It was my 30th birthday. Since I was born on August 30th, turning 30 had always been a big deal for me, and I was very much looking forward to it. To make sure the event lived up to expectations, my husband took me on a surprise vacation to Aruba. Not a bad pick, I’d say. He had organized all the details behind my back. All he told me was to pack my bathing suit, some sandals, and a pretty dress. Imagine!
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What would be a great indicator that someone is remarkably healthy? Would running a marathon be proof enough? Don’t worry, I’m nowhere near ready for a marathon either, so that’s not where I’m going with this. Assuming running a marathon is a good benchmark, let’s push this idea a little farther. How would running a marathon after age 50 sound? How about after age 60? You get the idea: the older the marathon runner, the more remarkable the individual’s physical shape.
Can you guess the age of the oldest marathon runner in history? And what does that mean for you, regular person for whom running a marathon seems as likely as taking a ride on the back of a flying giraffe?
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Life is so full of things to do that it sometimes seems impossible to find time to exercise. But what if we thought about exercise a little more expansively — not just as trips to the gym with getting dressed, warming up, working out, cooling down, showering and so on. What if we also thought about getting exercise as finding ways to increase movement during the day WHILE we are doing all those important chores?
Wrinkling your eyebrows? Let me illustrate with something I do every day – making cappuccino for lunch.
If you know me, you know that my thing is connecting sleep, food, mood and exercise. I love to discuss how these four groups of habits are connected and make each other easier. But improving one habit is already a challenge, never mind improving habits in 4 categories! Agreed, doing so can sound daunting and effortful (if you don’t know my full process, that is ;0), so today I’d like to share ways that will improve your health and simultaneously save your energy.
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Whether you use the treadmill desk, the FitDesk or an ergonomic ball to bounce on (which I have), you’re apparently doing your body some good, burning more calories than if you are just sitting all day long. Marie-Josee Shaar, co-author of Smarts & Stamina, recalls her favorite things to do at the office to avoid afternoon lethargy and procrastination.
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If you’ve ever slipped away from your health standards, you probably understand what it’s like to get back on track: boy are we stiff everywhere for a while! Whew! So this time, rather than go-go-go for as long as I can as often as possible, I decided to purposefully finish my workouts a little prematurely. Click to read on and understand why.
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Marie-Josée Shaar received her undergrad at McGill University in Organizational Behavior, followed by a Master of Applied Positive Psychology at University of Pennsylvania. She's certified as a Wellness Culture Coach, a Personal Trainer, and a Nutrition and Wellness Consultant. She has spent the last 13 years studying, testing, coaching and teaching smart health habits, both nationally and internationally.
