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Simple Steps to Frugal Health and Fitness

This is a guest post by Chris from Zen to Fitness.

Health and fitness are too often shunned or put off due to the misconception that things like a gym, vitamins, and expensive super-foods are needed to live a healthy lifestyle, build muscle and look good. This post will cover a few tips on how to get going with your fitness regime without spending cash that I have picked up along the way.

No Gym, No Problem

I actually recommend avoiding the gym when beginning a fitness plan for the following reasons;

• It takes transport time to get there, wasting your time
• They’re expensive
• Intimidating for new comers and personal trainers normally pester new members for the first few months
• Too many distractions
• You can achieve a great body through body weight movements

Staying fit is a beautiful thing when you are flexible with what you do. Acquire some simple sports kit you feel comfortable in (a good cotton t-shirt/basketball shorts/solid training shoes) which can all be had for less than a single month’s membership at a gym. I would also recommend an iPod Nano.

Learn to improvise with your fitness. One of my favorite routines is to just put on some good music on my iPod and hit the road. While I don’t run exclusively I will usually take a short run and stop at a playground to do circuits of body weight movements like squats/push-ups/pull-ups. Usually, I run for 10 minutes then do 10 minutes of the body weight movements and then run back home. This means I’m in and out of my house in under 35 minutes, fully exercised and ready to do as I please the rest of the day.

What I love about this is you get to soak up some scenery and enjoy the surroundings. You will inhale fresh oxygen and feel energized. Remember the importance of training with resistance (push-ups, pull-ups and squats) and do not exclusively run/jog - throwing in some sprints will also help. And when you sprint, don’t think about it - just run as fast as you can for a while its a great feeling.

Have a look at these websites for simple, cheap and equipment free exercise recommendations:

20 Minute Fitness Solution

Simplefit

Try and organize sports with your friends/family; go swimming at the beach, play tennis or go to the park and play frisbee these are the best ways to stay fit and be happy.

Simplify your diet

I would recommend reading this post from the Modern Forager on real food. It gives a grasp on nutrition which is such a simple thing for us all to improve on. Enjoy the foods that are natural, I personally take great pleasure from simplifying my shopping basket. I know when I go to get groceries I am only going to buy the following foods;

• Fresh fruit and vegetables (whatever is on offer and looks good)
• Select cuts of meat, again look for what is on offer
• Cheese and eggs
• A good selection of nuts and seeds and olive oil
• Fresh herbs and spices to add flavor to my cooking

No soft drinks, juice, starches, pasta or stuff in a packet just fresh wholesome foods. Arthur De Vany’s dietery guidelines are great.

You will find by eating/buying from this selection of food, you’ll be less confused when shopping, save money and feel far better. This is not to say you can’t eat other foods, so long as you stick to the foods above 80% of the time you will reap the benefits. The other 20% feel free to eat any other foods especially when out with friends and family.

Always buy less than you think you need, its surprising how much food is wasted in this day and age. If you find you run out of food to early just take a walk to the grocery store and forage for your next meal. This keeps things exciting and fresh.

The last tip for diet is to listen to your body. Just because it’s midday doesn’t mean you need to have lunch. feel your hunger and eat well when you are really hungry. Once you pickup this habit you will find that you will eat less and enjoy your food far more, while losing weight and improving your fitness.

Free Advice and Motivation

The beauty of the internet is that their is so much good free advice and motivation available; from the two sites above offering equipment free workouts to sites like the fitnesspotlight you can learn a wealth of information in no time without any cost to you. If you have an iPod and need some free running music checkout Podrunner which offers free weekly workout mixes which serve as great motivation.

Bonus Tips

-Walk and cycle to places instead of taking the bus/car. It takes longer but sometimes there is nothing more relaxing than a walk or bike ride.

-Learn to meditate. This is one of the best free ways to improve health and state of mind.

I hope this short article can help inspire a few people to start a fitness regime or re-ignite a lost passion. You will find that the easier and more simple you make fitness the more you appreciate it being in your life.

Thanks to Chris for the post!

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Naturally, you should see a doctor before starting a workout routine and all that. Besides, when was the last time you went to your doctor? Go get a checkup for goodness sake. And go to the dentist while you’re at it. Photo courtesy of here.

How to get over low self-esteem

A while back I was listening to a radio show where a psychologist was on talking about self-esteem. I thought it was a bit odd since this particular station had more of an alternative/rock genre but I kept listening. The good doctor had a few good points on how to boost your self-esteem that are worth sharing.

Be specific

First of all, realize that if you have general low self-esteem, you’re not being specific enough. I know that sounds weird, but bear with me.

