Thrive in 30: Fitness and Lifelong Vitality
The Thrive in 30 campaign series is 12 videos, and I’m on #9 this week! If you missed an video recaps, here they are:
Thrive in 30: Stress and Diet
Thrive in 30: High Net Gain Nutrition
Thrive in 30: Myth Busting
Thrive in 30: Acid vs. Alkaline
Thrive in 30: Digestion
Thrive in 30: Superfoods!
Thrive in 30: Superfoods and Fitness
Dirty Dozen and Thrive
The Main Ideas of Lesson 9: Fitness as a Key to Lifelong Vitality
- Strength equals efficiency!
- With stronger muscles, endurance will improve because the amount of fuel that the body needs to burn is less due to the improved efficiency!
- Body builders are all about getting BIG, defined, and symmetrical (mass, definition, symmetry). Think of their competition, they stand and flex. The competition is NOT for endurance or performance.
- Strength training for an endurance athlete is very important but strength training the typical “body builder” way is not the way we should go. Endurance athlete’s need muscular strength without the BULK.
- Brendan’s heart rate (resting) is around 42…some athletes are even lower ( in the 30′s)
- Slower resting heart rate = more efficient heart = stronger heart = better performance
What I think:
(My resting heart rate is ~ 55 ). If your heart is not beating as fast, it is beating slower to get the same amount of blood pumped throughout your body. If it takes less beating to do the same work, your heart is not having to work as hard for long periods of minimal activity. A stronger and more efficient heart is a key for lifelong vitality! I appreciate that “basic concepts” to address sedentary lifestyles are brought up in this lesson even though the majority has been focused on better performance or endurance.
I think in general, there is a lack of knowledge, lack of motivation, and lack of implementation. Some people just don’t know what to do, others know what to do but can’t seem to motivate themselves to do it and then those that know and can- have to actually do it!
In this field, we struggle with motivation across the board. Client motivation is a huge part of consultations for most Registered Dietitians. The average person just trying to be healthier struggles with motivation as well. Heck, everyone struggles with motivation at some point, right !? I struggled to get out of bed this morning- it was cozy, warm and comfy! Brendan mentions some of the common barriers for physical activity:
- I’m just too busy
- Exercise is too much like work
- Gym memberships costs too much
- Classes are never at the right time
- Exercise is so boring
- That’s for “young” people / “old” people / “strong” people / “lazy” people—not for me!
He suggests:
Whatever you do, DON’T go to the gym to spend 30-minutes on the stair climber, followed by three sets of ten squats because you read an article that said it would give you killer glutes. DON’T go to an aerobic kickboxing class because it’s all the rage and your friends are doing it. And—for crying out loud—DON’T go take a hot yoga class because your favorite celebrity swears it’s the secret to being a red-carpet-ready size-2!
What about the ” DO ” …. ?
If your motivation behind activities is for reasons he is suggesting above – it will be torture at the beginning, it will be torture throughout, and then you will no longer want to torture yourself! Find activities that you love! If it is gardening, running, kickball, basketball, hockey- find an activity that you enjoy or at least moderately enjoy for now. I ask everyone what their favorite activity was this week because everyone’s motivation is different but it is interesting to read the responses!
Thanks for sharing your comments! Thanks for reading!
