If we go back in time for a moment, before the invention of vehicles, before public transportation, before working in offices and sitting down, before television, cinema and restaurants. Man was on the move, every day, most of the day. He had to walk, work, carry, gather, hunt, work in the field, in the factory or outside. In order for something to move from place to place, there was not always a car, a transport company or a post office. And the further back we go, the more man would work, with effort with his body.
If we look at the people who lived thousands of years ago, they were bigger, stronger, with a healthy appearance, full of hair and full of muscles.
Nowadays the situation is very different. And problematic. Not everything shows. And the epidemic of obesity, illness and depression is on the rise and the fact that I am not there today, does not mean that if I do not take care of myself, I will not get there. Over the years, man has become a more fragile, sick character, with back pain, muscles, fatigue, belly, baldness and the hand is still outstretched.
The fact that his life is more comfortable is amazing. But from an evolutionary perspective, this does not mean that we can afford to completely devote ourselves to this lifestyle if we want to stay healthy, happy and energetic.
To put it bluntly: the environmental situation is to our detriment. Everything leads us to be weaker, sicker and more depressed.
Our way to become more like the strong man who lived then is through daily physical activity. It is not a chore, it is a way of life. Physical activity should not be the way to be thin (it is not related to diet at all), not to aesthetics and cubes in the stomach – but the way to health and strength. This is what a healthy and strong person looks like. Healthy people look better, more attractive and their self-confidence is doubled and multiplied.
So what do we do? It is mainly up to you. In order to persevere, you will need to find an activity that you will love. This doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily love it from day one, or that you’ll be happy to do it again every time, you don’t always have the strength or desire, but you have to love it and be good at it.
For that matter, I like to lift weights and surf. And I commute by bike 95% of my time.
For that matter, I don’t enjoy running, so I don’t do it forcefully. I don’t enjoy yoga classes, so I don’t walk forcefully, and in general I don’t like being told what and when to do – so I found what suits me after trying almost everything.
The more I exercise, on a regular basis I recognize the improvement. First, there’s the matter of progress. When a person sees progress in their work, they already feel good and satisfied. Beyond that, I feel my body getting stronger, my sleep is improving (the more energy I expend, the better I sleep), my body looks better, my back pain is gone, and I function better in other areas.
How do you start? Understand that you don’t start in one day. Small steps are very significant. Even a percent improvement a day becomes a 365% improvement a year. So small steps will be great.
Then (as mentioned above) it is advisable to choose the thing that suits you best, and choose something that will be easy for you to do. For this purpose, I go to a gym that is a 3-minute walk from my house. Any farther and I would not go very often.
Last and most important, like any other task, whether it is getting to work on time, to a meeting, to a doctor’s or psychologist’s appointment. Decide what you will do, where, and when and put it in your diary.
