For as long as I can remember I have been playing soccer. With that came a lot of running. I always hated going on a four or five mile run before a practice. Ask most athletes and I’m sure they’ll agree; conditioning is the worst part of training.
For a while, you couldn’t have paid me to go out running; I hated it. It wasn’t until high school was over and I hung up the cleats that I started to really appreciate a good run. Then one day, playing a game of pickup basketball, I realized just how out of shape I was. I was out of breath from just a few trips up and down the court. The freshman fifteen is no joke, but it isn’t a life sentence either! I began to get back on the road for runs. Now I hate the feeling of NOT going on a run.
For me, and many other runners I’m sure, running is as close to meditation as I can get. There is an old Zen saying that I love. “Everyone should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day, unless you’re too busy; then you should sit for an hour”. This saying holds true for exercise as well. Not having time isn’t an excuse for ignoring physical fitness. Little adjustments to your daily routine can contribute to the recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day.
I’m not saying everybody should run for miles and miles on end every day, (I’m 20 and training for a marathon), but everybody can do something to increase their daily physical output that doesn’t require an exercise facility; you may not even have to leave your work. You know that thing that’s always next to the elevator, kind of looks like a broken escalator? Yeah, those are stairs.
- A brief session of stair climbing does more good for you than walking or running for the same amount of time because you have to work against the force of gravity.
- According to a study done at Harvard University, if you can fit in 8 flights of stairs a day you could reduce your death rate by 32%.
- While climbing stairs, you burn an average of 10 calories a minute. That’s 7 times more than standing awkwardly with strangers in an elevator listening to bad music.
- Even two flights of stairs a day can lead to 6lb weight loss over the course of a year.
Trying to add a little extra physical output to your daily routine doesn’t mean hitting the gym for 2 hours a day. Adding even 10 minutes of walking can drastically improve your overall health. Get a pedometer and aim for 10,000 steps a day.
- Whether you’re at the mall, school, work or movies, park in the back of the lot rather than driving around the parking lot looking for that perfect spot. It’s a simple but effective strategy. It adds a few extra seconds to your trip, but can help add few years to your life.
- Kill two birds with one stone and take a “walking meeting”. If you know that it will take just five minutes to explain a project or idea to a coworker, walk around the building while doing it to add some calorie burn.
Just in case you’re thinking that you’re “too old” to get back into shape, I’ll leave you with the story of 67 year old Larry Macon. He’s a full time trial attorney in San Antonio, Texas. He has run over 825 marathons, with 113 in one year. Did I mention he’s 67? Check him out HERE.
Don’t forget Dr. Wallach’s mantra, “Exercise without supplementation is suicide.” Make sure you always have some Rebound FX On-The-Go Pouches to fuel even the smallest of workouts!
