FITNESS & HEALTH – the same thing?!

Many people often seem to confuse these two fairly different concepts. Let’s try to clarify these terms a bit more this week.

According to the World Health Organization, “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

AND, regarding fitness, how about this detailed definition and list of components?
– from http://www.opt.net.au/difference-fitness-and-health/

Fitness, on the other hand, is defined as a set of attributes that people have or achieve that relates to the ability to perform physical activity. Fitness is made up of many components, and the following factors need to be considered when discussing fitness levels:
1. Endurance (Cardiovascular and Cardio-Respiratory): This is your body’s ability to use and deliver oxygen to your body.
2. Stamina (Muscular Endurance): This is your body’s ability to store, process, and use energy.
3. Strength: This is the ability of your muscles or a muscular unit to apply force.
4. Flexibility: The ability to maximize the range of motion of a joint.
5. Power: The ability of your muscles to maximize their force in a minimum amount of time.
6. Speed: The ability to minimize the amount of time it takes you to accomplish a task or movement.
7. Coordination: The ability to combine several different movement patterns in a single distinct movement.
8. Accuracy: The ability to control a movement in a given direction or intensity.
9. Agility: The ability to minimize the time going from one movement to another.
10. Balance: The ability to control the centre of gravity of your body in relation to your support base.

So, conceivably, an individual can be very fit and even quite strong, but could still be unhealthy in some regards. Additionally, a person can be very healthy, but possibly not very fit. The goal for all of us should likely be seeking out a balance of both fitness and health.

This makes good sense to me, personally. In my earlier years, my mind seemed to focus almost entirely on being fit and strong. I think that some friends and colleagues still view me or think of me as a “physically fit” individual. Yet, looking at the ten attributes here, I definitely have some weaknesses, especially in terms of flexibility. At my somewhat advanced age, I try to think more of “mobility.” I want to be able to MOVE every day – feeling that my various joints are fluid enough to move my body in a variety of ways – whether exercising, playing sports, or doing daily physical chores at home.

In my 50’s and now mid-60’s, my main focus and goals currently reside much more in the overall realm of Health, and overall wellness. I want to feel good not just physically, but mentally-socially-emotionally, and even spiritually. In my quest for more complete health, I now pay much more attention to certain lifestyle factors, such as: better sleep, purposeful nutrition, managing stress, getting sunlight, playing, avoidance of trauma, and conscientiously using my mind.

Sure – I still want to maintain a good physical appearance; I want to maintain a good amount of muscle mass and tone; I desire to improve my sports performance levels, along with enhancing my mobility-flexibility also. Yet, these days I strive for overall quality of life, a long healthspan – free of disease as long as possible; and just feeling capable of daily movement and what might be termed “active aging.” The diagram caption for this post describes this well.

I also very much identify with this description of What Does it Mean to Be Fit? – from my own primal guru, Mark Sisson. His story of being an outstanding and premier triathlete is especially interesting and noteworthy. As he states – he was not actually fit in many ways, and he was definitely not healthy.

So, to each of you – ask yourself about your goals for the coming years – do you want to focus mainly on fitness, or on health – or a feasible combination/balance of these two concepts?!

GR​OK ON !

PLAY!

Greetings Healthy & Happy Friends,

Today’s post contains two links with references to one of the PB (Primal Blueprint) “Laws” – simply PLAY! I trust that all of you have been able to fit in lots of play during these summer months. My summer play consisted of some awesome hikes, and some fun outdoor barefoot workouts with “heavy stuff,” and some relaxing time in our little lake in the Adirondack mountains in upstate NY – some swimming, sun-bathing, and a little kayaking and tennis also. I am looking forward to continuing to play back here in Bangkok!

Enjoy these articles about the Importance of Play, and some interesting suggestions for some Ways to Play.

GR​OK ON !

Organic

Greetings Healthy, Happy Friends!

