Fadi
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Exercise is quickly becoming a four letter word in my book, structured type exercise that is.
Let us go back few years when there were no gyms to speak of and no tread mills to walk on, and no remote controls to save us the “agonisingly long walk” of two to three meters that separated us from our TV screens.
Yes, we live in a fast paced society with its fast food and quick transport facilities which we take advantage of on a daily basis. Some of us also work in a world comprising of a cubicle; spending long hours sitting behind a computer screen and surrounded by state of the art gadgets. Our message bank is full and our email folder is bursting at the seams and the boss has the audacity to place more papers on our desk just incase we were contemplating going for a little walk and stretch!
The picture I’ve painted above is not from Mars but is an everyday occurrence that would see us meet our demise sooner than later…if we allow it to continue and don’t take a stand TODAY!
Remember that time wasted now whilst you’re healthy would be time spent later when you’re not. The only difference is in the choice. It’s free choice vs. forced option (and it won’t even be an option later since that would mean having a say in it).
Time pockets; have you heard of them? If not in that particular terminology then I’m certain you’ve experienced at least a few of them during your day at work or home. For example, waiting for a kettle to boil, or having some time after dinner before your favourite TV show starts or the microwave oven (if you're unfortunate enough to be using one) to heat the food up…
Identify these time pockets and use them to your advantage. Go through the house insuring that no tap is licking or no lights are left on unnecessarily, (yes I’m a dad)! Reformatting the computer or waiting for that meeting to take place creates time pockets. You see, our minds do not stop ticking over and if we don’t feed that chatter box inside of our head with something positive and some meaningful task to accomplish (like writing a healthy food shopping list for example), then we would be faced with nothing but stress and worry. In a nutshell, busy yourself otherwise relax by meditating (in your own special way) or go to sleep. No, I’m not asking for a 24/7 of non-stop activity here but I am emphasising that thinking and moving are often two of the best options we have at our disposal when our aim is to live rather than simply exist.
Ask the person next to you if they exercise or not and most invariably they would feel embarrassed from your question. There are housewives out there who “exercise” much more than your average gym goer and feel great about it. Healthy looking skin, smooth and shiny hair, strong nails, beautiful teeth and gums, and an attitude that would make “positive and bubbly” green with envy.
Let us take a good, close, and hard look at this beautiful lady and see if we can not help but admire her attitude on life.
She goes to bed early because her day was vibrant and full of activities. More details please Fadi!
She wakes up to a crystal clear glass of water which she drinks slowly before getting her self (and her family) ready for a wholesome breakfast of a freshly squeezed orange juice, an egg on a toasted and buttered Burgen seed and grain slice of bread. A side salad drizzled with some of the finest olive oils in the world and a squeeze of lemon juice tops all those now glistening cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow, red, and green capsicum and all the other wonderful vegetables her healthy heart may fancy for that morning.
Off to work she goes (if she works). She parks about 30 minutes walk away from her office building and begins her morning activity of a brisk walk to work. She’s few minutes early as usual with no rushing and no stressing. She has a long day ahead of her that would require her to sit her muscular derrière for hours on end. Ah, but not this lady, so watch what she does to incorporate activities into her busy work schedule.
Due to her wonderful and liked attitude, she has already struck a deal with her boss at work that would result in nothing short of a win-win situation for everyone. She has volunteered to walk to the shop to buy everyone’s morning tea as well as lunch. That would mean leaving the office for few minutes to get the “much needed” blood sugar lift for her co-workers. These lifts come in many shapes and sizes; some in a bottle of coke whilst others in a beautifully rounded pink donut! Who cares as long as she gets to be the one “slaving” for her colleagues.
When she goes shopping, unlike most of us who fight for a parking spot so close to the supermarket’s entrance as to be virtually inside of it, she opts for a car space that is at the furthest point possible from “the car spot fighting zones”. When she’s inside the shopping centre, she takes the stairs instead of the escalators or the lift. She carries her 20kg of shopping to her car instead of pushing it in a trolley. Yes, her arms and shoulders are tight also, just like the rest of her well trained and healthy physique. She’s doing all the above willingly with a purpose that is the core of her driving force.
When at home or at work, this lady does these activities before her “exercise”, structured exercise that is. She likes to do the pushups, the bodyweight squats, the step-ups (on a milk crate or similar), the plank (oh that’s her favourite whilst watching TV with the kids who like to join in sometimes)!
Activity vs. exercise. Ah, I nearly forgot, this dynamite of a lady goes to the gym just for fun and enjoyment and is very proficient in performing the compound lifts that are the bedrock of a magnificent body. These lifts comprise of:
Squats
Bench press
Press above head
One arm d/bell rows
Dead lift
This beautiful lady is not muscular by any stretch of the imagination yet her muscles are nice and tight. She is not the strongest woman in the world but is strong enough to rearrange the home furniture around in no time flat (as women often do) and create a totally new and different surrounding that has a positive outcome on mind and spirit alike.
Who is she or who is he that amazing person I’ve been talking about now?
Take a walk to the closest mirror and look at the reflection that you see. It has been you all along.
So the moral of the story is as follows:
Perspire before you retire
Move for the sake of moving and not for the sake of improving
Walk for enjoyment not for exercise and take the stress out of the equation
Moderation and not marathons or sprints is what will win at the end
Lift for you and no one else
“Exercise” to live not live to exercise = be active!
PS: Left out climbing the stairs at work. Now that is an awesome workout for your heart as well as your butt and legs. Here's my message to anyone who think they have a legitimate reason not to do what I'm suggesting in my article; do it now when you can instead of having to do it later because you have been forced to, due to health issues. And yes, we develop health issues not because we don't go and rock it out at gym A or do aerobics at park B; we develop problems with our health simply from not allowing our bodies do what they were designed to do: MOVE!
I'm putting out a challenge to anyone who think they have no time because I will find time for them! Even if you work in an offence building (wow, that's the best!) trapped in your little cubicle, even under this circumstances you could find 2 minutes the way I have. But I must warn you, you may get addicted to my plan, so get your boss on board as well or else!
If smokers can be standing outside their building (or behind it as the case maybe now), then why not us who wish to look after our precious assets, namely our lungs, heart, and major muscles!
Fadi.
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