Mirror Mirror On The Wall – How Does Your Physical Condition Stack Up?
Covid-19 Lifestyles and Post Pandemic Exercise
Sadly, Covid-19 has negatively affected most of our lives and will continue to do so for some time.
It has also presented many of us with a precious commodity – more time! So it’s a great time for you to think about and, if necessary, do something about your current physical condition
Our distant ancestors were a much fitter and leaner bunch than us. By comparison, many of us have got it easy and our sedentary lifestyles are taking a toll with the increasing incidence of obesity and diabetes.
How Are You Looking Right Now?
Take a look in the mirror after your shower. Yes, front on and side on. No cheating! Don’t suck in your tummy…
Are you soft and lumpy, toned and lean, or somewhere in between? Shoulders back or hunched forward?
Is there some room for improvement? If so, read on.
Time for a personal inventory.
First up we’ll look at incidental exercise – easy gains – and then we’ll look at super quick in home or hotel room workouts that don’t even require equipment.
Easy Gains
Long periods of sitting can be as dangerous as smoking – numerous scientific studies back this up.
Our metabolic rate slows, blood-sugar levels rise, posture slumps, stiffness sets in… and there’s more. Prolonged periods of sitting can lead to weight gain and a higher risk of Type 2 Diabetes or life threatening conditions such as stroke and heart attacks.
Work out roughly how much time you spend sitting in an average day. How often do you break up these sitting periods, and by doing what?
Now, start thinking that any movement is exercise. And that every movement aggregates and helps to improve your fitness.
From standing up and walking to get a coffee, to climbing up and down stairs, it all counts. Add in house work, all that pushing and pulling, wiping and dusting, sweeping and vacuuming. In the garden, the planting, lawn mowing and hedge cutting, this all counts toward your grand total of movement for the day.
A Harvard Study found that housekeepers worked physically harder with better health outcomes after learning that their work is a Surgeon-General approved form of daily exercise. After four weeks they experienced a decrease in body fat, blood pressure and weight. The control group, who did not learn this, showed no improvement.
Step 1
So your first step is to have a positive attitude towards your chores, you will benefit both physically and psychologically.
As part of your inventory, think about how much regular housework and gardening you do?
Then add in any dedicated exercise that you do, if any.
This will give you a better idea of the movement you actually complete each day.
Step 2
Your second step is to find ways to break up any long periods of sitting. If you are relatively sedentary, you really need to get up and get moving.
Step 3
Your third step is to think about who you are seeing in the bathroom mirror and how you will look and feel if you carry on with your present lifestyle. What you might look like in ten or twenty years.
Happy with what you are seeing in the mirror and your level of exercise, that’s great. If you would like to improve on that, then the guidelines below – click the link – will give you some hints on how to do this.
And, with Covid-19 in mind, download our handy guide on how to move more and get your daily exercise at home, or when travelling.
Celebrate Movement and Have Fun!
Dislike Exercise?
How to Exercise in as Little as 10 Minutes a Day
How to Exercise at Home, In a Hotel Room – Anywhere
Read our handy guide on how to easily get daily exercise
even if you’re time poor or don’t like spending hours at the gym!
