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The Power of Regular Activity

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What if we told you that you have the power to add years to your life span, perform daily activities easier or prevent disease and sickness?

The truth is we all have this power and it can all be accomplished through consistent, regular physical activity!

This can be planned exercise or any activity really that requires you to expend energy.

The power of regular movement, be it planned exercise or not, has many proven positive benefits. The more consistent the physical activity is, the greater the potential benefits.

Here is a brief list of what you can expect to achieve by introducing regular physical activity and movement into your lifestyle:

  • Lower blood pressure
  • Lower blood sugar
  • Improve cholesterol
  • Reduce your risk of heart disease
  • Reduce your risk of diabetes
  • Lose weight
  • Gain strength
  • Improve bone density
  • Improve range of motion
  • Stronger joints
  • Improve joint conditions (eg. arthritis)
  • Help with depression
  • Improve sleep
  • Increase longevity
  • Perform daily activities better/easier
  • Maintain independence
  • Reduce risk of some types of cancer
  • Improve cognitive abilities

This list could go on and on.

The human body was meant to work. Today we sit more then ever in the history of our existence so building regular physical activity and exercise into your life has become a necessity. The more we move and challenge our bodies, the more fit we become, the more efficient and effective we are and of course the healthier we are. So, get moving!

Want to Live Longer?

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Recently I read an article from TIME Magazine with this exact title and it listed 5 habits that if adhered to, can add about 10 years to your lifespan. Here is a summary of what the article said in regards to the 5 habits and what research says about living your fullest, longest life.

Eat a Healthy Diet

Diet is strongly linked to longevity. The article explains that research shows the best diet is one that includes lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and healthy fats and does not include much sugar or processed food, naming the Mediterranean diet as the diet that fits this best. To keep it simple, just eat real food and control your portion sizes. Eat Smart, Eat Often and Eat Small. Have you heard that before?

Exercise Regularly

“Working out regularly is a boon for both your physical and mental health, boosting everything from cardiovascular fitness to mood and energy – so it’s no surprise that it can also extend your life” the article says.
Current activity guidelines recommend aiming for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week plus 2 weekly strength training sessions for best health and longevity benefits. It also says that even if you don’t exercise now, its not too late and that research shows that there are longevity benefits to both long term exercisers and later in life exercisers.

Maintain a Healthy Body Weight

If you follow the first two recommendations, this one will take care of itself. Being overweight is linked to many chronic conditions which all have the potential to shorten your lifespan. Eat well and exercise regularly. That is the secret sauce of weight management.

Drink in Moderation

More and more the research is coming out on alcohol consumption that is in support of limiting alcohol as much as possible. It used to say that moderate consumption was ok, healthy even. Now researchers are starting to sway in the opposite direction. Last year a meta-analysis of prior alcohol studies concluded that there is no safe amount of drinking, because the net risks outweigh any potential benefits.

No Smoking

Smoking is associated with serious health problems making it a serious threat to your life longevity. If you do smoke, experts recommend quitting as soon as possible to minimize any threats to your long-term health.

And there you have it, straight from the latest research. We do have a lot of control over increasing the odds of living a long, healthy life if we follow these 5 recommendations. None of this is new either, we have all heard this before and we have been helping people take back control of their health with these exact habits for over 33 years.

Are We Making Things Too Complicated?

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Over the weekend I attended the Can Fit Pro 2019 Conference in Toronto. Here are a few of the takeaways:

  • Over 70% of our population is considered overweight or obese
  • 19% of the population has a gym membership
  • The average person consumes about 66lbs of added sugar per year
  • Sugar sweetened beverages are the main culprit when it comes to added sugar consumption, making up 47% of sugar intake. Next is sweets and snacks at 31% of sugar intake.
  • People who consume 2 or more sugar sweetened beverages per day have a 31% higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease and each additional sugar sweetened beverage increased risk another 10%

None of these statistics is really that surprising. We all know that as a population our health is declining and just by looking at this data we can attribute it to not being active enough and consuming too much sugar.

Look at how much of an impact just switching out sugar sweetened beverages for water can have on your health. For the average person that would cut sugar consumption in half!

Another observation I had while walking around the expo was that it seemed to me like everything new coming out in fitness is mostly made towards the already fit. For someone who was new to fitness, most of these gadgets are completely intimidating. It was intimidating for me and I have been around fitness my whole life! Maybe 80% of the population doesn’t exercise regularly because we have scared them off making health and fitness seem complicated with all of these machines, gadgets and electronics.

Let’s keep it simple.

  1. Get your heart rate up with some movement daily. Go for a walk, bike ride or some chores around the house. Make it a goal to move more then you sit.
  2. Eat well. Eat real food that is not processed as much as possible and keep portion sizes in check.
  3. Lift heavy weights 2 or 3 days a week.

Do those 3 things consistently and you have all the tools you need to be healthy.

No need to make it complicated!

Why are you here?

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A lot of people assume that one joins a health club to lose weight, and arguably so, for the majority, that’s correct, but truth be told, there are many other reasons for people to join a club like ours. And even if they have other reasons for joining, and there are many, weight loss usually results simply because they are more active and using up more calories than they were prior to taking up regular exercise. Regardless, here are some of the different reasons that our actual clients have joined our club and requested our assistance.

