A Fit Life - Tip Number Two - Doing Something is Better than Doing Nothing

It may have taken you months to get the leverage to make the decision to become a healthier more fit person, but the decision itself happened in an instant. You have decided to choose health and there is no turning back. If you have a lazy day or a lazy week, it's OK, you will get back on track. If you don't have an hour and half to exercise during the day, that is OK too. Try and remember that doing something active or healthy is always better than doing nothing.

All too often people who make the commitment to improving their health and fitness have a bad day or week and give up totally on their fitness goals. Remember: you made the decision to become healthy and there is no turning back. Of course you will pig out on junk food some days-or not exercise for a week-that does not mean that all is lost. Whenever you feel like you are falling off course and you have reverted back to your old self, get out and do something healthy as soon as possible. Go for a fifteen minute walk. Prepare a healthy lunch for the next day. Briskly clean the house. Do ten push ups and ten burpees. Break the habit!

The idea behind doing something healthy when you are veering off course is quite simple. The fitness rewards aside, doing something healthy breaks the negative mental cycle that can happen when we have an unhealthy day. When you have been unhealthy for a week and you start to think 'I've failed at this health kick again' that is when you need to quickly break the mental pattern and get yourself going right away. Don't wait. Do something. Do anything active and healthy to break the pattern and start thinking healthy again. Once you have completed something healthy you will see that you will feel re-energized and your motivation has returned. Just like that, you have taken hold of your health once again.

Doing something is better than nothing doesn't just help to break the negative mental cycle. It also helps with our physical fitness. With decreased leisure time and increased commitments it can be hard to find the proper amount of time to exercise. The standard time to spend in the gym runs about an hour. If you only have a half an hour to go to the gym, that is ok. Go anyway and try to fit an hour workout into a half hour. Watch as your workout intensity rises. What if you have even less time? Wake up fifteen minutes early and go for a power walk or run. It can be an amazing productive feeling to get a workout done in the morning - even if it is a quick one.

By doing something healthy instead of nothing we break our mental cycle and reap the health and fitness benefits associated with the activity. Too many people try to change every unhealthy habit they have in their lives all at once. As soon as one slip-up occurs, these people feel as though they have failed and abandon ship going back to their hold unhealthy habits. Remember, the decision has been made to become healthy. Doing something healthy is better than doing nothing at all.

A Fit Life - Tip Number One - Replace all fluids with water

A Fit Life is an onoing series of weekly posts that will provide simple steps towards creating a healthier, fitter and more radiant body. It will consist of 8 tips over an 8 week period

This weeks post will dive right into a health tip that is easy to implement. Remember, everyone has different fitness goals and this tip is aimed at the general population who is overweight and looking to loose some inche. I will get into the specifics of the program in the following post but for now, if you are looking to makes some changes in your life, implement this tip immediately!

A Fit Life - Tip Number One Substitute ALL fluids with water.

Very easy to follow. For the next seven days and following 8 weeks, only drink water. No more soft drinks On average carbonated soft drinks contain about 150 calories of pure sugar per can. If you are popping two pops back a day, that is 300 calories. Multiply that by seven days a week and your weekly caloric intake is 2100 in just pop alone. Diet pops are definitely no better as the uncertainty and negative evidence with artificial sweeteners is growing. No more juice, from concentrate or pure forms. Yes there may be some vitamins in juices but the caloric content is very high, about 130 calories per cup of juice and most people will pour themselves a tall glass which will push the 300 calorie mark. Calories aside, fruit juices pop and fruit drinks spike your insulin levels and put a high glycemic load on the body which encourage the body to use sugar as a fuel and not fat. Eating an actual piece of fruit will give you body vitamins and fibre which in turn will make you feel more full. No more milk. Definitely no more milk. Milk is designed to double and triple the weight of our babies and we are the only species on the planet who drinks it after the rearing period is over. It has calcium and protein but the weight gain and gastro-intestinal issues that arise from consuming milk outweigh the benefits. You will get plenty of calcium from a high quality multi vitamin and some from dark green vegetables. If calcium is a big dietary concern (dieting women) then consider taking a calcium supplement.Interesting fact - North Americans consume more calcium than anywhere else in the world yet we suffer from the most cases of osteoporosis as well. Read more about why you should cut out milk here. No alcohol. High calories, hard on the liver. Enough said.

By replacing all of these drinks with water you will reduce you caloric intake significantly throughout the week, flush you body of toxins (by drinking spring water), keep your sugars levels more balanced and ease digestive discomfort. You may notice improved skin, better breath and less energy spikes throughout the course of the week.

You will also notice quickly that you will be lots drinking lots of water and going to the washroom more often than usual. These washroom breaks will taper as your get used to the increased fluid intake.


Two exceptions - Coffee and Tea. These can be addressed at a later date. Just ensure that you having these two drinks black without sugar or milk.

Start now, start today, don't feel bad if you slip up just make sure to get back on track and be conscious that you have MADE THE DECISIONS to do this.