Nobody is bad at everything. If you feel like you’re completely worthless, you’re not looking at yourself hard enough. Guess what? You’re probably bad at certain things. Really bad. Horrible. You may even be the worst person in the world at doing something.

But that’s also the good news.

Identify what it is you have low self-esteem about. And your answer can’t be “myself” or “everything.” Just like nobody should have high self-esteem about everything, you shouldn’t have low self-esteem about everything either. So be honest with yourself. What’s getting you down? Now think, “Sweet. I don’t suck at everything, I just suck at these things.”

Odd? Perhaps. But hopefully you’ve just changed your mindset from “I suck” to “I suck at these things.” Think about it. There’s a big difference between those two statements.

Choose your battles

Congratulations. You now know what you’re not good at/feel bad about. Again, identifying those things is healthy because you’re focusing on specifics instead of the generalization of, “I suck.” And because you now know those things, you can make a plan of attack to improve yourself in those areas.

If you want to.

You see, I could make a very, very long list of things I’m not good at and that could lower my self-esteem if I were to dwell on them. Guess what?  Most of those things aren’t worth my time. Sure, I could make a plan to improve in those areas but I know I’m not going to be good at everything so I’d much rather focus my energies on the areas in which I can excel. Some might say that’s an excuse not to try. I say it’s picking your battles.

So figure out which areas are most important to you (I’d say limit it to one or two) and make a determination to make improvements in those areas.

Your plan of attack

OK. So you’ve identified which areas you want to improve your self-esteem. The rest of the things that you might catch yourself dwelling on are shoved away and you’re focused on what you can, and have chosen to, influence.

So what do you need to do to improve in those areas? Overweight? Underweight? Throw out your junk food and hit the gym. Feel overwhelmed intellectually? Start by taking an evening college course after work. Don’t feel like you have a lot of friends? Make a goal to reach out and be a friend to someone instead of waiting for someone to reach out to you.

Keep track of your progress in your specific areas. Set up reasonable goals and reward yourself for reaching them. My wife is big on star charts. You know - the grid with goals down one side and a time line across the top. Then put those little star stickers you got in elementary school up when you achieve something. Goofy? A bit. But it’s a fun way to monitor your progress. Post it somewhere you can see it often.

Don’t forget the bright side

Remember in the beginning how I said nobody’s bad at everything, just as nobody’s good at everything? That means you have some things you have good self-esteem about. Woo-hoo! Figure out what those things are and start doing them more often. Enjoy them. Revel in them. Don’t get cocky, but don’t deny yourself the pleasure of a job well done in one of those areas.

In review

1. It’s perfectly OK to have low self-esteem about certain things - just not you as a whole.

2. Figure out what, specifically, you have low self-esteem about.

3. Pick your battles - do these things really matter?

4. Take the things that do matter and that you want to work on and figure out your plan of attack.

5. Remember the things you’re good at too!

What are your thoughts on improving self-esteem? Please let me know in the comments.

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In interest of full disclosure, I’m not a doctor of any kind. If you have severe issues with self-esteem and/or depression, see a licensed doctor. This post was inspired by an interview of Doctor Matt on 101.9 FM. You can reach Dr. Matt at askdrmatt@yahoo.com. Photo courtesy of here.

How to avoid rear-ending someone (and getting rear-ended)

Few things are as much of a royal headache as being involved in a car accident - even a minor fender-bender. I’ve compiled a few short tips on how to (hopefully) avoid both being on the giving and receiving end a rear-end accident.

Always leave a car length between you and the person in front of you. We’ve all learned that since driver’s ed, but it’s rarely practiced - mostly because it would double the length of cars at every stop light. When I was a chauffeur (just one of the many random jobs I’ve had) one of the training videos I watched said you should always be able to see where the tires meet the pavement of the car in front of you. It’s a good rule of thumb to follow.

Pick your poison. When I approach a red light on a multi-lane road, I’ll look at my options of cars in front of me. For example, if there’s a Ford Taurus and a BMW, I’ll usually choose the lane with the Ford Taurus. I figure if I get hit from behind, causing my car to lurch forward and rear-end the car in front of me, I’d rather have it be a Ford than a Beemer. Of course, that can be avoided if you…

Keep your foot on the brake. If you’re rear-ended you’re less likely to launch forward into the car in front of you. So keep that foot planted firmly on the brake pedal.

Last Minute Lurch. Once I was sitting at a light and glanced in my rear view mirror only to see that the person approaching behind me clearly wasn’t going to stop in time. I pumped the breaks a few times to try to alert her via flashing break lights that she needed to brake harder, but her head was down fishing around in her purse. It wasn’t going to be a bad accident, but I could tell she was going to hit me.

