How to Start Walking Every Single Day in One Month Or Less – Introducing the “1 Minute a Day” Walking Program
Have you ever wondered why they don’t say, “walk for your life?” I mean, seriously! Walking has been linked to increases in nearly all measurable health markers, and decreases in the risk of nearly all preventable diseases? I know, big surprise, right? Of course, everyone knows that walking is really good for us, and people like Dr. Mike Evans will show you why walking might actually be the single best thing for our health.
But what if I told you that not only is walking a universally beneficial activity that is accessible to nearly everyone with two good legs, but it’s also very easy to do. And I’m not kidding either. Pick up one foot, lean forward slightly and then put it down. Go ahead. Try it right now. Then do that same motion with your other leg. See? It’s almost like we were made for walking. Keep practicing, and it’ll get smoother in no time.
 Around here, we take walking seriously. So, we’ve identified something that is incredibly good for us. We’ve also identified that you can do it yourself – or at least well enough to not require a personal trainer at this stage. You can book some sessions to improve your technique later.
So, now that you can do something that’s good for you, what’s stopping you from getting out there and soaking up all the rewards that come with regular walking? Ah, willpower – of course! Most people would love to have a regular habit of walking and experience the myriad of benefits to be had. The problem is that, for whatever reason, it just doesn’t happen. That’s an easy one, too, and I’ll make you a deal. If you will commit just 1 more minute a day, then I’ll get you into a regular walking habit in one month or less – seriously. I’m going out on a limb here, but this may just be the easiest walking program ever devised. In fact, the first step is so easy that we’re going to get started right now. Yes, right now.
The “1 Minute a Day” Walking Program
Grab a watch, cell phone, or anything that will help you measure a minute (or you could always just count, “one one thousand, two one thousand…” for now). Now that you have your time keeping apparatus handy or heady, as the case may be, I want you to stand up and walk for 30 seconds straight – without stopping. After the 30 seconds is over, immediately turn around and walk right back here and then continue reading.
Continue reading Burn Fat, Build Willpower, and Get Healthier With This EASY Walking Program
Dr. Mike Evans asks, “what is the single best thing you can do for your health?” Obviously, there are tons of factors that contribute to overall health and fitness, but what one thing offers the greatest return on your investment? Here’s a clever video where he outlines his research-based solution…
Pretty revealing, eh? [...]
Scott Sonnon – Joint Mobility Mastery-Level Teacher
There is one thing, and one thing only, that I can point to with 100% confidence and say that everyone – yes, everyone – would benefit from including in their physical practice – whether as part of an exercise program or not. That one thing is [...]
Thanks to Chris at Conditioning Research for bringing this to my attention. The dangers associated with prolonged sitting is an important subject that we should not overlook. It was discussed here on Physical Living in an article from early 2010: Too Much Sitting = Too Bad For Your Health.
Have a looksie at the [...]
Hi my name is John Sifferman, and I’m suffering from a severe case of EPDOMS. They say admitting you need help is the first step to recovery. So, now I’m here for the 12-step program.
What is EPDOMS you ask? EPDOMS stands for Extremely Painful Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness. This is like regular DOMS taken to an extreme. So, how does one provoke a bad case of EPDOMS?
Well, you see, not too long ago, I subjected myself to an act of lunacy. I decided to film a video for an article demonstrating a maximum repetition set of bodyweight squats. You’re probably asking yourself, “what’s the big deal? That’s easy, right?” Theoretically, that would be the case, but I have a knack for surprising even myself sometimes. In this particular case, I wasn’t quite aware of my capacity in this exercise, nor was I expecting to score nearly as many repetitions as I performed. I was expecting (and hoping) to top out around 80 or 100 reps, deal with some marginal soreness for a day or two, and live happily ever after. After all, I haven’t trained high rep bodyweight squats in years – fatiguing around 40-50 reps, and maxing out around twice that much sounded about right. Needless to say, that’s not exactly what happened.
When all was said and done, I had been doing squats for 12 minutes, and I have no idea how many reps I did (lost count around 82, or was it 83…). Now, I’ve heard of guys doing sets of 500 and even 1000 squats, so I didn’t set a world record by any stretch, but it was truly a maximal set and I did experience muscle failure (which was the goal).
