I eat, and more. Tedious, considering that she was not a client or a friend – she was, in fact, a complete stranger, and, moreover, it was a holiday.
On the more straightforward subject of time allocation, here is some insight I didn’t get to impart to her: I average about 4 hours of exercise per week. Lately, it’s been less than 4 hours per week. The most I’ve ever exercised is 5 to 6 hours per week. However, I exercise with intensity. My exercise is also coupled with a consistently healthy diet.
My parting words to my uninvited meal companion were “Be proactive about your health.” She pointed to her meal and said “I’m trying to”. She had ordered my special order meal, as in “I’ll have what he’s having”. I headed over to Gold’s and worked out.
Be proactive about your health. In my opinion, the goal of wellness is to achieve an acceptable state of health through lifestyle, without the need for long-term medication for conditions that are preventable, manageable, or even reversible by a healthy and fit lifestyle. If you are in your 40s, 50s, or even early 60s, get the jump on it now. If you’re older, it’s still do-able.
I know of someone a few years older than yours truly who was height-weight proportionate for all of his adult life — until after he retired (at younger than 50) from his job of many years, a job which had required annual physical ability tests. He gained about 80 post-retirement pounds during his 50s. His health profile has greatly changed — in the wrong direction –as a result of the weight gain.
A reminder of some of the factors that can be prevented, improved, and/or managed by a healthy and fit lifestyle (by being proactive about your health): type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and risk of heart attack or stroke, blood pressure, joint problems (from being overweight), mobility problems, mood, some cancers, hormonal problems, energy levels, metabolic syndrome.
Consult your physician, dietician, and exercise professional for guidance in designing your own nutrition and exercise program. (Scroll down for a couple of images. Happy New Year!)
Quotes to Consider:
To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear — Buddha
America’s health care system is in crisis precisely because we systematically neglect wellness and prevention –Tom Harkin
More on health, exercise, wellness, nutrition in my eBook, “Age Re-Defined”; Watch a free video, download some free content, and/or purchase the entire eBook: http://www.roberthenryfitness.com/landing/age-re-defined-ebook/#more-419
Robert is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist, a Certified Personal Trainer, a Certified Specialist in Fitness Nutrition, and a Certified Wellness Coach in Los Angeles. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from Southern Methodist University, is an attorney, and is also an experienced flight instructor and jet-rated pilot. Robert is 57, and the author of “AGE RE-DEFINED: Take Control of Your Health, How You Feel, And How You Look – Even In Your Forties & Fifties”, an eBook available from major eBook retailers (with Nutrition Contributor Deborah Klein, MS, RD).
Minutes after finishing a vigorous beach workout, age 57.
Santa Monica Beach, age 56