47. It's Zoomie Time: Honor What Your Body Needs
If you’re a dog owner, you’ve no doubt witnessed it at some point or another: your dog is let outside in the backyard or at the park and, without warning or visible trigger, suddenly begins to run frenzied in circles, over and over, at top speed.
In fact, “zoomies” are so common that the American Kennel Club even includes a definition on its website:
“Zoomies, or Frenetic Random Activity Periods (FRAPs), refer to those unmistakable explosions of energy that dogs have on occasion. Zoomies often feature frantic, repetitive behavior such as running in circles or spinning around. A frequent cause of zoomies is an excess buildup of energy that dogs hold on to, which is then released in one big burst.”
We know it’s official when it has its own acronym (FRAPs), right?
Not officially “Zoomies,” but Zoey pup is getting pretty close in this video.
The hubs and I first observed this odd canine conduct with our first pup, Elsie, way back in the early 2000s (can it really be true that the HH and I were together that far back? Yikes).
As a puppy, Elsie (a border collie-black lab cross) would occasionally run frantically in circles around the perimeter of our tiny yard. The yard, in fact, was so small that she’d have to catch herself at the corners, sometimes skidding as she turned, barely avoiding a collision with the fence.
At the time, novice dog owners, we had no idea what was happening. We quickly ascertained there was no danger to the dog and could then simply enjoy the show. Elsie had a habit of running full-speed by extending her front paws until they were perfectly straight, thereby moving in a see-saw motion that looked like a rocking horse at full gallop. She would huff and puff as she raced around the yard, full throttle, for about 30 seconds, then suddenly stop and turn to face us, tongue lolling and panting like an Olympic wrestler after a match.
At the time, having no precedent with which to compare, we simply dubbed the behavior “Crazy Elsies” (CEs). Subsequently, we were witness to Crazy Chasers (CCs) and now, Crazy Zoeys (CZs). All together, I suppose, we could call them Crazy Girls (CGs). Thus far, we haven’t witnessed Crazy Jaspers (CJs)--even though I like that acronym the best.
Although we’re not able to see her in action at doggie daycare (c’mon, guys, get that camera installed already! Customers want access to the doggie cam during the day!), I’ve been told that Zoey does, indeed, perform the requisite zoomies on occasion there as well. Imagine 40 dogs all running wild at the same time! Crazy, indeed.
But the one thing we learned from the display was that dogs, no matter the situation, must heed their bodies’ requirement for movement. Even in a tiny backyard, even in a fenced-in daycare space, when their muscles feel the need, they want to run. And if that means racing in circles in an enclosed space, so be it.
We noticed a similar phenomenon when we were first locked down in March 2020. By that time, Zoey had become fairly accustomed to running free in a huge field near our house, where we’d toss the Flying Squirrel almost 100 feet (30.5 meters) away, and she could race after it at will.
Once we were basically encased in our house, Zoey had to find other ways to get the muscles moving and the cardiovascular system ticking. One day as I sat at this very desk writing, I heard a commotion outside the office. Glancing back toward the staircase, I saw a flashing black blur moving up and down the stairs. It was Zoey, running up and down repeatedly, in her indoor version of the Zoomies.
Dogs listen to their bodies and do their best to comply with its requests for movement or rest.
Zoey complying with her body’s need for rest. (She’s very good at that).
For me, the closest to listening to those messages from my body are the leg twitches that happen in bed at night (because restless legs will move whether or not you listen). How great would it be if people listened equally well to what their bodies asked of them?
As a kid, I can remember heading out to play with the local kids on our small crescent in summer. We’d all meet on the grass in the middle, then basically run around the neighborhood all day before heading home for dinner. It felt great to be moving legs and arms, running, climbing, digging, waving–whatever the situation demanded of a six year-old outside for nine hours–and returning home spent and achy. The next day, we’d do it all again.
When my body wanted movement, I’d simply go outside. I could run, walk, skip, play with friends, ride my bike–it seemed like an endless choice of physical activities.
These days, I’ll exercise in the mornings, walk my dog, and, well, that’s it. I’ve vowed that I’d move more during breaks from work (because we all know that sitting is the new smoking), but even with a timer set, I sometimes forget or turn it off, impatient to get back to the sentence I’m writing.
As it happens, I’ll often notice those tight muscles, straining to get moving, at the end of the day. My neck might feel sore, shoulders rounded and hurting from too much hunching over at the computer.
Amazing how we learn to ignore those physical signals as we age, right?
This week, my goal will be to reacquaint myself with my body's requests, whether to move, to rest, to sleep–whatever. If I feel a twitch in the feet while sitting, I’ll get up and stretch. And even if I don’t notice anything–because my mind has learned to override those signals–I’ll set a timer and get up every hour or so to stretch, take a few steps, do some jumping jacks, do a few push-ups (who am I kidding? No to the push-ups) or–who knows?--maybe even run a few Crazy Rickis (CRs).
I’m sure Zoey will approve. And maybe even join me.
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Follow up to last week’s challenge: Defer gratification
Zoey enjoying the immediate reward of a 3rd birthday “cake.”
Given the home in which I grew up (see last week’s post), I had no doubt that I’d ace this particular behavior. Deferred-Gratification-R-Us, after all.
Given some writing deadlines this past week, I had no trouble finding lots of opportunities to “work first, play later.” Visits to the park, watching that new film on Netflix, waiting a little longer to eat dinner–all were instances in which I managed successfully to defer that gratification.
On a larger scale, I can say I’ve been practicing this approach for years (perhaps even decades?). Going to university before getting a job is most definitely an example of deferring gratification, isn’t it? And when you start a business and spend every waking hour working to build something of it, you are certainly working toward a future reward that hasn’t yet manifested.
Now that I think of it, maybe my problem is actually the reverse: I defer gratification TOO much! I need to eat dessert first MORE often. Life’s about balance, after all.
What’s been your experience in this area?
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