Diddly-Squats

October 9, 2016 – 

While people watching, you might notice there is an epidemic facing us all, obesity. Now I did not say mirror watching, I said people watching.  When just looking at a snapshot of a crowd, all too often the majority is dealing with extra weight.  In the past I have sent out The Bob Reports with national statistics on obesity and the very common weight gain dilemma, where getting FAT is a way of life.  IF you happen to find a really FIT body in the crowd(s) and were bold enough to ask them for a minute of their time to discover their “trick” to staying in shape you would most likely get this answer.  “They exercise often, avoid fast food and sweets, eat clean and stay hydrated.”  So there you have it!  It is not in a pill or quick fix, it’s a lifestyle.

Last night we went to a birthday party at a bowling alley, and had a blast!  Over the few hours after a long day’s work, we all were hungry.  The menu options were not ideal but again … hungry screams feed me!  The pretzels with cheese sauce were served and   shortly after, a few pizzas and to wash that all down … a nice cold beer(s).  SO with that all said, life just sometimes dictates our options.  Unless I plan each meal and bring that meal with me I may be doomed to the options that are killing me.  And, I am very confident that the exercise I did get from bowling did NOT offset my caloric intake. But back to the healthy person in the crowd who shared their “their trick” for keeping physically fit below is the breakdown of their exercise method to a healthy lifestyle:

They exercise often, the first of 3 simple principals is Frequency.  You already know that after a workout or activity your body feels better.  For one you know you will sleep better that night (and maybe endure a few days of potential muscle soreness).  Welcome to a metabolic spike!  That body is now repairing itself from the exercise, that repair mends millions of microscopic muscular tears that result when doing any lifting and heavy exercise.  It is automatic, actually the autonomic nervous system … the body repairs itself.

Your body actively works to replete the depleted muscles from exercise by finding stored fats in the body and converting these calories back into a useable form for continued movement.  Metabolic spike!  SO if you really asked the person what they meant by ‘exercise often’ they may have said that they work out 6 days a week, or twice a week but walk to work … so many variables to frequency.   Point here is this, if your workouts continue to crossover from one day to the next and your body is in a constant state of repair then your metabolism is always turned on! As a kid you moved all the time, as an adult you may only move for 20 minutes a day … or 20 minutes a week.  What do you expect was going to happen to your body? Frequency of exercise is a big component of staying healthy and keeping the extra calories from packing on.  One of the reasons clients book appointments to train Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at the same time each week … to stay consistent.  And you know who you are … or who you are not.

Frequency matters!

You want to know what else makes a big difference?  Intensity, are you just moving your body around or are you challenging your muscular system enough to elicit change?  I would not say it is a fine line, but I would say that if you are doing the same old thing all the time … your body is bored.  There are about 20 major muscles in your body that require strength to move your bones well.  The fine line comes into play when they are out of balance in strength and weakness.  That is when your posture starts going really bad and when injuries can occur, DANGER.  Exercise design is why F.I.T. Human Performance is constantly changing muscles, angles, techniques, and protocols to shock your muscular system and balance out the joint articulation. Intensity is not only effective, but intensity drives focus and energy expenditure.  The more intense the harder you work, the harder you work safely, the faster you reach goals.

Intensity is your friend!

You want to know what else makes a big difference?  Time or duration of exercise has a big role in your endurance and cardiovascular system.  If your exercise plan is a walk from the end of the parking lot into Starbucks, the time elapsed may not have challenged your circulatory system enough to improve.  When your vital capacity is unchallenged your body will supply enough stored calories to keep you awake and doing bare minimal tasks.  By increasing your time of activity then your endurance will proportionately increase as well. Yes, better blood pressure and heart rate … a good thing I promise.  Time is your friend, make time for exercise and make exercise your friend too!

In review;

Frequency

Intensity

Time   =  F.I.T.

Dare to be great!

In good health,

Bob

I have a new exercise routine … every day I do diddly squats!  – Author unknown