Okay, the Exercise Science Bloke is here today. Whistle in hand, heart-rate monitor strapped on, spandex body-suit firmly in place, leg-warmers adorning my hairy ankles and sweaty biceps and pecs glistening in the morning sun.
Feeling queezy yet? Me too. Sorry about that unnecessary visual.
The common denominator So, I guess the one thing we all have in common when it comes to our body is our desire to look good, feel good and function good. Er, goodly. Er, well. Er, much more better. You know what I mean.
Where are my glasses? Anyway, while the younger members of the tribe are typically more concerned with how they look for their numerous social outings and courting rituals, us more...
experienced members of the species are usually more concerned with our creaky knees, our rapidly decreasing bone density, our sore lower backs and our ever-diminishing eyesight; how we feel and function. Sure, a six pack and a few veins would be great (not the varicose kind either), but right now, simply being able to walk up stairs without chest pain would be a bonus.
Talk to any over-weight person and there's a fair chance you'll hear something like:
"Yeah, I'm an endomorph, I have the world's slowest metabolism"... or
"I eat really well but I've inherited the family fat gene"... or
"At my age, I'm fighting a losing battle." Apparently obesity is a foregone conclusion for them; something beyond their control.
Well, fortunately for you and I, our genetics and our age don't determine our physical reality; how we look, feel and function. Sure, they play a role and they need to be factored in to our overall strategy, but our DNA does not determine (impacts on, but doesn't determine) how fat or thin, fit or unfit, healthy or unhealthy we'll be when we're forty, fifty or eighty.
Getting the most out of what we've got When it comes to maximising our genetic potential - getting the most out of what we've got - there's a bunch of stuff we can change and there's a few things we can't (let me know if I'm getting too technical at any stage). The reality is that the
vast majority of us (listen to this bit carefully) do not even
nearly maximise our physical potential. Imagine owning a Ferrari and constantly filling it with kerosene, instead of the high-octane fuel it requires. Of course we wouldn't do that. Yet we'll gladly put crap in our body year in, year out.
Wasting time Stupidly, many of us waste significant time and emotional energy on the stuff we have no control over, while investing virtually no energy or time into the stuff that can drastically change our body and our life.
A few examples:
Can't change: body type
Can change: body shape
Can't change: what you ate last week
Can change: what you eat this week
Can't change: what genes your parents gave you
Can change: what you do with those genes
Can't change: the ever-increasing amount of fast food at your disposal
Can change: whether or not you put it in your gob
Can't change: chronological age (how many years you've been on the planet)
Can change: biological age (how 'old' your body is)
Can't change: what's required to get in shape, lose weight and
stay that way
Can change: your attitude, your level of commitment and your application
Can't change: what you've done or not done over the last (insert number) years
Can change: how strong, fit, lean, flexible and functional you will become over the next few months
Can't change: the alcohol, the drugs, the coffee, the lack of sleep and the stress you've subjected yourself to for far too long
Can change: the kind of lifestyle you choose to lead from today
Can't change: the decisions you've made to this point in time
Can change: the decisions you'll make from right now
Can't change: how many times you've started and stopped
Can change: whether or not you choose to continue that pattern
Can't change: How much potential you have
Can change: How much of that potential you use
Can't change: other people
Can change: you
Can't change: your history
Can change: your future
But the question is, will you?