There was a time when shape, fitness, and health were of no concern. Since passing the wondrous age of 15, the concern slightly emerges. Reaching the age of 30, my fat-to-muscle ratio inclines me to consider taking interest in my physical well being—not without the help of my incredibly low levels of cardiovascular stamina!
As a youngster (which would include teenage years) I have always been quite the energetic one. No sports for me, just run, run, run all over the neighborhood; bicycles, skateboards, rollerblades, fighting—you name it! Those were the Happy Days!
It was nothing for me to take up a working trade that demanded much physical activity. That being said, I began a professional occupation of installing flooring products at about 17 years of age. Two years later I would be self employed, busting you know what to make the big bucks.
This working experience, along with my attitude of “I can do it myself,” wrought great physical stress upon my body. After about 12-13 years of flooring work, I decided to leave the flooring business due to multiple physical “lay-ups” as a result of poor back health. A few times I was unable to walk and out of work for months. I was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease (which doesn’t necessarily mean something bad) along with two bulging discs, and more recently, spinal stenosis and minor arthritis. In other words, NOT GOOD! This problem has never left me, I have simply learned how to live better and wiser with my body, as physical therapy CAN and DOES help.
Upon reaching my early 20′s, I took interest in Martial Arts, Jeet Kune Do Concepts (Bruce Lee‘s Methodology of the evolving art of fighting). Needless to say, this interest in Martial Arts overlapped my professional work in the flooring business. This provided outstanding exercise sessions. I was in the best shape of my life at this point, and I could kick but!
It was 2004, my departure from the Martial Arts
Even as I was offered FREE lessons, ALL THE TIME, I declined. Martial Arts had become my “Isaac”. I had to lay it down. It was either martial arts or Jesus, and I chose Jesus.
Since then, I have really not exercised much. However, by dear brother has introduced me to cycling. I was riding approximately 2x’s a week, ranging from 15-30 miles per ride. I started off with just a measly 5 mile ride. Well, at the time, it was no measly ride for me! But, I continued riding about once a week, and within about 4 weeks I was up to 25 miles per ride!
This is no real strain on my back. Cycling is a great exercise and it can do a body good. It is considered one of the best ways to boost one’s cardiovascular system into tip-top condition. The last ride I did was 30+ miles. This was a difficult one: hills, bends, traffic, flat lands, ranging from 7 MPH – 42 MPH. 42 MPH on a bicycle is exhilarating! One Saturday, I rode 40+ miles—my longest ride yet!
I was doing good at keeping this up.
I got tired, I stopped and rested, I sometimes even gave up – but not entirely! I decided to accompany my cycling exercise with upper body fitness, using the Total Gym 1500 in my home office. This helped a lot, and I began to feel my manly chest bulging out of my shirt. Okay, maybe that was a little overemphasized, but within just a couple months of cycling, and only three weeks of upper body workout, I could really feel a good bit of change. Also, I have was keeping my calorie intake to under 1,500 calories a day. Decrease of Calories + Increase of Exercise = Loss of Weight and Better Health. Your body is different than mine, so find a suitable daily calorie intake for you.
Lately, I have put forth ZERO effort to staying healthy and in shape
And as I age, I must remember that exercising is not something that should be viewed as a goal, as if when it is reached it can be complete. Rather, this is a lifestyle change, and until we get that burned into our minds, we will be forever struggling with the idea of exercise. Okay, maybe there will always be a sense of struggle with it, but without making it a lifestyle, there is not much hope for continued, sustainable results. Success comes with submission to what that commitment demands.
Remember, our bodies are temples of the Lord, and even as we preserve members of our bodies as matters of holy purity, so should we for our health. The last thing the Christian community needs is the headline,
“The End of Evangelism For Christians Due to Increased Levels of Fatty Tissue”
Or even better,
“Their Moral Values Were No Match for Their Love for Honey Buns!”
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*sigh* I miss the days when I could pack away a six-high stack of pancakes swimming in syrup and butter, and still skip my svelte self out the house and spend the rest of the day hiking around the countryside and climbing every tree whose branches reached low enough to grasp… Those days were rapidly passing by the time I hit 16, and that was 20 years ago. By the time I was pregnant with my first child at 29, my waistline had begun to worry me. When he was born it was all over, my midriff is now a wreck that only my husband loves.
But it's not the physical appearance, but my health that really worries me. I'm a screaming candidate for Type II diabetes, and I probably already have it. My father has it and almost every other person on my father's side battles it to some extent or another. I have plantar fasciitis and heel spurs that make my feet feel like I'm walking on permanent bone bruises. Many days, my back throbs with a deep and unrelenting ache.
Take it from me, Jon, you do NOT want to let yourself go. The longer you do, the harder it is to get back into a fitness routine. Do yourself a favor and work out!
Your serious advice is taken seriously.
Actually, I will be working on an exercise program soon.
My recent post T.H.I.N.C., Christ-Centered Bible Study, Part 5
Oh man, I seriously do have a serious thing for seriously repeating words, don't I? LOL
I recommend Pilates. Nice, low-impact, gets your heart pumping, and the extra jimmy-bobs they try to sell you are optional and really don't need to be used. All you need is a mat and enough room to flail around. I did it over the Summer and felt better than I have in years! The biggest crime was stopping.
I'm thinking about this routine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIN6OFiDdYw
My recent post T.H.I.N.C., Christ-Centered Bible Study, Part 5
OH MY GOSH!!!!!!! Oh man I haven't seen this skit in YEARS. Thanks for the laugh, that was a workout in itself!
Oh wow!
Time to remember!
OK – OK already – I feel guilty. Particularly when one of my grandchildren recently looked at a picture on my desk of me and my dear wife. "Who's that person with Nanna, Pappa?" – That's me!" His response? "No way."
And you know what? I think he's right. There is simply no way that smart looking, fit and trim young man in the picture could have turned into me.
And my daughter didn't make me feel any better when she chipped in her observation. "Grandpas are supposed to be fat and cuddly, dear. Don't hurt Papa's feelings."
You should see Abraham Piper's latest blog post [Lamott quote if you don't get to it until tomorrow]: He talks about being drunk being more chic than a bulimic. Then read the comments. You must have been sending them brain waves.
My recent post Why Creative People Frighten Me
I will check that out.
Thanks D!
My recent post Looking Forward
I will check that out.
Thanks D!
My recent post Looking Forward
testing this one too
I need to go on a diet for real~!