Fitness Friday: Fit for Life

Okay, I've had a 'Fitness Friday' request, and will get to it, but my current ailment has caused me to think about why it's important to be fit. Last week, as we all know by now, I sprained my ankle fairly badly out on a jog. Good reason NOT to jog, you might say, and we can sure argue that all day long. But immediately my body had to make some compensation. First, I was on crutches for the better part of 5 days. I was VERY thankful I've been lifting weights, as much as I HATE doing it! It wasn't easy, but my upper body was able to drag around my plenty-ample lower body when necessary. No doubt, it worked WAY better when I got crutches the right size (I used Riley's -- about 5 inches too short-- for the first 24 hours). I was very thankful that I didn't have to add back, neck, shoulder, and arm pain to my foot pain.

My dad has had his fair share of surgeries in this life. One thing I have learned from and appreciated about him is that he works HARD to go into a surgery in top cardiovascular shape to help his body recover from surgery. It sounds crazy (a little bit) until you think about why we work out. He's not working out to improve a running time or fit into a smaller size, he is working out so that his cardiovascular system is ready for the stress and trauma it will go through under anesthesia and will recover from it quickly. Sure, he KNOWS that as soon as he has the surgery his body won't be able to do what it could the day BEFORE the surgery. Some may consider this a setback, unless they were doing their 'training' for such a time as this!

We dont' always know when life will throw us a curve ball (or a pecan to step on) and we will end up under anesthesia or on crutches. Exercise not only strengthens your system to handle such physical stress, but keeps us mentally healthy under such conditions. I would encourage you to be thinking about how you train for life, or whatever life will throw at you!

I encouraged someone about getting fit this week, and they said that my admonition had really helped and they wanted me to share it with you. I actually think I may have, but don't see it right off the bat here, so let's hear it again anyway, shall we?

Said friend has health issues because of weight, but knows, because she is wise, that December 1 isn't REALLY the time to go on some crazy all-or-nothing diet, right? (It's not, people, trust me on this). However, the entire month of December is entirely TOO LONG to go 'not caring' or knowing that you're starting a diet Jan. 1 and overeating for the entire month to 'get ready'. I encouraged her to do this one thing: Weigh every day. Again, I KNOW there can be all manner of emotional baggage tied with whatever that number is, but you need to know it and face it. Do NOT allow that number to judge you, but to be a reference tool about what is really going on in your body. And you simply ask yourself, as you look at that number: "What can I do TODAY to make that number a little lower tomorrow?" The first thing you can do is drink a LOT of water. It helps, but then reality has to kick in, and the next day, you'll need to drink a LOT of water, and stop eating a little earlier in the evening, or leave a few extra bites on your plate. It isn't making the scale your judge or master, but it's becoming aware of the little tiny changes you can make to improve your health.

This I did find looking through old Fitness Friday: "The world isn't at a shortage of information about how to lose weight or become more fit." We all know what to do, we have to make the daily decision to do it.

Be fit for life!