There is always a 'But' out there, someplace. Just when you have things all figured, along comes a 'But' as in..."But on the other hand."
We try to hide our 'Buts' by saying ... "There is always an exception to the rule." But that is just an attempt to avoid saying but.
I thought I had exercise all figured out. After an enthusiastic workout, I like to relax my semi-retired butt in an over stuffed chair inherited from my father.
And then somebody stuck a "But" in my face.
My dad, Everett to some, Mr. Glover to many others, was a deeply religious man and like Jesus, was a carpenter. I have furniture in my home made by him before I was born 66 years ago. As he aged, he found fussing with tools and precise measurements too much. Dad turned to his hobby...whittling, carving, wood sculpting. Bas-relief and some free standing.
He spent his last years with me, his eyes and fingers seeing something in a piece of wood that no one else could see. A horse, his version of the Thinker, the ascending Jesus.
When he wasn't carving, he spent a good deal of time in his overstuffed chair, often favoring it for the night over his bed.
That is where he chose to be when the time came. In his comfy chair.
Christine, my sister and a neighbor, Rev. Turner were there and so was I. Dad was 86.
I took over the chair and soon discovered it's magic. When I sit there... don't want to get up which is now getting to be a problem. Regular visits to the gym including 90 minutes of huffing and puffing. Nature trail hikes covering up to 10 miles ...but I'm now finding, this may not be enough.
Why? Because some folks who study these things, say that although I may be moving enough, I'm not really moving enough.
Physiologist, kinesiologist, medical doctors, health organizations, even some gym rats, all endorse a daily minimum of 15 to 20 minutes of vigorous activity, three days a week. Jogging, basketball, high impact dancing and so-on.
If that's too much, then 30 minutes of moderate physical activity, five days a week. Moderate meaning, action in which breathing is heavy but you can hold a conversation. A good walk, light house cleaning, dancing preferably to ballads.
If you want to loose weight and keep it off...add another 30 to 45 minutes per day.
But...but now come the academic types. The researching experts are telling me that my efforts may not be enough to keep my 'Butt' healthy.
A resent study of men 20 to 89 by the University of South Carolina found that those who sat the most had the greatest risk of heart problems.
The kicker was that many of those men also exercised regularly and led physically active lifestyles. Vigorous men but for various reasons, work or leisure, also sat for long hours. More than 10 hours a week riding in a car combined with more than 23 hours of sitting at work or at leisure, increased the risk of cardiovascular disease, the study states. Even when age and weight were taken into consideration, workouts did not make up for sit-ins, the study found.
A finding published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, reached a similar conclusion. Their study encouraged those who work at computes all day to get up and take a walking break.
That's me in my dad's chair. So excuse me for a sec. while I take a walking break.
Hup,two, three four. Walking in rhythm, Movin' in sound, Hummin' to the music, Trying to move on. -The Blackbyrds.
I'm back.
A vigorous life style combined with lots of sitting has made some us, ‘‘active couch potatoes," said Gretchen Reynolds, a writer who borrowed the phrase from physiologists. Reynolds covers fitness for a number of publications, including the New York Times, Oprah Magazine and Women's Health.
Many of us are probably more active than we think. We just haven't put it all together to make our daily lives work for us instead of against us.
Take out a piece of paper and pen. Jot down all the physical things that you do over the course of a day or week, no matter how minor or insignificant. Consider each physical act, even fidgeting, to be a form of exercise and then improve on each activity.
Standing as much as possible instead of sitting, even at work. Walking to the water fountain farthest from your desk. Picking up something, anything within reason, that has fallen to the floor, even if it is not your stuff.
Fidgeting??
Yes, frequently shifting positions is a physical act. It's not much but it helps for those who must sit for long hours at work.
Find away to Move More and Sit Less. No if and or buts.
Related articles:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/phys-ed-the-men-who-stare-at-screens/
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/12/the-hazards-of-the-couch/?src=me&
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