Breakfast, where and when it evolved. "Breakfast as we know it didn't exist for large parts of history. The Romans didn't really eat it, usually consuming only one meal a day around noon" Middle Ages - It's thought the word breakfast entered the English language during this time and literally meant "break the night's fast". "The Industrial Revolution in the mid-19th Century regularised working hours, with labourers needing an early meal to sustain them at work. All classes started to eat a meal before going to work" http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20243692
Couple of ways I use to measure overall fitness other than how much for how long. Resting pulse = 52 Goal is mid to high 40's. Hold breath in rested position. 2 minutes, 15 seconds. Goal is 3 minutes. Cardio reserve = find pulse, take a deep breathe in and hold. Pulse should slow down if you're fit. Anything you guys use?
Interesting. What do you guys consider your markers of good health? Appearance? Blood tests? Blood pressure ect? In other words, how do you know how healthy you are;and that now your "healthier" since starting whatever? how do you define healthy? What i'm getting at is there are few metrics beyond what i just mentioned that can measure "health" which is really the absence of disease. IOW, in the absence of disease how can you get any healthier than that?
Maybe it's just healthier than you were is what we measure. Of course, if one truly defines health as absence of disease and uses only that as a metric, then you are correct. Then again, that assumes you know the unknowable, which is what medical monster lurks around the corner which is the beginning of the end. Could be we're all just trying to create a better looking corpse and a lighter box for our friends to carry towards the hole.
You make a change ie exercise & diet your BP normalizes your cholesterol drops under 200... uhh what else is there that you use? thats all great...but beyond that..? i did this with diet..i switched vegan ya, i exercise a bit because i sit a lot but i'm not hardcore workout guy
How is everyone doing with their workout routine? I'm steady hitting it with more endurance and toning type exercises. Wall ball, kettle bell swings, mountain climbers, bends and thrusts, push ups and sit ups. Of the 5 days a week I'm in the gym I would say only once a week is what I would call a traditional working with weights routine. The results in increased endurance and stamina are fantastic. Muscle tone is better and weight is down 8 lbs since Jan. 1. All the low hanging fruit has been picked weight wise. The next 10 lbs. will be tougher. Still eating clean, with a strong slant towards Paleo. How about you?
Five days a week in the gym?! Better you than me. To recap my earlier posts, when I began to rethink my workout routine a few years ago, I began playing with the variables, probably not giving them enough time to properly play out. But the major change was that I began doing 3 full-body workouts a week, initially with 2 sets per exercise. I then began experimenting by doing only one set per exercise with a rest-pause and then only one set without the rest-pause. Then at the beginning of last year, I reduced it to 2 full-body workouts per week, initially doing 2 sets per exercise, and then reducing it to one set with a rest-pause. Then I dropped the rest-pause. Here's the funny thing. Nothing really changed. I'm just as strong as I was when I originally began to rethink my routine over 3 years ago, as I began ratcheting the volume slowly downward. My key measurements remain the same, and I seem to have maintained the same level of leanness, judging by my six-pack. So even though I began reducing volume at the outset of the major change, I still had a way to go in reducing that volume. I am doing an extra, albeit brief, cardio workout on a weekend day. So, presently, my lifting routine takes just under 35 minutes, and the cardio is just under 10 minutes. Total time expended per week: under 100 minutes, including the weekend cardio. I had been doing multiples of that in the past for no apparent incremental benefit. I'm not eating less, but I am sleeping better. Admittedly, the workouts are "all-out" to momentary muscle failure, but then, they pretty much always were to the extent of my ability. In the last couple of years I also experimented with "leaving a rep in the tank," but that never rally appealed to me.
I had loosened up my diet (mostly increased my carbs), and was working high volume with heavy weight, but then had transportation issues. Resolved those issues and got back to the gym a few days ago after a two week break, but now this: Severe weather last night. I'll be using the home gym for a while, or temporarily return to another gym I used to frequent. I recently bought a juicer. Drinking a lot of greens doesn't seem to make a difference regarding actual lifting (though I'm sure the influx of nutrients is a big plus), but it seems to be helping me with my trading. Kind of seems to lift the mental fog of age just a little. Here is a list of the vegetables I prefer to juice: Spinach, broccoli (mostly stems), romaine lettuce, celery, cabbage (green or red), peppers (green, yellow, or red), radishes, brussel sprouts (not much juice in them), green onions, a carrot or two (minimal because of sugar), sometimes kale, and a separate mix with ginger added. Still experimenting, and open to suggestions. My understanding is that this juicer will make nut butters, but haven't tried it yet. Might try making some almond, though. And of course, peanut.