Whether you are a “resolutions” person or not, the new year always seems to bring a new energy, or at least a change in perspective.
I’ve been in fitness long enough to see the pendulum of what’s “healthy” swing all the way to one side, all the way to the other, and back again.
Case in point, the Atkin’s diet and Keto – years apart, different manes and marketing, and nearly identical.
On one hand, it’s exciting that we’re still learning more and more about the human body.
On the other hand, it’s incredibly hard to navigate what the “right” thing to do is.
Like usual, Occam’s Razor applies, and the simplest answer is usually the right one. In this case, it’s when the pendulum is in the middle.
Here are the foundational actions I’ve found in the last 15+ years, regardless where the pendulum is in its swing.
Exercise
When you’re just starting out, do whatever you can do consistently – start with the path of least resistance. The goal isn’t to focus on what to do, it’s just to make sure you do something.
Once you want to level up, work up to:
- 3 full body strength workouts per week, including core, mobility, and getting your heart rate up to build and retain muscle, increase bone density, reduce the risk of injury, maintain strong ligaments and tendons, to do all the activities you love, and more. Strength training is as close as we have to the fountain of youth.
- 1-2 cardio sessions per week – walk, jog, swim, bike, conditioning workout, a sport – to keep your heart and lungs healthy. Cardio gets a bad rap for being awful for fat loss, and that’s true, but it’s great for health and longevity.
- And above all, be active every day. Counting steps is a great way to measure this, and if that works for you aim for 7500+ steps per day.
Do cardio to live a long time, strength to live well during that time, and be active every day because our bodies are meant to move.
Nutrition
Like with exercise, there is no magic bullet. I’m not a fan of a specific “diet” as they tend to focus on restricting “bad” things instead of adding “good” things.
Here’s what to focus on instead:
- Get a serving of protein at every meal to maintain muscle strength and tone. Particularly if you are trying to lose weight or you are 40+, getting enough protein is critical. Adding a protein shake in addition to protein at every meal nearly guarantees you’re getting enough.
- Increase your fibrous veggies, and ideally get a serving (or two) of veggies at every meal. I know breakfast can be a tough one for this, so it’s okay to balance it out with more veggies at another.
- Reduce your carbs – I was hesitant to include this as it can be interpreted as “carbs are bad”, and that’s not my intention, nor is it true. Carbs are great, and they are delicious, and that’s the issue. It’s so easy to overeat on carbs and you don’t get enough protein or veggies because of it. Eat more carbs on strength workout days, and less on the other days.
- Drink lots of water. There are many formulas online for this, and I find if you aim for 3L of water per day, you are doing pretty good. If you are a bigger human or it’s hot weather, aim for 4L.
Just as a house made of bricks is more resilient than one made of straw, a strong nutritional foundation protects you from all nutritional curveballs life throws at us.
Lifestyle
This is the tricky one, as you are a creature of habit and your environment almost always dictates your lifestyle.
Adjusting lifestyle is akin to a salmon swimming upstream – it’s hard, you don’t feel like you are making progress, and if you stick with it the destination is absolutely worth it.
- Be intentional about your sleep – blackout blinds, a cool temperature, no screens or alcohol within 1-2hrs of bedtime, and a consistent bed time are critical. Our bodies do all sorts of borderline magical things for us while we rest.
- Limit alcohol – As someone who has a new-found love of making cocktails, it pains me to say but alcohol is a killer of progress. If, like me, you are going to drink anyways, make a point to reduce the number of drinks per week you have.
- Have a community of like-minded people with similar goals. We tell our kids to avoid the other kids who are “bad influences” and we know how hard it is for a smoker to quit smoking if all their friends smoke. You can make swimming upstream significantly easier if you change your environment – good things will happen naturally
If you exercise for an hour a day, it’s 5% of your week. Don’t neglect the other 95%.
Mindset
I was considering not including this, as who am I to tell you how to think? And in my experience, the most successful people focus on mindset.
- Put energy into things you can control – you can’t control where on your body you lose fat, how fast your knee starts to get better, or how strong you can get. But you can control what you do to give those things the greatest chance of a positive outcome.
- Doing hard things lets you do hard things – particularly if you have had a rough go when it comes to your health, it’s understandable to feel defeated. As cheesy as it is, the only way you are guaranteed to fail is to quit, and if you do hard things, you can do other hard things (and they might even feel easy).
- Keep a gratitude journal – I started doing this just over a year ago, and it’s been one of the best things for my mental health. It’s the quickest path to feeling overall happier I’ve found, and it happens in only 3 minutes a day.
This is by no means exhaustive, and in the spirit of Occam’s Razor, the simplest approach is usually the best.
Sure, there may be quicker paths, as we all have that friend who did that thing and got crazy results.
But the people I see who are healthy and capable for a very long time usually take a very simple approach to get there.
Simple is sustainable.
If you want some guidance on getting started click HERE to chat with one of our coaches about getting started and coming up with the right plan for YOU.
