Trade your Rut for a Groove

We are all creatures of habit. That is, we do the same things over and over again generally with the same intensity and regularity. Most often, the things that we do over and over are bad for us.

An example of a wrong habit is resting after a hard days work and an evening meal, never exercising either before work or on the lunch hour. This is typical of many Americans. Doing this on a daily basis makes us gain weight and lose muscle tone. 

The reason we do this is much the same for all of us. Our jobs are very difficult, emotionally though not physically. They are generally stressful and often times tedious, making us think that what we need is physical rest to recover from them. Of course, we really need a five to ten mile run for maximum healthiness. But it does not feel this way. Therefore, we never even try doing anything differently.

In other words, we stay stuck in a rut. This is a metaphorical way of saying that we keep doing same self-defeating things over and over again, like spinning our wheels when in a ditch.  That is, we cannot get out of  sitting all day only to return home and  anesthetize ourselves with food, most often of the high carb and fat variety. After this we forget our lives in front of the television or computer.

An advanced degree in fitness is not required to understand that living like this will result in unwanted physical changes within under a year. Continuing to not do the right things such as daily running or swimming accompanied by a natural foods diet with the right supplements will almost surely result in eventual obesity. That is even true of those who have a higher metabolism.

What is needed is a conversion of the after work sit-down time to one of exercise. That means replacing our old habits with new ones, filling the same period of time for an entirely different activity. Doing so can be referred to as developing a groove, which is far easier to do than is commonly believed.

Being creatures of habit, we have only to become accustomed to a new way of being. It is hard to do this at first but it becomes easier with each new effort Typically a complete change, experienced as positive anticipation, occurs in just under six months., What most people do not realize is that this new way of being really does get easier with time, even easier than the old sedenatary way of living. Not knowing this is the chief reason that so many just do not do what they know they should.

For a discussion of  the necessary attitudes to make and maintain this transition, order my book "Think and Grow Fit."
Posted by mark clemens at 8/6/2010 9:30 AM
Categories: Better with age, baby boomers, Lose weight, Take off years, Think and Grow Fit, Foreverfitness, Fountain of Youth
Tags: markclemens forevefitness rockystallone janefonda daratorres jacklalanne
 

What did you think of this article?




Trackbacks
Trackback specific URL for this post
  • No trackbacks exist for this post.
Comments
Display comments as (Linear | Threaded)

Leave a comment

Submitted comments are subject to moderation before being displayed.

 Enter the above security code (required)

 Name

 Email (will not be published)

 Website

Your comment is 0 characters limited to 3000 characters.