Push Lawn Mower, Rake, Shovel, and Ax … Best exercise equipment on earth.
Just completed a little “yard workout” that I"m sure my back will have a ‘little discussion’ with me tomorrow about.
Ah, to be young again.
I still use a push type mower, rake, shovel and axe and I also fitness walk 3 miles a day, five days a week. I’ve developed a health condition at age 71 called Geezeritis. I asked my doctor to prescribe Geritol for my condition, but he refused. He prescribed the walking instead. Unfortunately, Mrs. Triedaq saw the prescription and she makes certain that I take my medicine. In fact, she walks along with me and keeps saying “Pick it up, pick it up. We’re going to do this in 45 minutes”.
Triedaq complains about all the exercise, but he has taken off 18 pounds in the last year and his blood pressure has come down to a really good level. However, we need to find some mind exercises for him, because he still thinks like a Geezer.
Mrs. Triedaq
Are your discussions with your back as one sided as mine, LPA? My poor judgement over the years with regard to lifting and moving has caught up with me and I find I must pace myself at any physical effort. I recall as a teenager earning $20 a day moving hay from the field to the barn for 10c/bail split 3 ways. Throwing 600, 90 lb bales into a loft 2 feet above my head seemed like a walk in the park then. And $20 a day was double minimum wage with no deductions.
Ihaven’t raked in 50 years. Just mulch while riding. There are other ways to get exercise.
I still walk mowing my lawn. I have a 48" walk-behind. Still takes me 1.5 hours to mow. And I’m close to 60.
Staying fit when you get older gets harder and harder to do every year. Even though I exercise all winter long…when spring hits and I spend a couple of days doing yard work…I really feel it for about a week.
That’s nuttin’. C’mon over and wheelbarrow, then stack 6 cords of wood 
Extra credit if you can get up without groaning the next morning.
Thankfully, the acorn production appears down this year after two record setting years in a row. I use a little wonder blower for most of them but still have to rake the lawn fall and spring for the remainder and all of the twigs/branches. 1 acre of “lawn”.
Whoever named it an “acre” knew what they were talking about…
By “push mower” I assumed he was talking about an old fashioned reel-type mower. I use a “push mower” but the cutting blade is motorized. I use it faithfully once a year.
I use a heavy 21" walk behind. It has a steel deck and large engine for its size (John Deere JS-46). Even with the self-pacing transmission, it is not easy to move around for 2 hours. It was even worse a couple of weeks ago when the transmission cable broke. I mowed the lawn 3 times without the transmission. Tough work, especially in the steep back yard.
My favorite lawn mower was a 2cycle Lawn Boy-that the self propelled feature didnt work on,it still was easy to push.Using it on a rough cemetery and Church lot.it would take me about 7hrs to mow it.The main thing is keep moving(Whoops we are not talking about cars)-Kevin
Mine is too heavy (about 300lbs) to push…if the tranny isn’t working…then the lawn doesn’t get mowed. Lawn is way to big to use a small motorized push mower. It would take me 5+ hours instead of the 1.5 hours I’m taking now with a 48" cut. Just walking 1.5 hours at a good pace is excellent exercise.
We bought a house 3+ years ago and very soon I realized I am paying too much for the gardeners. Have a 21" electric push mower now with all the other stuff (weed whacker included). One and a half hour each week of exercise. It saves me money, gets me out there, the yard is looking better and I also check all the sprinklers and stuff around the yard and fix them before major trouble.
I did not want to deal with the fumes of a gas mower or to add another engine to my maintenance list.
I also learned how to change the sprinkler valves and reroute PVC pipes and all the other stuff related to the system. It is not as fun as working on the cars, but keeps the tinkering part of my brain lubed.
The best exercise equipment often depends upon the terrain you use it in. I have a friend, a retired teacher, in his 70 's who works as a professional arborist. He feels a small chain saw is an excellent piece of work out equipment; when hooked to his belt, 75 feet above the ground hauled in place with climbing spikes.
I agree, lawn mowing too is great ! I need a self propelled mower because of the hills I mow, but find the exercise is still great. The personal pace feature of the Toro makes the mower go as fast ( or as slow) as you need or feel like. Maybe some remember this tool, but for years when I heated with wood, I used my Monster Maul and could work up a cord plus an hour if the wife was up for keeping the area clear. But then, “the older I get the better I was.”
@ Triedaq, “3 miles” @ 71
I tried doing the 1 mile jog walk thing last year, it ended with a torn Achilles.
I did a 5 mile walk one day and could not sit down properly for hours.
apparently I have early onset geezeristist
I applaud you two for doing that 1 a week, and standing ovation for doing it so many times a week, wow. I need to rest from just thinking about it.
@ MikeInNH “48” walk-behind."
wow, does that double as a wind mill in the winter? wow
That reminds me of those fan like comtractions the concrete workers use to do concrete flooring
It’s a commercial by Ferris…18 years old now.
I have over 2 acres of lawn. Plus I have a couple of hills. Needed a big mower that has a pressurized oil system. It has a 15hp Kawasaki motor. Starts first pull every time.
@ MikeInNH, hahhaahaa ohhh, now I know the difference between ‘walk behind’ and ‘push’.
but that’s still a behemoth. A friend of mine had two of those the vibration was so great that his hands actually grew bigger just by using them over the years.
Bet you have a strong hand-shake grip.
First time I used it…my forearms were killing me. Doesn’t even bother me anymore.