The Importance of Fitness
There are so many people out there who treat fitness and exercise like a four-letter word. They simply dread the idea of any sort of exercise. While there is a growing faction of people who have already immersed themselves in the fitness lifestyle, there is still a vast number of people are simply ignorant to the idea of bettering themselves through exercise. For the vast majority in this group it’s because they are complacent in their laziness. It’s become part of their identity. There’s not much you can do for such people except be a beacon of hope by living your best life. Be an example to such people and offer to share your perspective should they change their mind in the future.
Others on the fitness spectrum know the importance of working out through past experience. They want to start back living a healthy lifestyle but just can’t get motivated. Perhaps loved ones and/or medical professionals have stressed the importance of losing weight through exercise and proper nutrition to treat or prevent looming chronic health issues. For whatever reason, they simply can’t get started or once they do get started they wind up giving up shortly after.
Fitness is a Choice
I get it. I’ve been all over the place in the fitness realm. There were large portions of my life where I just wanted to be fat, lazy, and eat/drink whatever I wanted in a perpetual state of blissful hedonism. There were also equally large portions of my life that were centered on exercise, nutrition, eating well, and self-empowerment. The two polar opposite lifestyles cannot even compare to one another. The best times in my life when I was most creative, productive, and driven were easily the times when I was fully immersed in the exercise of my mind, body, and spirit.
For those of you that have experienced the Zen-like phenomena of being grounded in a fitness-minded lifestyle know how difficult it can be to start. You also know how easy it is to fall back into a complacent lifestyle of ease and comfort. It cannot be denied. Starting and maintaining a fitness lifestyle is extremely tough. You’re gonna need the determination, toughness, and mental fortitude to get through the first 4-8 weeks to start seeing and feeling results. Soreness and tiredness are gonna be abundant in those first several weeks. Not only that, you’re most likely gonna be a cranky-ass to the majority of people around you. Fear not though. Once you see and feel even that tiny bit of progress, the beginning of of those physical and mental gains, your whole mindset and worldview will shift for the better.
The Critical Shift
That critical shift in thinking typically occurs within that 4-8 week period with consistent moderate-intense training. For some people it occurs sooner. For others it occurs later. One thing that’s certain though; if you stick with the program while incorporating healthy eating and living, you will definitely see a fitter body, shift in worldview, and growth in consciousness.
Your body starts to feel stronger. The soreness that once crippled you from walking up and down the stairs, reaching for something above your head, or making you “trust fall” onto the toilet actually starts to feel good. Your mind becomes clearer as it becomes accustomed to the endorphins and dopamine released from the “natural high” of working out. Sleep becomes more satisfying as your sleep cycle becomes more regulated. You will begin to experience what true living is supposed to feel like as your body is filled with natural energy fueling you throughout the day.
GAINZZZ!!!
Not only will you feel the results but you will start to see the gains! Most likely others will notice the changes in your body and demeanor first. Don’t stress though. Soon after you’ll begin to start seeing and feeling the results yourself. Your stomach, that has been getting bigger and bigger from years of complacency, starts to tighten up. You may even begin to develop “abs”. Several other areas of your body that have been “sagging” from months, if not years, of little to no exercise will also start to tighten. The muscles that have been hiding for so long under a fluffy layer of skin will begin to emerge. Trust me, once you see that first ab muscle, bicep vein, or shoulder muscle bulge, it’s off to the races!
There are few things that feel as good as when a friend, family member, or co-worker notices that you look fit and healthy. They notice that you have a “glow” about you or ask if you’ve lost weight. Sometimes they can’t even put a finger on the changes but they notice that there’s just something “different” about you. They’re intrigued. So while you have their attention, just share where you were, what caused you to want to change your lifestyle, where you’re at now, and where you see yourself in the future of your wellness journey.
You Get What You Give
This is just a small sample to illustrate the kind of results you can expect from beginning your fitness journey. The beauty is that everyone experiences a fitness and exercise lifestyle differently. Not all results are the same and you get what you put into it. If you want to put low-moderate effort into a fitness program, you’re going to get low-moderate results. Likewise, if you want to put intense effort into fitness but eat trash like a raccoon then you’re also going to get low-moderate results. Vice-versa is also true. High effort in all three aspects of wellness (fitness, nutrition, and mental health) must work congruently in order to maximize the results on living your best life possible.
One thing is certain for all people. The more you embrace this newfound lifestyle the better you will look and feel both mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. When you break it down to the simplest explanation, it’s all about shifting your worldview and life perspectives in a positive direction. It’s about recognizing the destructive nature that is so profound in our society while rising above it with positive, constructive life changes.
This enables you to maximize your life potential while actively helping others achieve their goals. The main goal of Foodsource Nutrition is to encourage you to embrace this health and wellness lifestyle so you, in turn, can help someone else be the best person they can be. Ideally, you will go out and create your own website, YouTube, social media, etc., to spread positivity to make this world a better place.
Throughout the Foodsource Nutrition website and in the subsequent FITNESS pages we’ll break down several different exercise programs and techniques so you can decide what works for you. Everyone’s fitness goals are different so we’ll explore several different facets of fitness that suit your needs and goals. You can follow the links below to the specific FITNESS categories or follow the dropdown menu on the FITNESS icon above. I look forward to working with you!
- Strength Training
- Cardio Training
- HIIT
- Balance Training
- Stabilization Training
- Cross Training
- Flexibility Training