“My doctor wants me to go on high blood pressure medication and I’d like to try to avoid having to do that.” ……done.

“My doctor says I’ll be on my high blood pressure medication for the rest of my life. With your help, I’d like to prove him wrong.” ………….done.

“I’d like to try to reduce and control my high cholesterol.” …….done.

“I’d like to increase my bone density. My doctor says it’s too low.” ……..done.

“I’d like to better control my blood sugar levels and possibly reduce or eliminate my diabetes medication.” ………….done.

“I’m having a difficult time getting out of my car. I need to strengthen my legs.” …………done.

“I’d like to eliminate my back pain so I can stop taking this pain medication.” ………..done.

“I just want to get out of my house and shake this depression.” ……………done.

“I need to strengthen my legs for figure skating.” ……….done.

“I need to better my swim time. I’m a tri athlete.” ……….done.

“I want to compete in a body building contest.” …………done (several times).

“I want to be able to go up the two steps at the entrance to the Italian Hall without help so I can go dancing again.” ………..done.

“I want to be able to walk without the help of my walker.” …………….done.

“I want to be able to walk without the help of my cane.” ………………done.

“I want to be able to get up out of this wheelchair that I’ve been in for 35 years and walk on my own.”………….DONE!

So there you have it. This is what we do every day and have been for over 33 years. As you can see, it’s not all about weight loss.

Gino

What Makes A Diet Work? 4 Principles For Success!

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A couple weeks ago I wrote an article called “What is the best diet?”. It talked about how all diets work and that what was most important was choosing one that you personally will be able to stick to for the long term and make part of your lifestyle.

Continuing off that topic I now want to talk about some of the common denominators in these diets and realizing what they are so that you can apply them to your life no matter if you are on a diet or not.

How can it be that we know people lose weight from high fat, low carb diets such as the ketogenic diet, but yet we also know people who lose weight from low fat, high carb diets such as the vegan diet? Both of the diets will work for weight loss but yet they are completely different. So, what gives? How is this possible?

One reason that was already discussed in the previous article is that all diets are a form of calorie restriction, and eating less will cause weight loss. That is one of the biggest components to weight loss, portion control.

Another habit that diets tend to cause us to form is just eating cleaner, better quality foods. They almost all restrict highly processed, high sugar, low nutrient foods. No matter if you declare yourself on a diet or not this is a great habit to have when it comes to nutrition.

Also, while on a diet you are going to cook your own meals much more often, and to do that chances are you are taking some time to sit and plan meals ahead of time and maybe even cook some meals ahead of time so that you are not scrambling to find food when you are hungry. We know that leads to poor choices most of the time. It’s much easier to stay the course when you don’t have to think about the meals in the moment and all you have to do is just take out what you already cooked or cook what you already planned.

These are the small changes you can make do your eating no matter if you declare yourself on a diet or not. They are the real reason behind what makes a diet work.

  1. Portion control
  2. Clean eating. Choose good quality foods
  3. Cook your own meals as much as possible
  4. Plan meals ahead of time

That is why when we recommend members read Gino’s book, we say that it is not a diet, it is just the way you should be eating as part of your lifestyle. Eat Smart, Eat Often, Eat Small. You can get the book free by clicking here. There is no magic diet, never has been, never will be. Just apply these principles and you will have success!

4 Keys To Achieving Optimal Wellness in 2020

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If you are looking to become the best version of yourself this year, try implementing as many of these key principles into your daily and weekly routines as you can. Start with one of them, schedule it as part of your regular routine, get consistent with it and then add another. Don’t overwhelm yourself adding all of them at once and understand that adding even just one of these ideas into your regular routine will have a positive impact on your health and well being.

There are no magic potions here, but these are all simple ideas that most of us know we should be doing, it’s just a matter of doing them and doing them consistently.

Here we go:

  • Move More, Sit Less

It’s no secret that replacing sitting time with more movement time will have positive results to our health. Again, we just have to do it. Try to set a goal of sitting for less then 3 hours a day, and when you are sitting at work to get up at least once every hour to walk around and move to break up the sitting time.

You can also track your steps and try to hit a daily goal of 10,000 steps to ensure you are moving enough.

  • Get Regular Exercise

Try for 3-5 cardio sessions a week which can be any activity that maintains an elevated heart rate for at least 20 minutes. Walking, biking, the gym, skating. Pick something you enjoy.

Strength train 2-3 times per week. Keeping your muscles strong is one of the most important things you can do for long term health, independence and confidence. Make sure you are getting all major muscle groups.

Stretch daily if you can. Keeping good range of motion helps you move better and stay injury free.

  • Rest

The body adapts and recovers while you rest, not while you work so make sure you are getting enough rest. Try to get 7-8 hours of sleep each night, schedule regular rest days and even take a vacation once in a while to get away from the day to day stresses and focus on relaxing and resting.

  • Eat Well

Eat mostly minimally processed food, preferably real, whole foods. Eat lots of vegetables, get enough protein and limit your sugar intake. Make sure you control your portion sizes and eat regularly to maintain good energy levels throughout the day. (Eat Smart, Eat Often, Eat Small!)

That’s it. Start implementing these principles into your regular routine and reap the rewards in 2020!