I love fitness! I love the concept, the challenge, the known and the unknown when challenging my fitness or the fitness of my clients/athletes. I love when someone has that "Aha moment"(thanks Oprah) when they grasp the healthy idea or movement exercise that has eluded them. Most of all I love success!
Running is simple (unless you look at it like an engineer). Eating fewer calories is simple. Even writing a training program is simple. Running 100 meters in 12 seconds is simple. Losing 100 pounds is simple. But not 1 of those things is easy. Some things in life are hard. You will spend far more effort trying to make your life easier than you would fortifying yourself against the struggle and enjoying your health.
Getting fit and staying fit is really very simple:
1- Improve your flexibility
2- Improve your stability
3- Improve your ability to move efficiently for your every day activities
4- Achieve a healthy weight
5- Eat for balanced hormones and muscle strength.
That is 5 SIMPLE things master so you can be healthy and extend healthy life.
1 - Keeping yourself flexible or having mobility can allow you to, as the word implies, keep you more mobile. If you are more mobile then you can can move more efficiently, easier and better. When we can move better then we can move more, allowing us to keep up with our kids or even grandkids.
Find a flexibility program that you can do daily a little while before bed or before you go out for the evening. Hold each stretch for a minute- Low back, hamstrings, calves, chest and Hip flexors. Your body will thank you by moving better longer. Do not get too creative. Just find what is stiff and try to make it move better. Find what is stuck and unstick it.
2- Improve your stability - The ability to stand on one foot/leg is an essential skill for walking. It can also come in handy if you are are texting and step into the street in front of a car. The ability to be stable in most positions you body can get into is a great way to avoid injury. However, you cannot train for everything. A stronger, more stable mid-section with strong abs, hips and low back can be enough to avoid most injuries that do not involve outside forces (like the car we mentioned).
Keep a strong core by holding plank for 60 sec, side plank 30 sec each side and a table top (face up plank) for 60 sec. Don't worry if you cant hold for the entire time, build up to longer and longer. See how long you can hold. Basic exercises done for a simple amount of time, 60 sec or 30 sec.
3- Improve your ability to move efficiently for your every day activities. If you just sit at a desk all day and you are transported there via a floating chair then you ONLY need to maintain minimal function to keep your body from getting sick. If you have to walk from the car to the office; shop for groceries, sit down on a toilet, play with your kids or do anything that requires movement you should train for it.
Go play on the monkey bars with your friends- start slow so you don't get hurt. Go to the gym and pick up something heavy- hire a coach or a trainer to show you what to do. Do deep breathing activities to improve how well you breathe. Get down on the floor and get back up as fast you can 10 times, try to do it faster tomorrow. Stick to simple exercises but make them challenging by adding speed or changing directions.
4- Achieve a healthy weight. This 1 simple thing is probably the hardest thing to do but yields the best outcome almost regardless of how you get there. Surgery, exercise, metabolic medication and lifestyle modification will all help you lose down to a healthy weight. A Healthy BMI, one below 25, is a great way to delay most cancers, reduce orthopedic injuries and lengthen life. No matter what healthy method is chosen it should be done for life as long as it works.
Choose a simple diet of healthy foods and daily exercise to keep your heart and mind healthy. A diet higher in protein, lower in carbohydrates and with a healthy balance of fats can keep your weight down and your body functioning smoother.
5- Eat for balanced hormones and muscle strength. A higher protein diet with healthy fats from mostly plant sources can help you to keep your hormones, especially insulin, more balanced. Especially when combined with proper exercises and well timed nutritional intake the right foods can balance your hormones and help to build lean muscles. It is simple to stay away from breads, sweets and pastry. The problem is we often associate these things with something like love or Mom or Gramma or Christmas or something other than a means of sustaining our bodies.
Choose things you can gather, hunt, raise or pluck. I have never seen a loaf of bread growing in the field. I have never seen flakes in the field on a stalk. It is not always easy to choose the cleaner way of eating but it is simple. Know yourself. Know what you are really craving and eat only what can fuel you. Choose to find pleasure in things that will still leave you healthy long after the food is finished.
Choose a simple way of eating, exercising and stretching to keep yourself younger and healthier. These simple ways of eating and moving can improve brain function, increase insulin sensitivity, make your muscles stronger and more supple and make your life more full. If you are giving up sweets or bread for more quality time with your family and more life in your years then i would argue that you are making a healthier choice for you and your family.
Now go live simply and cleanly. Go live healthy!
