Regardless of your opinions on the Chinese communist leader who said the above quote, you can probably agree that these principles are pretty sound ones. An intelligent and adaptable mind united with a strong and healthy body can be a powerful combination which could help to reap benefits in all aspects of ones life.
In todays day and age, however, there are a lot of forces working against you and your personal quest to civilize your mind while making savage your body. In fact, today, I would go as far as to say it's impossible to do the latter without the former. I feel that in order to reach your true physical and mental potential, you have to follow a process of trial and error; something I've been doing since middle school in an attempt to lose weight.
I've tried a lot of different approaches and methods, most of which fell short of, or even went in the opposite direction of my goals. I remember being 12 or 13, kids in my class called me "Pigbert" all day, I ran home and sealed up my room, put on all the heavy clothes and coats I had, turned on my heater and lava lamp and did jumping jacks to try and sweat out my fat.
I've tried a lot of different approaches and methods, most of which fell short of, or even went in the opposite direction of my goals. I remember being 12 or 13, kids in my class called me "Pigbert" all day, I ran home and sealed up my room, put on all the heavy clothes and coats I had, turned on my heater and lava lamp and did jumping jacks to try and sweat out my fat.
When I turned 15 I weighed 208 lbs. By the time I was 16 years old I weighed in at 245 lbs, had horrible skin (dry and flaky, lots of acne) and absolutely no energy. At this point I had tried feebly to lose weight by walking (jogging was too difficult) or doing martial arts. Though, with no structured regimen and a poor diet , I eventually gave up, only to try again after a few weeks or months.
This process was very mentally and emotionally destructive. My confidence was shot, I didn't have a lot of friends, and I ate. A lot.
Finally I stumbled across a website that helped me get my diet somewhat better. I stopped drinking soda, eating fast food and candy, and increased my overall activity level. I dropped down to 220, then 210, and finally stopped making any progress at about 205. My weight would stay there for nearly 3 years, fluctuating between 210 and 195ish, but never any more.
Every few months I would go on fitness binges. Sometimes I would just increase my activity levels substantially, sometimes I would simply read and study, but my diet stayed pretty much the same since I thought that what I was eating was healthy. I would consume tons of whole wheat cereal and oatmeal, plates of whole wheat pasta, lots and lots of fruit, Salads with a lot of dressing... I was simply following what conventional wisdom touted as being a healthy diet.
So my problem must have been exercising.
This process was very mentally and emotionally destructive. My confidence was shot, I didn't have a lot of friends, and I ate. A lot.
Finally I stumbled across a website that helped me get my diet somewhat better. I stopped drinking soda, eating fast food and candy, and increased my overall activity level. I dropped down to 220, then 210, and finally stopped making any progress at about 205. My weight would stay there for nearly 3 years, fluctuating between 210 and 195ish, but never any more.
Every few months I would go on fitness binges. Sometimes I would just increase my activity levels substantially, sometimes I would simply read and study, but my diet stayed pretty much the same since I thought that what I was eating was healthy. I would consume tons of whole wheat cereal and oatmeal, plates of whole wheat pasta, lots and lots of fruit, Salads with a lot of dressing... I was simply following what conventional wisdom touted as being a healthy diet.
So my problem must have been exercising.
I studied and became a personal trainer, certified under NASM, still my weight wouldn't budge. It didn't help that every time I would go to work out at the gym I worked at my manager would hound me about walking the floor and getting clients and increasing my sales. Usually I would get a half hour on the elliptical, a couple of sets of squats, and finally break to go talk to potential clients. It eventually got to the point where I didn't come to work out anymore.
As fate would have it, my answers wouldn't come from a 600 dollar text book and shiny certificate. What began to open my eyes was the April 2009 issue of Men's Health magazine, in which Erwan LeCorre and MovNat were featured. I loved the article. I read it over and over, visited the website, watched the videos, and friended Erwan on Facebook/Twitter. He mentioned that he followed the paleo diet and my journey through evolutionary lifestyle began. Since then, I've learned a lot and have been finding out what works best for my body. I've dropped my weight to the low 180's and am increasing my strength almost every week.
With this blog, I hope to track my further progress and also help you, the readers, to find your own way down a path to optimal health and wellness.
Here's to the new year, let's make it our year.
-Rob
As fate would have it, my answers wouldn't come from a 600 dollar text book and shiny certificate. What began to open my eyes was the April 2009 issue of Men's Health magazine, in which Erwan LeCorre and MovNat were featured. I loved the article. I read it over and over, visited the website, watched the videos, and friended Erwan on Facebook/Twitter. He mentioned that he followed the paleo diet and my journey through evolutionary lifestyle began. Since then, I've learned a lot and have been finding out what works best for my body. I've dropped my weight to the low 180's and am increasing my strength almost every week.
With this blog, I hope to track my further progress and also help you, the readers, to find your own way down a path to optimal health and wellness.
Here's to the new year, let's make it our year.
-Rob
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