I waited until the last second and then quickly lurched my car forward a bit into the (pedestrian-free) crosswalk in front of me. It did the trick and the extra six inches of space prevented an accident.

Hopefully you’ll find these tips beneficial and maybe they’ll even save you from having to pay an insurance deductible. Any other ideas on how to avoid fender benders? Let me know in the comments.

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Photo courtesy of here.

Six simple (and cheap) summer date ideas

Much of the time my wife and I want to go on a date but aren’t sure what to do. Both being as indecisive as we are, we usually end up not doing anything. Now that I think about that, it’s a real shame. Hopefully this will help others in a similar predicament. Here are simple date ideas that don’t require a ton of advanced planning and won’t break the bank.

Before I start, I need to clarify that I’m posting these on the assumption that the purpose of the date is to get to know the other person with whom you’re going out with. If you’re looking for elaborate ideas on how to wow someone with something flashy, you won’t find it here.

Outdoor concerts. Summer is a great time to experience various outdoor festivals, concerts and other activities. Many of them (at least around here) are free or relatively inexpensive. Grab a blanket or some lawn chairs and take in the music on a warm summer night.

Farmer’s market. Pick out some fresh ingredients and ask the sellers for any special recipes they may have that involve the items they’re selling. Then head home and make a meal together. If you’ve never eaten truly fresh produce before, let me tell you, it is MUCH better than the stuff you buy at the grocery store.

River walk . I usually see signs for them, or see sections as I drive by, but rarely do I actually set out and explore the river walks in the cities in which I’ve lived. Set out and explore one of them. You’ll have a better appreciation for your community while enjoying a leisurely stroll. Very conducive to hand-holding.

Library tour. While I realize not all libraries are quite as elaborate/architecturally interesting as ours here in Salt Lake (above), see if there’s anything interesting to check out (ha!) at yours. If not, swing by and visit anyway. It’s a good chance to get out of the heat and at a library you don’t have to worry about awkward silences. :) Pick up one of the classics and begin reading it together to find out why it’s a classic. Or get a Far Side book, find a shady tree and enjoy.

Picnics . A classic, yet often overlooked date idea. Pack a meal and find a scenic spot in a park. When you’re done, lay on your backs and watch the clouds, play a little frisbee or just enjoy being outdoors. If there are basketball courts or something similar nearby, play H-O-R-S-E or some other low-key game. If you’re doing this in the evening, don’t forget the bug spray.

Swing by night. On a nice night get ice cream and find a playground with a swing set big enough for adults. Swinging under the stars can be quite romantic. Of course, indulging yourself by going down the slide and using the monkey bars isn’t a bad idea either. :)

There are hundreds of other ideas out there. What are some of your favorites? Let me know in the comments and I’ll add them to the list.

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Photo courtesy of here , and special thanks to captainstardust over at Plurk for a couple of the ideas.

Thoughts on the American Dream

When someone says they’re chasing the American Dream what do you think of? Working hard, buying a house in the suburbs, driving a Cadillac and retiring at 65 to spend your golden years traveling in a motor home?

I think there’s more to it than that.

The original American Dream was to live in a country where anything was possible because of the freedoms it afforded. Could these dreams materialistic in nature? Sure. But I believe at the time of the Founding Fathers and those living at the time felt life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness were more about religious, political, economic, intellectual, and academic freedoms than striking it rich and retiring early.

Yet somehow along the way the American Dream has become tied to wealth and achieving it. Otherwise, you’re not following the American Dream, right?

I think it’s time to step back and reevaluate the American Dream. Having done so, here is what I think the American Dream is:

It’s the ability to write and publish whatever I want. It’s the freedom to explore different faiths and religious affiliations. It’s the opportunity to go to school and choose my profession. It allows me to be vocally critical of the government, and call out for change without fear of retribution, imprisonment or death. It’s packing my family into our car and going on a road trip to visit family without checkpoints, permits and papers.

Yes, accumulating wealth can be a result of these things, but I don’t think it’s the end-all-be-all of what our country stands for. The freedoms we enjoy are the true American Dream and they’re open to everybody.

This weekend I challenge everyone (including myself) to consciously, thoughtfully and (dare I say it?) reverently experience the the true American Dream. Learn more about our system of government. Attend a church or other religious meeting. Enroll for a class at a community college that you’ve always wanted to take. Write a journal entry, blog post or editorial for your local news paper about something you’re passionate about. Most of all, express your gratitude to someone for the blessings we enjoy by living in this country.

Happy Independence Day everyone!

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This post was inspired by a post at On Simplicity.

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