied to the signs I posted. And Omar makes 3!
we have a fenced yard and a dog door, so our boys pretty much entertain each other all day.
I also have a friend who took in a stray. He has a really bad back so he can't walk her. After work, on days that I don't take an exercise class, I go by and take her for a 5-6 mile walk. It helps him, she loves it, and I have somebody to hold me accountable to an 'on my own' workout. Believe me, there are days I'd rather just go home after work and do nothing...but that sweet faced girl is waiting for me...so I gotta go! Report
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We got Horatio (a Great Dane x) from a shelter when he was a tiny pup. He is always up for a walk or a run but doesn't have the stamina you'd probably expect. He's always ready to head for home when we are and he spends most of his time sleeping during the day too! My big problem with walking him is that I have to take the kids in the pram as well so it's either tie him to the stroller or somehow manage to hold the lead while pushing the stroller- and he's a big dog so if he pulls suddenly (to sniff something, he is very good around other people and dogs) you do know about it. Mainly we have to wait to walk him until both my husband and I are home and either able to go together or someone watches the kids while the other goes with the dog so poor Horry doesn't get walked quite as often as he'd like.
I used to run with my old dog years ago, she's a kelpie x. I knew she was getting too old for it when she started hiding when she saw me coming with the lead. These days getting between the sunny spot she sleeps in during the day and her food bowl is a challenge for her. Report
This was consistant for about a year, then the dog park down the road opened. He LOVES it there, and gets an insane amount of exercise (playing fetch) but I wasn't getting any exercise there!
This year, I have passed on the park, and now walk both my pups (Mia is new) at least 5 days a week, on top of my regular workouts, after work.
Now, they get excited when I say "Walk" rather than "Park"!!! Report
BTW I love the fact that you took in a stray. One of my dogs was abandoned at a shelter (they just tied her to the post out front and left her there) and the other was being neglected by its owners so we took him in. I think taking in unwanted animals is so rewarding and such a good thing to do. Report
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I don't like walking just for the sake of walking but my dog motivates me to go out and enjoy the trails in our local parks. He's a big strong GOK ("God Only Knows" although there's definitely some lab in him) and loves to pull so I'm using a "Gentle Leader" head halter. Works like a charm. I wouldn't let him off-leash in our area; too much wildlife around. Report
Also: some dogs are so enthusiastic about the attractions of their surroundings that they will PULL instead of walking nicely. I recommend a good firm-but-kind obedience school (eg: you might be giver of reward treats for good behavior during a walk), so the dog learns to pay more primary attention to your wishes when you decide to make them known and secondary attention to their surroundings. Report
Kudos to you for rescuing and adopting that sweet, nice dog! We have two dogs ourselves (one is a rescue!), and on days when we haven't been able to make time for any other exercise, they are still willing and enthusiastic to go for a quick walk or run with us. They are not just excellent exercise buddies, they are affectionate family members who add so much to our lives in so many ways, so full of that legendary unconditional canine love.
Congratulations to you and Ginger for finding each other! Report
I would think that dogs make better fitness buddies, just on the fact alone they are always ready to go for a walk when you want to go and they even beg you to go with them when you truely dont feel like going.
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