Stop the Insanity--Eat, Breath & Move

Susan Powter was right!

Spend just an hour watching television and count how many commercials advertise, exercise equipment, diet pills, face creams, hair-loss remedies, new medications for diseases we never knew existed and herbal supplements to enhance male potency. For all our obsessions, we Americans are an amazingly obese, disease-ridden society that worries itself into an early grave.

Joseph Onesta is a speaker, trainer and consultant. His company, Integrity HPI, works with organizations to help build and maintain and "employer of choice" work environment. For more information about Joseph Onesta or his company, visit his website at http:www.integrityhpi.com


In the 90’s buzz-cut, Susan Powter, shouted her message of “Stop the Insanity. What you have to do is eat, breath and move.” It comes down to that. (She's still around... http://www.susanpowteronline.com )

If we are going to pursue a balanced life, we have to make room for taking care of our bodies. After all, we can’t have a balanced life if we have no life to balance. And, we all know how simple physical discomfort, things like hangnails and paper cuts, can distract us from absolutely everything else. In balancing our lives, we have to consider our bodies.

Drastic lifestyle changes are almost always doomed to failure. We’ve proven it again and again. We buy gym memberships we never use. We buy proportioned food plans that we eat in less than half the time they are supposed to last. Our basements are filled with unused exercise equipment and our cupboard shelves are lined bottles of herbal supplements we don’t take.

There are, however, some simple things we can do to grow healthier by the day. Based on average American lifestyle and diet, not all of these recommendations will apply to every individual. Choose the ones that best apply to your life.

EAT

We eat for lots of reasons but biologically, there are only two. We need fuel and we need nutrition. In looking to improve our diet, the devil is in the details. The more complicated we make it, the less likely we are to follow through but some simple principles can go a long way.

The average American diet is heavily laden with salt, fat, processed sugars, chemicals and empty calories. Nutrition labels have to exist because our processed food products are designed to taste good, stay on the shelves for a long time and be cheap to manufacture. Apart from supplying empty calories, processed foods often provide little else. In fact what nutrition there may be has often been added to the product after processing has removed the natural nutrients.

So, read labels! You should know what you are eating. They often betray outrageous levels of fat, salt and processed sugars which are major contributors to some of the most common yet deadly conditions in American culture—obesity, high-blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease and diabetes. The chemicals are probably tied to cancer in more ways than one, we just either can’t prove it or powerful lobbies keep the information out of our hands. Look how long it took the tobacco industry to admit that smoking is addictive and causes lung cancer.



The contents of food products are listed in order of quantity. The first few words may be frightening enough but keep reading. If you start getting into words you do not recognize or cannot pronounce, you are likely among chemical additives for consistency, color or preservation. The word “artificial” is a definite chemical indicator. It does not take much mental power to understand that eating an apple picked from a tree is better for you than drinking apple flavored beverage most of which is chemical additives and processed sugars.

Don’t be fooled by the words “natural flavors” either. If there were natural foods in there, they would be listed in the contents. The so-called natural flavors can just as likely include the odd bug that falls into the vat during processing.

Eating more fresh fruit and vegetables would be a dramatic improvement for many of us and if we go with certified organic produce, we avoid consuming chemicals which have been applied as fertilizers and pesticides. Salad is nice but be careful about the dressing. Eating more whole grains will increase our fiber and add natural nutrition. Think twice before picking up the butter knife or salt shaker.

Consider cooking and eating at home more. If you have ever been to a restaurant supply store, you know that it is filled with processed food as are most restaurant kitchens. The only difference is the size of the packaging.

BREATHE

Unless you live in Bangkok or Los Angeles, chances are the air outside is better than the air inside. Get out into the countryside and breathe some good fresh air. In your daily routine, consider some deep breathing exercises to expand your lungs.

When I was in the hospital recovering from spinal surgery, every once in a while, a beeping machine would bring a nurse who would instruct me to breathe deeply. Apparently one of the cords attached to my body alerted her to the fact that my tissues were not getting enough oxygen. A few deep breaths rectified the problem. I find that amazing!

