Life, just like fitness requires balance.
Fitness is never ending. There is no final destination of optimal fitness.
We do know what the side effects of a lack of fitness are though. Sickness, disease, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disorders and ultimately death.
So what are the side effects of fitness? Health, happiness, confidence, strength, endurance, vitality, good looks and ultimately death.
….Whoa, whoa, whoa….did I say death is a side effect of fitness? How morbid!
If you haven’t grasped this concept yet, accept it, embrace it and use it as your motivation. Realistically, death is the final destination of fitness AND lack of fitness. What’s important though is the quality of life in between today and our final days…or The Journey!
As I sit and write this, here are my personal fitness stats:
5’10” 190 pound, 30 year old male.
I have a resting heart rate in the low 50’s, bloodpressure of 116/64, fasting blood sugar of 86
Bodyfat percentage of 8.18% which amounts to a mere 15.542 pounds of fat on my entire body
My cardiovascular conditioning is at an all time high from teaching 3 hours of bootcamp daily in the scorching Florida sun
I’m currently 10-1/2 weeks out from the start of my 2013 competitive bodybuilding season. My diet consists of lean proteins, raw and steamed vegetables, raw almonds, lightly salted rice cakes, white rice and the occasional treat of natural peanut butter (MY FAVORITE TREAT!)
I workout a minimum of 4 days per week, again, outside in the scorching Florida heat.
My biggest vices are ice cream and carrot cake, and I haven’t had either in weeks. I’m a hungry, dieting bodybuilder!
So last night, to withhold from the many other craving that arise while dieting, I made root bear floats for my wife and I. Instead of using the “real” ingredients which would contain over 125 grams of diabetic and disease hungry sugar, lord knows how much artery entrenching fat and over 850 calories of which I would’ve burned off ZERO because I was about to go to bed… I used “diet” ingredients instead.
I used diet A&W root bear and regular frozen cool whip as my ingredients and it was DELICIOUS!! Just what I needed to hold off any cravings, not reach for the peanut butter (which isn’t bad either, just extra calories) and not reach for the last bit of ice cream in the freezer.
I was so excited that I decided to post it on Facebook.
Within seconds I had links and citations to Harvard studies about how the aspartame in my “diet” products were going to give me diabetes and that the partially hydrogenated oil in my cool whip should have been replaced with “gasoline” instead!
My point to this story is that we all face daily decisions that effect our health, fitness and future. The choices come in so many forms, some of which you would never think of.
Do you consume soy products? When my grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, I WAS BLOWN AWAY that the #1 recommendation was to eliminate all soy products from her diet. The reason it stated? Soy is a fertilizer in all other countries. It increases your estrogen and risk of cancer and the spread of cancer. Whoa!
Do you change the air filters in your house regularly?
Is your toothbrush within the 7 foot “splash zone” of your toilet? (gross I know, but I may have just saved you from literally ‘eating it’) 🙂
Do you buy organic vegetables or the regular stuff?
Do you eat gluten and wheat products? (HUGE changes when you eliminate from your diet)
Do you drink milk or any dairy products? (humans are one of the only species that consumes dairy past infancy)
Do you use splenda, aspartame, stevia, acesulfame potassium or other artificial sweeteners?
This list could go on and on.
We all have personal choices we have to make each day. For ultimate health, fitness and happiness there has to be balance. That balance also includes picking the lesser of evils on a daily basis. The more “good” choices you make in a day than “bad” choices…THE HEALTHIER YOU’LL BE!!
Having a goal of a weight, waist size, strength, bodybuilding show or family reunion is important from time to time. It challenges you to push and little harder and build more confidence.
But remember, fitness does not have an end. You are either doing something and getting better, or not doing anything and getting worse. There is no in between.
You have to make the best choices on a daily basis and most importantly… Enjoy the journey!
Committed to your fitness success,
Derek Kuryliw, CEO & Founder
www.LiveFitBootcamps.com
Have a question for me? I’d love to hear from you. Please fill out the form below and I’ll reply back as quickly as possible!
