Someone once asked me:
“Why do you bother with all this fitness nonsense? Everything passes and you’re just going to get old and die anyway!”
I looked at this curmudgeon, bent over as he was and supported by a cane, and I replied:
“What you say is true: everything passes and nobody gets out of here alive, but what a wonderful time I’m going to have until that day arrives. I’m going to squeeze every ounce of performance out of this body that I was given for this is the path I have chosen–it’s my art form. Some people sing, some paint, some make magnificent sculpture; I create through the medium of physical culture. I express myself through the physical body. ”
Steve Maxwell
The above quote was passed onto me by a man I find inspirational in many ways and brings to struggle in controlling the flow of the following article. So often has this been rewritten so as not to become a hostile rant about the state of the species, here goes:
Approximately 10 years or so ago, I read a newspaper article, it was about a study that had just recently been done and had thrown up some unexpected results. The study was of the physical fitness and ability of young people, standard tests such as the 100 meter sprint times, vertical jump and a few strength tests. The subjects were, as always, a cross section of the generation.
What was unusual is that for the first time since the testing began the results came back lower than the previous year. For the first time in recorded history the human race had failed to improve on itself, we had actually gone backwards. Please remember the results are an average from a group, I’m sure there are people tested that did in fact set new records and took the test to new highs, it is just that they have been drowned out by the rest. I find this heartbreaking.
That was then. Now that exercise has become less and less fashionable, life is ever more convenient, obesity has become an epidemic and fat kids are the norm, I would very much like to see the results now that obesity has become an epidemic, now that we have invented a new condition known as childhood obesity.
How is it possible in any civilised society for a child to be obese?
Children, or at least when I was a child, run and play at a pace that would leave the fittest Olympian gasping for breath. What has happened that these kids now don’t burn off every calorie they eat by growing, developing and playing?
I remember my own childhood, nearly everyday would involve some kind of physical activity, never would we sit still for long. We’d be running too and from school, playing games in the schoolyard, racing our bikes at the weekend, climbing (and falling out of) trees and kicking whatever would pass for a ball. Even when the weather was too bad to go outside, we would be in our rooms jumping about. Scraped knees, bangs and bruises were the norm, we wore them with pride, bragging about how we fell out of that tree or how big our smash was when we fell off our bikes. Scores on a computer game, who cares about them when you just got chased by the neighbours dog only escaping by jumping the fence in the style of your favorite hero on the telly?
How has life changed for the worse that kids are now unable to do these things and instead are sitting around getting fat?
But in order to save this article descending into a rant I will instead provide a list of do’s and don’ts, that if followed may just halt this slide backwards and instead may just bring the human race back to the heights it once occupied and richly deserves.
1- Move more – We’ve never had it so easy, and this is the main factor in our demise, we have become lazier as life became more convenient.
Entertainment is pumped into our centrally heated abode 24hours a day via the television. While sat watching the mindless drivel on the TV our metabolism can slow to near sleep levels, we burn less calories while watching TV than if we spent the equivalent time sat reading a book. Along with the TV is the playbox megastation xdrive that has every sporting game imaginable on it with internet connections to play anyone around the world. In other words you no longer have a kick about with your neighbours because you’re too busy playing against some bloke in another continent, from your sofa.
The car is now a “must have” whereas when I was little, it was a luxury. How many people walk into town, or even cycle? OK if you live in the country, but most of us live in the town/city maybe a mile from the shops, leave the car at home and walk, hey if you over do the shopping a little, get the bus home.
2- Eat fresh – There are whole bunch of man made diseases, most of these are largely self inflicted and therefore avoidable. By eating fresh food, cooking the stuff your Granny would cook, avoiding anything that comes in a packet, you could cut out most of these diseases. Chemical additives, sugar, salt, e-numbers, all these do untold harm to our bodies. Since the rise of convenience food, there has been a rise in cancer, diabetes and obesity. Get a couple of good cookbooks, get to the fresh food isles of the supermarkets, you just might save your own life as well as the lives of your family.
3- Drink Water – We’ve all heard of the 8 glass rule. It’s more of a guideline than a rule but it works. We are made up of 80% water, every single chemical process in our body requires water. Without it our skin dries and wrinkles, our hair looks dull, our gums turn pale, these are merely the visible signs, but if this is happening on the outside of the body, just think what is happening inside?! Bottled or tap? That’s up to you, personally I buy a bottle and then re-fill it from the tap. And no, coffee and fizzy drinks don’t count.
4- Join a Club/group – Social support is a big thing. Most of us just can’t function without it, people are after all a herd animal. Yet in this modern age of city living, who really knows their neighbours? If you are trying to loose weight/get fit/change your life style, then join a group of like minded people. People who share your goals, whatever they are, and can encourage you, offer advice and support. According to some sources, a support network can increase your chances of success by up to 80%
5- Encourage your kids – Childhood obesity is not only an epidemic, but it’s criminal. Get your kids outside, get them into some kind of physical activity, serve them good, nutritious food, limit TV (that includes computer games) time. If you are a parent, try not to eat “kid” food yourself, lead by example and have real food with generous portions of fruit and veg. Kids do pick up on this, and with a little guidance don’t have to live on a diet of chicken nuggets and chips.
6- Throw out the bathroom scales – Yes, I mean it! A better measure of your physical well being is a tape measure and a note book. Being obsessed with your weight can lead to unhealthy eating habits. Your better off measuring your curves with a tape and keeping track that way.
7- Set goals and challenges – Well summer is on it’s way, how about setting a goal to have a bikini body for your August trip to the south of France (or wherever) that gives you 6 months, easy! Maybe you have a simpler challenge, the women’s mini marathon is coming up (see below), there are always martial arts tournaments on, find something, put a date on it and work to achieve it.
I know we get told that we live longer now than ever before, but how much of this is due to pharmaceutical advances. While our bodies have gone into decline, the drug companies have found ways to keep you ticking over, just as long as you buy their products. Well put two fingers up to them and instead get out and get moving, cut out the junk from the diet and see how you start to get healthier, more energetic and slimmer in a matter of weeks.
Like Steve Maxwell in the quote above, I have no intention of stopping, I will not give up or use my age as an excuse. If I look after my mind and body, my mind and body will look after me. I aim to be fit and strong enough that when the ol’ grim reaper comes knocking, I’ll be able to kick his bony arse back where he came from.
Who’s with me?