Member: Joan Monson
Featured: Summer 2018 cover story
This past July marked an important anniversary for Joan Monson, who appeared on the cover of the summer 2018 edition of thrive. It had been 30 years since she first began her daily three-mile walk, a routine she maintained every single day for nearly all of that time. While Monson, now 84, no longer walks the same Golden Valley route each day, she still walks often and has found other ways to stay active. We recently caught up with her to discuss what she’s been up to and her reflections on decades of walking.
thrive.: It’s been six years since we last spoke to you, and the first question we have for you is, of course, are you still walking three miles every day?
Joan: I am not, and I thought it would be traumatic the first time that I didn’t. But I had a fall outside my home on the ice two years ago. I wasn’t injured or anything, but it was painful, and now I’m doing just fine. Everything comes and goes — I always said it would be death or I’d have a fall. I still walk, but I don’t have that record going still. I am certainly still very healthy. Sometimes I can feel my age, each year feeling tired a little faster, but I still am happy to have my balance for my bike.
I’m still in my same house. My daughter is a teacher, and my son is married and has four sons. My grandkids are all growing up, so that is fun.
thrive.: You said you’ve been biking a lot more these days. How often are you doing that and why?
Joan: I do keep track of my biking, and I try to do five miles on my bike every day. Of course not in January in Minnesota, where I could walk on those days. It’s an old bike that I’ve used for a long, long time. When I was walking, it wasn’t as comfortable as biking because it’s totally different — it’s really not as strenuous as walking. I try to walk or bike every day, but if I miss a day, I don’t fall apart.
thrive.: What else do you do to keep yourself busy these days?
Joan: I have volunteered at Methodist Hospital since 1992, and I was teaching during that time. If I hadn’t been a teacher, I would’ve liked to have been a nurse, but I wasn’t any good at science. I love children so much. In the mornings, I deliver the newspapers to people and we pretty much cover four floors. It’s a lot of walking which is a good thing — I easily walk three miles on Tuesdays when I volunteer.
thrive.: Looking back over the last 30 years, what has this accomplishment meant to you?
Joan: When you’re 84, if you’re still biking and walking, it’s a good thing. I’m certainly very thankful to be able to do it. From the very beginning, I wasn’t trying to have any record of walking every day, but it’s just like brushing your teeth every day. Walking is still something I like to do first thing in the morning. I just plain hope to keep on doing it.
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