004 // Make Movement A Movement

Our bodies are created to be in motion. Everything works better when we are moving: brain function, circulation, heart, etc. Our modern life has relegated us to a static, sedentary lifestyle, and we feel it's effects: low energy, aches and pains, weight gain. Many of us sleep all night, sit all day and rely on 1-hour in the gym to make up for it all.

A pillar to living a healthy lifestyle for the rest of your life is to, very simply, move throughout the day. If you apply an active mindset toward this, you will start finding pockets in your day to move and once you start doing that, everything gets better.

1. Morning movement. Do light, steady-state movement in the morning, 20- 30 minutes. Use movement in the morning to wake up (not coffee). Drink coffee bc it's awesome and tastes great. Move in the morning to build energy for the day.
2. After Meals. After each meal, go on a ten-minute walk. This helps with digestion and assuming 3 meals a day, that's another 30 minutes of movement. Bam.
3. Afternoon breaks. You know that energy crash that comes around 2-3 pm when you need another coffee fix? Most of the time, your body just needs a little movement to get going again. Drink a glass of water and go on a walk outside.
4. Creative brainstorm. If you are creating or building anything, walking can turn into your most productive activity. The creative juices literally start flowing when your body is in motion. So if you feel stuck in your work, go move and let the ideas come to you.
5. 4-minute cardio. Researchers did a study and found that this 4-minute workout has equal, and in some cases better, cardiovascular benefits than a 45-minute jog. More isn't always better. All you need is a timer, your body, and a little work ethic. It goes like this (you'll never look at 4 minutes the same):

The Tabata Set:

20 secs hard (all-out) // 10 secs rest

x8 (4 minutes total)

*run in place, jumping jacks, jump squats, burpees, mountain climbers, shadow box, bike, sprint, row

6. 7-minute workout. Again founded in research, this workout is 12 bodyweight exercises, 30 secs of work, followed by 10 seconds of rest. If you want to give it a go here is a youtube video.

When you orient your days around movement, the gym becomes an added bonus, not your savior. When people ask me if they can get fit by going to the gym for 1-hour every day, my response is: that depends on what you do with the other 23. The goal is to create a life full of energy and purpose. You won't find that in an isolated hour. Find little windows in your day to incorporate bite-size workouts. Dust off that old bike you used to love riding and take it for a spin. Find things you enjoy. Build up a bank of movement minutes every day. Your body will thank you.

See you next week.

TOMMY

// if you need help in any specific way, hit reply and let's talk.

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Email Archive:

​001 // Step 1 to a Healthy Life​

​002 // Your Body Runs on Clocks [Circadian Health]​

​003 // Sleep's Connection to Eating Healthy​