The Paleo Diet - Loren Cordain [92]
Any activity is better than no activity. It doesn’t have to be some ambitious plan devised by a personal trainer. Basically, whenever you can exert yourself physically—at work, at home, while traveling, or during leisure time—you should do it. On a typical day, most Americans walk about 30 feet from the house to the car, drive to work, walk 100 feet to the office, and sit virtually motionless in front of a computer for hours at a time. At the end of the day, they walk back to their cars, drive home, and then sit motionless in front of a TV screen until they go to sleep. Even in once highly active professions, such as construction, it is now possible to do almost as little physical activity as somebody performing a desk job. Operating an air-conditioned backhoe with fully hydraulic controls takes barely more effort than operating a personal computer.
Increasing Your Activity Level While at Home or at Work
In this highly mechanized, technological world, you can increase your physical exertion level while doing your daily tasks at home or at work, during your leisure activities, and by incorporating a regular exercise routine into your schedule. I encourage you to take full advantage of all three of these situations to get activity back into your life. At every occasion when you have the chance to use your body, you should. Look upon activity not as something you have to do but rather as a fleeting opportunity to give your body a gift. Get it when you can! You’ll feel better when you do.
Is it possible for you to sneak in some exercise on the way to or from work? Could you walk to work? Ride your bicycle? How about parking your car a half mile from work—or getting off at a bus or subway stop farther away and walking the rest of the way? How about taking the stairs or walking instead of driving to lunch? Better yet, go for a walk at lunchtime and brown-bag a Paleo lunch afterward. You can even keep a portable stair-stepping device and a few small dumbbells in your office. Maybe you have access to a health club or a gym near work where you can take a quick swim, do some weight lifting, or get in a game of racquetball during your lunch hour. When you go to the restroom, take a roundabout route up and down a couple of flights of stairs. Because almost everybody notices an increase in daily energy levels (there is no mid-afternoon slump) within days of starting the Paleo Diet, you will have the energy and spirit for these extra activities. Look for physical activity—lifting, walking, climbing stairs, digging in the garden—wherever you can. Anything extra you can do is better than doing nothing, and all of these little increments add up.
At home, try not to use some of your laborsaving devices. For example, a snowblower gets the job done faster, but unless you’re going to use the time saved for exercise later in the day, shoveling the snow would be much better for you. Important note: Beware the “weekend warrior” syndrome. If you have been sedentary, don’t charge in with major aerobic exercise all at once. Talk to your doctor and figure out the safest, best way for you to get back in shape.
Increasing Your Activity Level during Leisure Time
During your leisure time, instead of watching a fishing show on TV, go fishing. Instead of watching a football game on TV, go out and throw the football around with your children. Instead of playing games on the computer, go for a walk or a hike or do some gardening. When you go to the beach, don’t just sit there; try a bit of swimming, a walk, or maybe even jog in the sand. Leisure-time activities can be enjoyable and still involve exertion. When you go shopping, make sure you do as much walking as possible. Camping trips don’t necessarily have to be junk-food feasts involving little or no physical activity. You can enjoy the great outdoors by doing something in it, such as hiking, chopping wood, or swimming. Be creative. Developing a more active life at home and at work will give you a great start in emulating the exercise patterns of our Paleolithic ancestors and will go a long way