Imagine if you were given the assignment to stop all the healthy things you do for yourself in a day. Your average step count – the number of steps you take each day – drops from 10,000 to only 4,300 per day. To round out the experiment, you had to keep the exact same diet – including snacks – that you would during your usually active lifestyle. Do you think you would would survive the duration of such an experiment?

I would go crazy not being able to release stress and move my body with fitness! I might make it for about 2 days. I’m not really sure what to do when I’m feeling sick; but I do know that my body is forcing me to slow down and take a rest (I listen, I listen!). I want you do think about this experiment and then realize this IS the average adult American. Non-moving. Overeating. Headed for a disaster.

Researchers decided to test what happens in a situation like this on a fairly active and health group of people – college students. They walk a lot, many play sports and are overall waaaaay more active than the average adult. Here’s what they found:

During the three days of inactivity, volunteers’ blood sugar levels spiked significantly after meals, with the [blood glucose] peaks increasing by about 26 percent compared with when the volunteers were exercising and moving more. What’s more, the peaks grew slightly with each successive day.

This change in blood sugar control after meals “occurred well before we could see any changes in fitness or adiposity,” or fat buildup, due to the reduced activity, Dr. Thyfault says. So the blood sugar swings would seem to be a result, directly, of the volunteers not moving much. (quote from The New York Times)

In the simplest of terms, the researchers proved just how detrimental it is to our health to cut out movement in our day. But don’t stress. Even if you have a busy schedule, or miss a workout once in awhile, your body is equipped to bring you back to a healthy state as soon as you resume normal activity. You want to do your best to keep the baseline amount of exercise consistent over a lifetime to get the full benefits, of course.

More than anything, you need to find and create a workout routine that you love: your vision of movement. If you start running because you think it’s the best form of exercise, but you hate running, you’re not going to stick with it, right? Instead of focusing on the most intense or the most hyped workout, try as many as you need until you find the one that is the perfect fit for you. You have the power to make your ideal vision of health, wellness and fitness.

And if you’re so inclined to try a new workout, meet new friends or just get out and have fun, check out the running club and circuit training I’m offering in West Los Angeles and Santa Monica. Or if you need a few new music inspirations, head over to my Facebook page, “like” it and check out the “Vision Tunes” tab. My goal, my passion and my mission are to help you find the vision for your journey.

In Health –
Natania