During these summer months when I am at home, I enjoy food shopping, and then preparing/cooking our daily meals – especially our dinners. As I peruse the items available in various stores, I try to remember which organic foods to purchase. I realise that many organic products are usually more expensive, but I feel that the extra cost is worth the benefits to be gained.

This article offers one list of recommended items to buy organic –

Another great resource is the EWG – Environmental Working Group. Their “mission is to empower people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. With breakthrough research and education, we drive consumer choice and civic action. We are a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to protecting human health and the environment.”

Every year, the EWG publishes their updated list of The Dirty Dozen and The Clean Fifteen. It is highly recommended that you buy organic for the dirty dozen, while the clean 15 are OK to buy conventional, or non-organic. You can review these items for 2018 at the above links.

As I return to Bangkok soon, I will keep this list close by in our kitchen, to remind me during upcoming grocery shopping trips.

As the saying goes …. some “food for thought!”

GR​OK ON !

Is Juice Really Healthy?!

Dear Friends,

I can remember growing up and enjoying a big glass of orange juice every morning, often along with a bowl of the latest flavour of boxed cereal (with lots of sugar as a main ingredient), and a few pieces of toast. Or I might include a big bagel with margarine (supposedly healthier than butter!). I continued eating this way often through my college years, and into my life as an adult – thinking that this was a fairly healthy way to start my day. In reality, I was giving myself a massive influx of sugar, causing my insulin to skyrocket; and then ending up hungry again just 2-3 hours later – and then eating/drinking another insulin-surging snack.

But I digress a bit – the main topic this week is JUICE. The number of different juice choices you can find in a grocery store these days is astronomical – so many brands, so many flavors – all claiming to offer a myriad of health benefits. Yet, as I am confident that many of you have become aware of in recent years – many of these juices contain more sugar than typical sodas/soft drinks. For those of you with children, please take special note.

A recent article, written by two pediatrics professors, describes a more illuminating look at the actual effects of ingesting any type of fruit juices on a regular basis.

Another resource – Authority Nutrition (evidence-based), agrees with the unhealthy effects of fruit juices.

Again, as many of you likely know, it is better for us to eat our fruits and vegetables in their “whole” state, instead of juicing – which can produce more insulin in the body, while also missing out on the fiber from eating the actual fruit or vegetable. Yet, another common practice among people seeking better health through nutrition is the process of juice cleanses. I have never been a fan of “cleansing,” as my option would be more along the lines of some type of fasting (more on this in future posts!) Yet, I realise that some people may have enjoyed various effects of a juice cleanse. This article offers some information and a “bottom line” on juice cleanses.

OK, that’s all for this week. Have a great upcoming weekend!

GR​OK ON !

Belated Happy July 4th to all my American Friends!

As many of you know, I am a big fan of Vibram five finger shoes, which I wear almost every day. Recently, I have taken my new V-Trek shoes (see attached photo) out for some test runs on some great hikes, both in New Hampshire and here in the Adirondack mountains in upstate New York. I even had a “trail mate” for a short stretch on the route today – see attached video!​

The new shoes were fantastic during the hikes, handling all of the uneven terrain both uphill and downhill wonderfully! Hiking/trekking remains arguably my favourite form of exercise, and more importantly – my favourite form of movement. Inevitably, I always feel re-energised with renewed vigour during and after my journeys on the trail – sometimes enjoying some forest bathing along the way – see blog post # 16.

Speaking of movement, I am currently reading an excellent book by Katy Bowman – “MOVE YOUR DNA – Restore Your Health Through Natural Movement.” This book has been an eye-opener for me, as it offers an entirely new and different look at movement and exercise – working at the cellular level. The book has also motivated me to spend much more time barefoot, which is easier to do here, being close to nature – spending time at our lake/beach and out on a paddleboard also.

Hope you enjoy these inks about preparing for barefooting and transitioning to more of a barefoot lifestyle! AND – I trust that you will consider spending more time being barefoot soon – both inside and outside!

GR​OK ON !