Natural Fitness

I met up with a friend I hadn’t seen for some time. I was taken with the way he had changed. When I had seen him last, he was in his first year of retirement and appeared sluggish, bloated, restless, and overall disgruntled. Now, not only did my friend appear younger, but his total demeanor was that of a healthy, happy man that belied his actual age.

I commented on the change and asked him if he’d found a secret elixir. His secret, he said was getting back to life. Sitting on the back patio swing swigging beer and living in the past was destroying his mind and body. He not only retired from his job, but retired from everything assoiciated with it. His friends, routines, and activities. He stopped going to the gym before work, and pretty much lived on quick meals, admittedly from cans and packages. Stayed up late, and slept in. Skipped breakfast, except for his morning coffee.

The retired life was killing him.

There is never a right or wrong time to eat healthy and exercise the body and mind. However, if you are over 40, a Mayo Clinic study reported by Dr. Mercola indicates that frequent excercise is necessary to prevent Type 2 Diabetes.  Exercise and the food you eat has a dramatic effect on body and mind.  We  are what we eat and what we think. Our mind produces our reality. The cells in our body reflect the nutrients from the food we eat. Pretty basic stuff-yet many of us have difficulty doing a good job of supervising what goes into our mind and body.

You can’t make changes without first having a plan.

Make  little changes, one or two at a time, until they become a habit. Bad habits can only be changed by replacing them with something else. Instead of beginning an exercise plan 5 times a week, start with 3 times. Choose an exercise program that is fun, effective, and easy to incorporate. One you can do at home or the gym. Start adding whole foods to your diet rather than packaged or canned food. Cut your coffee down to the morning cup. Eat a protein based breakfast free of sugar and high glycemic carbs.

It is no secret that I recommend Jon Benson’s program.

Whatever you do, don’t let fitness practices slide. Those of us over 40, 50, and yes! even 60 or more deserve a good healthy fun-filled life. Let’s make it happen.

The key to fitness is through natural health practices. I see the make up of self being four components: Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual. These four areas are interrelated. When one is out of whack the others seem to suffer. In order to achieve total health, all four components should be in a healthy state.

For most of us, achieving and maintaining optimal Total health is ongoing. Once it’s reached, we have to maintain it. We may reach our physical goals, and our emotional health spins out. Perhaps we stray from our purpose in life, or struggle to find it, feeling that we aren’t connected to life.  Maybe we cope with ADHD or other mind disorders.

If you are like me, there is always one or more of the four components that need attention.

The purpose of this blog is to present good, sound, proven approaches to achieving and maintaining health. The emphasis remains natural and holistic.  Bottom line, they must work. No gimicks.