What does it mean to live an active lifestyle? How does one go about living a healthy and active life? These are a couple of questions I've asked myself throughout the years. My opinions have been all over the board. At one point in time I thought weightlifting was the end all be all. If you didn't lift, you couldn't possibly be healthy. Looking back I think to myself, "boy what an idiot," I can't believe I actually bought that crap. My philosophy has changed and become much more diverse. I have realized it takes just a little bit of a whole lot to stay healthy but, a whole lot more to get there.
I started out skinny and very lean so, naturally I wanted more muscle mass. I ate big, lifted big and ultimately got bigger. By the time all was said and done I went from 145lbs. to 235lbs...in the course of 17 years. I took the long road, stopping hear and there depending on my finances and job. There was 5 years of college, then the unknown number of years working 14 hour days and then kids. I was amazed to wake up at 235lbs. one day. It was a goal I had set when I was 15. Of course as I looked down at the scale I had to lean forward a bit, my stomach was in the way. I had not gained all muscle mass as I had set out to do. Yeah, I lifted regularly but, my diet was horrible and all I did was lift. I had no way of burning off the excess calories I was consuming.
Discouraged and depressed I set out to change all this. I had been studying nutrition and exercise since I was 13 and knew enough to get my ass back in shape. I sat down worked out a schedule and dietary plan. Made all the proper calculations, bought all the right foods and got to it. Two weeks later I was craving a McDonald's cheeseburger like you wouldn't believe. Not just, "I'm hungry for a cheeseburger," but, the kind of craving you would be willing to walk through fire for. And, I don't like eating McDonald's. I did what I normally do and fell off the wagon calling it a "cheat day." That day became so frequent it lost all meaning and became my diet.
Time to revise. Went back through and reformatted my plans and tried again. Same results. I think I did this another 2 times before I finally threw my notebook in the burn barrel. The only thing I was doing at the time consistently was cycling. I was borrowing a bike from a friend and riding about three times a week. It was then I decided to just concentrate on that. Baby steps. So, I cycled. I started making gradual changes in my diet and going slow. Nothing drastic and nothing too quick. Within a month or so I had stopped drinking soda, stopped eating junk food and was eating quite regularly. I had a bad habit of skipping breakfast and just eating a big lunch and bigger dinner.
My body responded. I began losing body-fat. I know this because my cloths began to fit looser. By the end of the summer I had actually managed to fit into an old pair of jean I never thought possible. I was ecstatic and disappointed when the weather changed and cycling became unbearable because of the cold. I didn't have the money to afford winter gear and so the bike sat in the garage. I took up barefoot running earlier in the year to cross train my legs and lessen the impact on my knees and so, became my go to exercise.
During the winter I incorporated body weight exercises about twice a week to assist my running. But, either I just wasn't doing enough or I just eat a lot more in the winter I gained several pounds back on and was getting a little rounder again. By the end of winter I had gained about 10 of the 30 pounds I had lost back and was sitting at a nice 210. This time around though I knew what to do. I got back into cycling. I also continued to run. My diet lightened up by eating more fruit and less heavy foods also.
As I stand today I am 180 and carrying about 17% body-fat. I don't count calories or weigh out my food. I don't worry about certain meals. I just listen to my body. I eat desert, I eat pizza and I drink tequila. What I don't do is do any of those things often. I keep it simple. Drink on the weekends, pizza every now and again and only eat certain deserts and in smaller portions. I maintain the exercise philosophy to sweat once a day and not worry about distances or how fast I'm going but, concentrate on time out and enjoying being out. The longer you exercise at a moderate pace and allow your body to burn fat instead of muscle the leaner you become and the more endurance you gain.
I don't go to a gym because of cost and I don't feel like driving to and from a gym to workout when I can perform body weight exercise at home. I have also found some unconventional methods to work out my strength at home also. I lift, carry and throw various logs and stones. Put pull up bars outside as well as in and play with my kids more. It's amazing what wrestling around with two 40 pound kids will do for the arms and back.
Bottom line is that my life has force me to find more efficient ways to get and remain healthy. I don't spend money on a gym, running is virtually free and yes, I spent a nice chunk of change on a bike, I did so by choice. I could have very easily spent very little money on a used bike and gotten the same results. Either way I'm want it to be know most people could get healthier if they just got up and did something and slowly changed their diets. There are no fast ways to do it and to believe otherwise is just plain dumb. Infomercials feed ya a line of bullshit. They may want people to get healthy with their workouts but, bottom line is they do it to make money. I don't know one single person selling their workouts on TV that isn't making money off it.
People just need to take the initiative and "suck it up" for the first few months. Take it slow. Real slow if need be but, do something. Even if you just get up and walk to the end of your driveway everyday for a week. Do something. Then just gradually increase what you're doing as your body responds to it. Start listening to yourself. It's amazing how often we don't listen to our bodies. When I was overweight I felt like crap most of the time. I couldn't hear anything else. Once I started actually doing something my body started talking to me. At first it was in total revulsion that I would make it work but, as time went and I started adding more and more to its plate it would crave being used. I actually wake up looking forward to running in the morning or cycling in the afternoon when the sun is the hottest. I feel good afterwards.
I now understand what living an active lifestyle means. It means just that being active throughout your life. Not just once in a while but, all the time. Don't misinterpret what I'm saying. You don't want to push yourself to the point of exhaustion or cause yourself harm. I've been know to do that a few times because humans have the ability to tell their brains to shut up. Listen to your body. Go slow. Pace yourself but, do something everyday. It doesn't have to be much. Your body will let you know. But you have to know how to listen to it. You know there is a problem in America when our video games are being designed to get us off our asses to play the game. My recommendation is to put the game down and go outside. Just be active. Half the battle is won there.
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