Exercise: If it’s comfortable, it’s not working

When you are considering your exercise routine, remind yourself, “If it is comfortable, it is not working.” If you aren’t breathing hard, getting tired, pink in the face and sore the next day, it is not working. You need a challenge. Pushing a little harder is usually mind over matter. Your body begins to tell you, “this is challenging, maybe it is time to stop.” Don’t listen to that fear. If you are walking, start by adding 30 seconds of jogging and return to walking for 2 minutes. Add a little more each time. If you think you can’t jog, try it anyway. The majority of people are surprised when they realize actually can jog or do some type of higher intensity exercise.

Physiologically, when you start to do something that is harder than what you normally do, your body is slow to respond. You are experiencing oxygen deficit. The first three to five minutes of cardio always feel a little harder. Your legs feel like lead and your lungs feel like there is molasses sitting in the bottom lobe. Your body is not getting the oxygen it needs yet to continue the exercise you are doing. The worst thing you can do is stop, but unfortunately that is what most people do. Their lungs and legs tell their brain, “This is uncomfortable, stop.” If you will just press on for a couple more minutes, mind over matter, your legs will loosen up and begin to feel better because they are getting the oxygen they need. Your lungs will expand with ease and distribute oxygen efficiently as your body adapts to this beginning phase of exercise. This oxygen deficit is normal and even trained athletes experience it every time they begin exercise. The time it takes to get through the deficit period (first 3-5 minutes of exercise) decreases, but never goes away as you become more trained. Oxygen deficit is never characterized by a racing heart beat or tightness in the chest, those are signs that you should stop exercising. Of course, you should get your doctor’s approval to begin any new exercise program.

If your exercise routine is comfortable, it is not working. People who see changes through exercise say crazy things like, “I’m so sore it hurts to walk, but it feels good.” They know that if they are comfortable, the routine isn’t working. If they feel tired during a workout or are sore the next day, they can rest assured that they are getting results from their workouts. They will lose weight (with proper eating) and they will see physique changes. They own the idea that if it is comfortable it is not working and they love the idea that if they are uncomfortable it IS working. If you are not able to push yourself or just need some new ideas, consider hiring a professional fitness coach to help you.

        Everyone always wants to know, “What do I eat, just tell me what to eat and I will eat it for the rest of my life so that I can lose weight. Write it down and I will carry it with me until the end of my days.” Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for life. Sure, I can give you a meal plan and tell you to eat like this for the rest of your life, but I have not equipped you to eat for life. No one will eat the same things over and over for 60 years or more, it is not realistic. However, I can teach you how to make food choices and when you have decided to make a lifestyle change to be healthy and you commit to that, you will be prepared to eat for life.

        I believe in one God. The God who made me. The God who knew me before he formed me in the womb. I also believe that the same God designed the heavens and the earth, the sun and the moon, the plants and the animals. So shouldn’t it go without saying that the God who designed plants and animals and water and air and then designed me in my human form, wants me to eat the plants and yes, the animals the way that he designed them for my human body.

        Growing up my parents had a diesel vehicle, a Chevy Suburban in fact. I was around the age of 10 when we got that vehicle and I remember very clear instructions between my mom and dad that no other type of fuel could go into that car than diesel fuel. As my mechanically challenged brain understands it, someone designed this particular engine to only run on diesel fuel. Unleaded gasoline no matter what octane level would not do. Not only would it not do, it would “kill” the engine. Not just in a sense than putting 87 octane in a high performance vehicle would hurt a vehicle, apparently the unleaded fuel in this diesel engine would KILL the engine in this Chevy Suburban. I even remember that diesel fuel cost more than unleaded fuel, as it still does today.  However, the diesel fuel was more efficient, our Chevy Suburban got better gas mileage, tough concept at age 10, and you can only buy diesel fuel at quality gas stations.

        So how does any of this childhood story relate to eating clean and learning to eat better for your human body? Well, Rudolf Diesel designed that engine to run only on that diesel fuel and what’s more is that the engine is more efficient and actually cost us less to fuel because of its efficiency. If God designed my human body and he designed the foods to go in it, shouldn’t I eat those foods as close to their original design so that they are efficient going through my body and my digestive system? If I eat man-processed foods, are they really designed to be efficiently used in my body. The scientifically proven answer is, no.