One of the first things to bite the dust after the economy took a nosedive was memberships in fitness and sports clubs. Let’s face it, if it comes down to a choice between paying for use of gym equipment or eating this month – ehhh, I guess most people will opt to eat. But it’s not only money that impacts gym memberships. Time is a big factor, too. It’s hard to justify paying fitness club membership if you know in all honesty you are only going to go through the doors of the gym once a month – the morning before a big night out with the girls.
However, while fitness clubs, with their trained staff and social aspects, can be a great plus to your health and well being, they are not necessary to getting fit and staying toned. Those who are interested in losing weight and improving their health need only concentrate on two rules – eat less, move more.
Eat Less
It couldn’t really be much simpler than that, could it? Eat less. But if, like Miss Piggy, your idea of a diet is, “Never eat more than you can lift”, then you may need a little attitude adjustment.
Orson Welles, never famed for his sylphlike figure, used to quip that his doctor told him that he must stop having intimate dinners for four – unless there were three other people present. Like him, you can start eating less by considering your portions.
- A 3 oz portion of meat – enough for any meal – is roughly the size of a deck of cards. (That is the size of a deck of cards while it is still in the box; not after it has been opened and spread over the table.)
If your idea of a balanced diet is an equal amount of chocolate in both hands, then you probably are not getting all the nutrients you need to maintain fitness and keep your metabolism firing on all cylinders. You will want to consider adding a greater variety of vegetables but not in the manner suggested by actor Jim Davies who recommends carrot cake, zucchini cake and pumpkin pie.
- Lots of leafy greens and colourful vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, spinach and carrots up the levels of anti-oxidants in your diet and support the immune system.
Those opposed to salad, like Samuel Johnson, whose opinion on cucumbers was that they should be well sliced, dressed with pepper and vinegar and then thrown away, might find that roasting vegetables makes them more satisfying. It is very easy to do too. Just cut up any assortment of red and green peppers, onion, tomato, eggplant and zucchini and pop them into a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and throw in a couple of cloves of unpeeled garlic, then leave to roast till done.
Move More
While there are people in the world who seem to take a genuine pleasure in being bent on the rack of a Nautilus machine, they are obviously from a different end of the gene pool than the rest of us and and quite possibly compensating for something. Those who have a natural disinclination to pump it up in a g-string leotard are by far in the majority.
It’s true that most of us would benefit from a bit of added cardiovascular activity in our lives, but there are ways of introducing that without paying out to have your muffin top mocked at, in the local fitness centre. The first thing you have to do is get moving. Alpha waves don’t count so its no good sitting on the sofa and thinking about exercise. You need to get up off your butt and actually do something.
- If you drive to work, park further away and walk an extra block.
- If you take an elevator every day, start taking the stairs.
- If you already take the stairs go up and down them twice.
- If you have a dog, walk him a little bit further today than you did yesterday. Tomorrow, go further still. After he has taken care of business, walk him faster. If you are unfit, chances are your dog is too so you’ll be doing you both good.
- If you have daily chores to do, crank up the music and do them to the beat.
The point is to increase your daily exercise to between 40 to 60 minutes a day, every day. Move farther, move faster, move more. Despite the best advances of medical science we still only get one body to last us throughout our lives. It’s like the old joke says, "If I’d known I was going to live so long, I’d have taken better care of myself".
“If you have health, you probably will be happy, and if you have health and happiness, you have all the wealth you need even if it is not all you want.” –Elbert Hubbard