The point I was trying to make from that video is that most fitness trainees don’t even come close to a high level of intensity in their training. Most trainees could be working much harder than they have been, and still not even come close to maximal exertion. Unfortunately for me, it took hundreds of repetitions to demonstrate a set to muscle failure, and I dealt with the resulting DOMS accordingly. It took 7 days before I was truly able to function again, and two weeks before I was back to my normal self. Yikes!
This event sparked a reminder for why I purposely do NOT seek DOMS or use muscle soreness as an indicator of progress. If nothing else, I want my training to help me reach my goals as quickly and safely as possible AND not make me sore (or otherwise weaken me) in the process.
Continue reading DOMS And Why Health-First Fitness Matters
Here’s a quote for you:
I hate ugly people – Joe Schmoe
Bob Smith read that statement in a recent article and said: “Did you know that Joe Schmoe hates ugly people? I mean, my GOSH! How can someone say something like that. Sure, it’s just his honest feelings, but how can anyone be so blatantly disrespectful and insensitive towards another human being. That guy is completely…”
From that simple quote, Joe receives a bitter response from Bob and many others.
It’s so easy to alter the meaning of something just by changing the context in which it was stated.
What if I told you that Joe’s Schmoe’s quote was taken from a comedy sketch he performed live on stage? Here’s a little more of his act – Joe said…
And then my buddy Phil said, “I hate ugly people.” (*laughter*)
Ah, well that changes things now, doesn’t it? It turns out that in our example, Joe was actually quoting somebody else. Not only that, but being a comedy act, it was probably just a fabricated story anyways. Even still, Joe said it, and therefore he was also quoted as saying it, which led to the tragic downfall of his reputation.
Perhaps this example is a bit too blatantly obvious to accurately imitate real life, but you’d be surprised how close our culture comes to this type of ludicrous misrepresentation (have you ever watched the news?). This type of scenario happens all the time, even in the health and fitness industry. One little piece of information is taken as gospel and a multitude of conclusions are drawn from the literal meaning of a string of words and sentences – even if the original meaning has completely vanished, been ignored, or even been covered up.
Continue reading Context is Everything
 We’ve all been there. You show up to the gym more than ready to slay dragons and crush weakness. You hit it hard, every set. Every rep is your absolute best. You also nailed a new personal record ahead of schedule – you’ve never done that much work in a training session until now. By the end of your session, the only way to describe how you feel is used, and you kinda like that. Life is good.
Until the next morning anyways. As you step out of bed and begin the semi-conscious shift back to supporting your bodyweight on your own two legs, something rather sudden happens. The moment your feet acquire bodyweight load, this little voice in the back of your head yells EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!
You gasp or shriek if you’ve never felt this sensation before, but most of us just grumble under our breath and accept the fact that your body feels like it’s been torn into a thousand pieces…again. You, my friend, are experiencing Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), and it’s one of life’s greatest pleasures. For all that hard work you did yesterday, your body has decided it would be best to almost immobilize you for the next day or so to allow ample time for healing. Actually, every time you move it’s as if every fiber in your body is being re-torn. Each new staircase transforms into Mt. Kilimanjaro, and getting off the couch requires a precisely calculated effort (with the help of others, of course). Don’t get comfy for too long though, since a couple hours of inactivity may enlighten you with a surprise ripping sensation upon re-initiating movement – and you might even hear it audibly (yep, with your ears).
Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness is a painful condition that is more severe than regular muscle soreness. Typical muscle soreness may start upon completion of vigorous physical activity, like lifting weights, and may last several hours to a day or two. DOMS, on the other hand, may not occur until the following day or days, and it can also last for several days. DOMS is primarily caused by the body’s inflammatory response to exercise. Its frequency and severity are determined by several factors including a trainee’s current conditioning level, age, along with the actual damage done to the muscle and connective tissues and the body’s ability to recover from that damage.
The good news is that both regular muscle soreness and DOMS are mostly preventable and there are some things you can do to speed the recovery process when it does happen.
Continue reading 15 Ways to Prevent and Heal Muscle Soreness
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