Chaparral 2014-2015: 23.5 FitTips

I totally get it. You may be reading the Fit Tip column and think to yourself “Erin must think exercising is easy. She’s young (ish), doesn’t have kids, and she works in the Kinesiology Division for crying out loud - don’t they just workout all day anyway?” (Actually no, but I’ll save the science lecture for another time!) You would have a point: most working adults – especially moms/dads with young children - simply don’t have time to train like an athlete. If you want to reach your peak fitness level, or if you want to compete in the CrossFit games, or run a marathon, your training will essentially become a second job, requiring at least a few hours a day of energy and sweat. For most of us at the college, it’s simply unreasonable to require that of ourselves. So, right now, I want you to take a deep breath and relax. You don’t have to be Superman or Superwoman to be healthy! 

What do you really need to be healthy? Good food, quality sleep, time with friends and family, a hobby that you enjoy, a purpose or passion that drives your dreams – all of these things are as important for your mental and physical health as getting enough exercise. And physical activity doesn’t have to be a separate task on your to-do list either. Remember the 150 minutes/week = 30-minutes a day on 5 days/week guideline? What if you took a walk with your best friend in the mornings or played Frisbee with the kids after school? Or sign up for that Salsa class with your partner on the weekends? In fact, the best exercise program IN THE WORLD … get ready for it… is always the one that you ENJOY doing!