In a list of personal priorities I have health, health and health.
But what happened to family, financial stability and professional success? Well, those are not even in the picture when there’s no health
Whenever I get invited to speak at a Career Day or Professional Development event, I often begin with a couple of deep conversation starters. One of my favorites is this: “If you were to get one hour every day to either train in a specific place (i.e. local gym, home gym, park, etc.) or to spend it with the family, which one would you choose?” 85 to 90 percent of the participants usually pick being with the family. The majority of the ones that choose to train choose it because they know that without taking care of oneself one cannot spend QUALITY time with the family.
Spending quality time with loved ones requires a personal commitment to maintain a healthy body and mind. It requires a specific allocation of daily time to move, sweat, and keep the body supple and the mind alert. Your quality time with your family and friends diminishes if that daily one hour of physical training is not present. Eventually your physical abilities would be restricted, and you would not be able to keep up the pace with the young ones. You would be in physical pain or at least significant discomfort the next day if you were to push it beyond your limited capabilities.
Physical fitness is a daily need such as feeding yourself smartly, sleeping well and paying at least one daily visit to the toilet. What happens when any of these activities is not consistent? You either become sick and/or your sanity is seriously affected.
Let’s start treating fitness as a need rather than a luxury. Let’s start seeing physical activity as a habit and not as a hobby. Let’s get moving and try to extend our quality living as much as possible. You do not need anything to start. All you need is to get started!
Felipe de Jesus