Most of us do not think about breathing. After all, we do it constantly and unintentionally. Who would think that such a simple thing as conscious deep breathing could make such a difference in our health? This also sheds a new light on smoking, does it not? Cancer may be slow in coming but what about all that oxygen depleted breathing you are doing? If you smoke, stop. If you hang around with smokers, don’t.

MOVE

Have you heard? Your local gym is having a membership sale. Buying a membership won’t do you any good unless actually go several times a week and do more than sit in the Jacuzzi. If going to the gym fits your life, go. But you don’t need a membership to get some exercise. Just get up and move. Walk to the corner and back. Take the stairs at the office. Wash your own car. Take a walk in the woods. When you go to the pool, get in and swim rather than just bobbing around a looking at the people in their bathing suits wishing you were thinner. Small changes can make a big difference, even parking in the space farthest from the entrance to the donnut shop! Just move more.

Though we are lured by the promise of miracle supplements, magic weight pills, youth in a jar of cream and perfect health and vigor in a capsule, they are all snake oil compared to the simple straightforward advice of someone like Susan Powter. We need to eat, breathe and move.

Forget About the Gym!

To look at me, you would never guess that I have been a member of a health club since 1989. That is because, with the exception of brief spurts of intense motivation, I almost never go. It is not so much that I dislike the activity but rather, getting there, changing my clothes, working out, showering, changing my clothes again and getting back into my routine take up way too much time out of my day. I simply cannot fit going to the gym into my schedule.

I am not alone. The best estimates that I can find on-line from a number of sources indicate that upwards of 70% of health club members never or rarely use their membership.

Most of us need to work. We would like to spend time with our spouses, family and friends. We may study. We may have a spiritual or community life. And then there is exercise. In the face of that sort of to-do list, what do we cut out?

Despite our better intentions, may of us cut out the exercise. We know that lack of sufficient exercise results in obesity, reduced cardio-vascular health, increased stress and even depression. We buy gym memberships we don’t use. Many of us own home exercise equipment that gathers dust. We swallow expensive supplements and subscribe to controlled food-delivery services. In the end, we make ourselves sick with guilt when none of it works and we are too ashamed of ourselves to take advantage of all those money-back guarantees.

In my quest for a balanced life, I have come to terms with the fact that exercising for sake of it is not a priority to me. I have done many of the subtle things commonly suggested to increase my activity. I park several extra blocks from my office. I choose parking spaces far from the store entrance. I take the stairs rather then the elevator. I sometimes spend my break time walking around the block. It is not enough!

Enter the humble toofer. A toofer is an activity that gives us double return on our investment of time and energy—the result of “two for” the investment of one. Toofers allow me to combine items on my to-do list and help me find some of that sought-for balance in life.

Take, for example, the task of getting the car washed. If you drive to the car wash, reaching for your wallet is about all the exercise you are going to get. But, if you wash the car by hand, you get a clean car as well as some exercise. That is a simple toofer. Add into the equation, all the money you save and you have double toofer. Wash the car by hand with the kids and the return goes through the roof! You get a clean car. You get exercise. You have some fun. You spend time with the kids. And you save a little money.

Toofers that help increase exercise are everywhere. All we need is a little imagination and some planning. Rather than going to the movies, consider taking a walking tour of a local neighborhood or a visit to the museum, art exhibit or zoo. You’ll get some exercise and learn something as well

Around the house, you might plant a vegetable garden, do some serious spring-cleaning, mow the lawn or paint a room. Volunteer for community clean-up day or build a house with Habitat for Humanity. Do any of these activities with family or friends and you exponentially increase the benefits.

I truly admire the folks at the gym with their chiseled athletic bodies. I wish I could go to the beach and not feel that I had somehow failed as a physical specimen. But I also know, beyond any doubt, that those people did not get those bodies from three twenty-minute workouts a week—no matter what the commercials say!

