Amsterdam, what a place. There are bikes everywhere. Rickety old bikes, cruisers, the Range Rover variety, and bikes with big carriers in the front to hold lots of children - or an occasional girlfriend as you take her out on a date. I have never seen so many bikes. There are more bikes than people to ride them in The Netherlands. I use to think their tulips were what fascinated me in Holland, but it seems that the Dutch people go everywhere by bike: to the market, to work, to shop, to the park and to visit friends for dinner; and this level of activity of exercise on a daily basis fascinates me.

The bikes are everywhere: in the park, on the streets in special lanes, in the roundabouts with cars all around them, and along the canals darting in and out of bike traffic. If you are not careful, it seems it might be possible to get hit on your bike by another biker. But they say that never happens, because the people know the rules from a very young age.

Can you imagine biking everyday to work and back, and then to the market for groceries? You could then just forget the gym membership for your aerobic workout, you already have that part covered. I wonder if you could change your daily habits just enough to make time for 30 minutes of aerobic activity a day, just like the Dutch do everyday, without thinking of it as exercise? I wonder, if it was your mode of transportation, if you would just do it without complaining?

As a physical therapist I hear a lot of reasons why it's just too difficult to add exercise into your daily routine. I think if we thought of it more like a necessity, like eating and drinking, we would understand how important it is to make our daily life better. Are you ready to start a daily exercise regime? If you are, see your MD for your yearly physical, and then come see your physical therapist for your yearly movement speciality examination.

Physical therapists are movement specialists and it is important that each year you have a exam to determine your level of physical fitness - especially to prevent injury. Make sure the program you are going to do (or the one you are already doing) is working well for your body type and overall health goals. If you have no health goals, you need to take some time to make some now. Your health is so valuable and research indicates what you do in this decade of your life directly affects the quality of your life in the next decade. Make a commitment, choose your health.

Sheree DiBiase, PT, and her staff can be reached at Lake City Physical Therapy, PA in their Coeur d'Alene office at (208) 667-1988 and in their Spokane Valley office at (509) 891-2623. Make an appointment for your yearly physical fitness examination. This week as a special you can have a free nutritional scan to see how you are doing with your intake of fruits and veggies, call our Coeur d'Alene office to schedule.