All together now…

So far, I’ve attempted to lay the foundations of what No-brainer Fitness is, and what my approach to fitness looks like.

As hinted at in another post on diet, in order to be healthy, there is a lot more you can (and should) do. But I have yet to provide a more complete recipe, a “big picture” of what I’m talking about.

There’s no time like the present, as they say. So here’s what a complete approach to the way you can maximize your odds of living a long, active life in which you thrive, not just survive:

• Move, exercise, train, whatever you want to call it, regularly, daily, everyday, in a sustainable, balanced way. Don’t remain seated at any time for extended periods of time. Etc.
• Eat a diet of real food, not too much of it, avoiding processed products, mostly but not exclusively from plants. Get rid of all NOT FOOD items.
• Rest sufficiently, also on a daily basis. Yes, that means get enough sleep, no matter how much pressure you feel to do more in a day.
• Get rid of counter-productive habits, in a health sense: smoking, drugs of all kinds to excess (yes, that means coffee and alcohol, too, though perhaps there we could agree to curb excesses, and enjoy reasonably).
• Seek ways to better handle the stress of daily life. If you are exercising daily, you are already doing some good, but look also into a little meditation, spending quality time with loved ones, getting “back” to nature, etc. Some would call this looking after your social and spiritual sides. Call it what you want, but don’t neglect it…

There’s nothing revolutionary in there. You’ve probably heard that advice time and time again, from many different sources.

If it is old news, why aren’t we all more healthy, or as healthy as we want to be? Why aren’t we all fit and full of zest?

What we need to do, and it is an everyday thing also for me, is believe in the plan enough to actually do what needs to be done. We need to keep the end goal in sight at all times, and take small but repeated steps in the right direction. And be an example to those around you, without feeling the need to preach what you practice. As they watch you do, others will catch on, I guarantee it.

We have a recipe. The big picture is pretty clear. Over the weeks and months ahead, I will do my best to guide you through the details that make a big difference… (That’s me saying “stay tuned”!)

Photo from Pixabay.