It takes real work and a lot of time to get a body like the ones we see in those commercials. I just do not have that kind of time. I would have to sacrifice another important facet of my life in order to spend that sort of time at the gym. So, I have forgotten all about the gym and the guilt for not going. As far as home exercise equipment goes, free weights make interesting stepping stones in the garden.

I’ll stick with the toofer. A little exercise is better than none. While I may not be an Adonis, my life is in better balance, I get exercise, have fun and get a few chores done in the bargain.

Joseph Onesta is a Speaker, Trainer and Consultant. His company, Integrity HPI, is dedicated to making the American experience at work better for both individuals and companies. Through keynote talks, seminars, workshops and focused projects, he partners with organizations to develope an "employer of choice" work environment.

Forget About the Gym!

To look at me, you would never guess that I have been a member of a health club since 1989. That is because, with the exception of brief spurts of intense motivation, I almost never go. It is not so much that I dislike the activity but rather, getting there, changing my clothes, working out, showering, changing my clothes again and getting back into my routine take up way too much time out of my day. I simply cannot fit going to the gym into my schedule.

I am not alone. The best estimates that I can find on-line from a number of sources indicate that upwards of 70% of health club members never or rarely use their membership.

Most of us need to work. We would like to spend time with our spouses, family and friends. We may study. We may have a spiritual or community life. And then there is exercise. In the face of that sort of to-do list, what do we cut out?

Despite our better intentions, may of us cut out the exercise. We know that lack of sufficient exercise results in obesity, reduced cardio-vascular health, increased stress and even depression. We buy gym memberships we don’t use. Many of us own home exercise equipment that gathers dust. We swallow expensive supplements and subscribe to controlled food-delivery services. In the end, we make ourselves sick with guilt when none of it works and we are too ashamed of ourselves to take advantage of all those money-back guarantees.

In my quest for a balanced life, I have come to terms with the fact that exercising for sake of it is not a priority to me. I have done many of the subtle things commonly suggested to increase my activity. I park several extra blocks from my office. I choose parking spaces far from the store entrance. I take the stairs rather then the elevator. I sometimes spend my break time walking around the block. It is not enough!

Enter the humble toofer. A toofer is an activity that gives us double return on our investment of time and energy—the result of “two for” the investment of one. Toofers allow me to combine items on my to-do list and help me find some of that sought-for balance in life.

Take, for example, the task of getting the car washed. If you drive to the car wash, reaching for your wallet is about all the exercise you are going to get. But, if you wash the car by hand, you get a clean car as well as some exercise. That is a simple toofer. Add into the equation, all the money you save and you have double toofer. Wash the car by hand with the kids and the return goes through the roof! You get a clean car. You get exercise. You have some fun. You spend time with the kids. And you save a little money.

Toofers that help increase exercise are everywhere. All we need is a little imagination and some planning. Rather than going to the movies, consider taking a walking tour of a local neighborhood or a visit to the museum, art exhibit or zoo. You’ll get some exercise and learn something as well.

Around the house, you might plant a vegetable garden, do some serious spring-cleaning, mow the lawn or paint a room. Volunteer for community clean-up day or build a house with Habitat for Humanity. Do any of these activities with family or friends and you exponentially increase the benefits.

I truly admire the folks at the gym with their chiseled athletic bodies. I wish I could go to the beach and not feel that I had somehow failed as a physical specimen. But I also know, beyond any doubt, that those people did not get those bodies from three twenty-minute workouts a week—no matter what the commercials say!

It takes real work and a lot of time to get a body like the ones we see in those commercials. I just do not have that kind of time. I would have to sacrifice another important facet of my life in order to spend that sort of time at the gym. So, I have forgotten all about the gym and the guilt for not going. As far as home exercise equipment goes, free weights make interesting stepping stones in the garden.

I’ll stick with the toofer. A little exercise is better than none. While I may not be an Adonis, my life is in better balance, I get exercise, have fun and get a few chores done in the bargain.