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Getting back to basics

Getting back to basics

eat well, move and focus on happiness! The healthy eating pyramid I am constantly amazed at just how many people discredit the healthy eating pyramid that has continually evolved for over 30 years by Nutrition Australia and in 2015 was re-launched with a fresh new look and targeted health messages.

Here is the problem. Our nation continues to increase its overweight and obese population at an alarming rate and people keep blaming the pyramid for this increase yet, guess what? Very few people actually follow the guidelines!

If they did then I am almost certain that there would be a decrease in these rates of overweight and obese Australians. Instead, everyone seems to want to follow so-called celebrities such as Pete Evans or many others that push health supplements (ie. Anthony Koutafides and Herbalife) which is fast-becoming a multi-million-dollar industry.

Sure, we are all very different and there is no diet that suits everyone but we could all get back to basics and each as much unprocessed and fresh food and we would be a lot better off. Look up the healthy eating pyramid and see how you compare.

Move more This sounds very simple but on the whole, we are either just getting too lazy or we are working way more and neglecting our health in the process. Perhaps it is a combination of the two? There has been a massive increase in wearable devices and as a result more and more people are aware that we need to try and accumulate 10,000 steps or more in a day.

This is a great start and I urge you all to take the necessary steps (pardon the pun) to increase how much you move over the course of a day, but I ask you, is that enough?

It is all good and well to focus on walking but it is our most basic and primitive movement pattern. We do it daily without raising a sweat and our bodies are very much conditioned to it.

What I feel we all need to do is find another form of activity to supplement this. Be it running, cycling, swimming, playing a team or individual sport, yoga, Pilates, tai-chi, I think we all need to find that extra “something” and commit to it once or twice a week.

Better still, and what I feel everyone should do, is a personally designed resistance or weights program that you can do at home, in a park or at the gym. It will help increase your metabolism, make you stronger, feel better, improve posture and really add something that your body needs!

Focus on happiness! July 1 will be 20 years since I first started my career as a personal trainer and it is fair to say I have seen every type of client under the sun.

They all come with their needs and their wants and many of them are aesthetic and focused on looking better. As I have evolved and grown and as a father of three kids, I urge all of my and our clients to focus on happiness.

At the end of the day, we all want to be happy and I urge you to all take the time to reflect on your life, your relationships, your career and ask yourself “am I happy?” Then set yourself (or seek guidance) some strategies that will make you happier and lead a more fulfilling life.

You will find that beneath all of this it may mean you would like to exercise more, it may mean more sleep, more holidays, work harder because you love your work. Whatever it is, focus on being happy and start today. Happiness should become your number one goal. Justin Moran - Personal Trainer Just In Time PT

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