Is Your Exercise Healing Your Body?

I watch people running and walking on the roadsides in their communities. It used to amaze me that so many people have it wrong. I stopped being amazed nearly ten years ago. I remember stopping to talk to a man who was doing some calisthenics after a run. He seemed to be having difficulty finding the correct extension for stretching the hamstring. I showed him how to prop his leg up on the back of a nearby park bench instead of the waste receptacle he was using.I thought I would ask if he had ever worked with a trainer or read a book on exercise. I wasn't surprised by his response.

"Any fool can get out and walk," he said. "It doesn't take a whole lot of studying."

The man was partly right. There are literally thousands of people on the roads of their towns who apparently want to be in better health but don't have a clue. On our website, Vitality Peaks, we point out that exercise can be damaging to the body if not done correctly. Think of it as driving your car all over town in first gear or with your brake shoes dragging against the discs. Some people seem to understand the importance of wearing good walking shoes, rather than ordinary street shoes. That's a start.

Most of the problem seems to be the manner in which the uninformed person exercises. Since there are so many physiques that respond to exercise in different ways, the technique for exercise has to be personalized. If I am sauntering down the street, it does not mean you can do it without harming your joints or spine. We are all different to some degree, and it's important, perhaps, to know why.

For details about how to exercise and for how long, please see our new page on that subject at Vitality Peaks.com.

Here's to your health!

Hudster

When Nike Was Only The Name Of A Missile

If there is a single hot topic on the minds of Americans, besides how to earn more money, it's Personal Health. Themes such as fitness, nutrition, weight loss, longevity and sex-appeal loom large in the minds consumers of all ages today. We all know who the prime targets are...(if you need a hint, you're probably reading the wrong blog).

Fitness and weight-loss are two of the most commercial themes in the Universe. I still remember what my high school track coach said to me about training. "Don't let it bother you, Billy when people stare at you as if you just robbed a bank. Keep running. It will keep you from getting old," he said.

A couple of guys almost ran me over in CP (do you know where that is? need a hint? think New York City!) a few years back. These dudes were decked out, too. I looked around to see if there was a camera crew trailing behind them, they were so pretty.

Yes, in today's world of consumerism, if you're not wearing something made by Nike or grunting on a Nautilus look-alike, you're probably not taking your fitness seriously enough. You would definitely not get the attention of a well-connected TV camera operator. Meanwhile, the joke can actually be on the mega marketers of exercise accouterments.

Since I don't plan on breaking any records in the next few years, I will continue to do my "situps" (that's an exercise that builds six-packs) and "pushups" (the upper body building regimen that Muhammad Ali used for breaking faces). Not to worry, your face is safe with me.

The point is that walking, jogging, running, situps and pushups can do more to build strength than most people realize. Many of us have forgotten - or never knew - that bigness is not synonymous with strength. If all you want to do is build a larger body, then machines are your ticket. Not so, with basic fitness for a finely tuned anatomy. Working out is not a synonym for catalogs.

We hope this treatise has been enlightening and refreshing, especially for people from my generation. Don't know what generation that is, yet? It's okay. It doesn't mean you're not a nice person.

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On The Lighter Side

Good health goes along with good attitudes and habits. Most of us get our habits from home and the friends with whom we associate. I had a buddy who loved to run. For a while, I thought he was being anti-social because, in those days, people didn't do much running.

Now, it's easy to find someone who works out and probably wouldn't mind having company. I have another friend who likes to go snowboarding. Now, that's a little bit more of a narcisistic sport, kind of like, golfing. Regardless, of which sport is more appealing, having one as a favorite passtime sets up the basis of a pretty healthy lifestyle in future years.

I played tennis a lot when I was younger. I tended to over-hit the ball at the beginning because I also lifted weights. It took a while for me to temper my tennis strokes and improve on my shot placements; but, I always tried to get the most out playing the sport. Singles matches were my favorite. They still are. After forty years of playing tennis, I can still put a little sting into my forehand - cross court.

During those same years, I made it a habit of drinking a lot of vitalizing fluids and eating nutritious foods. Today, it's a little more difficult to find the foods that can adequately nutrify our bodies. That's why it's a good idea to include high-quality supplements in our diets. There are some important things that go into selecting the right nutritional products on the market. For example, not all energy drinks and snacks are created equal.

Keep an eye on our blogs for an interesting and enlightening discussion on keeping our bodies fit.
Thanks for stopping by!

Hudster