It’s the New Year, How About a Fitness Check-up?

It is the New Year and some folks use this winter downtime to take care of themselves. It’s a time to finally make appointments with the doctor, dentist, or even set up the dreaded colonoscopy. Good stuff!

But how many of you ever think about getting a Fitness Check-Up™? In fact, what does that even mean? Furthermore, do you even know anyone who has ever done that?

Here’s a few scenarios where a Fitness Check-Up™ is in order. Do any of these sound like you?

Your doctor tells you that you need to exercise more and lose weight, but doesn’t give you anything else to go on.
You’ve been to physical therapy in the past year and now that you are done, you are not sure how to move forward.
You’ve lost weight this past year (yea!) and you want to get going on some meaningful exercise that will help you keep the weight off.
You have tried to get started getting more exercise, maybe even have bought some equipment, but nothing seems to happen.
You finally find an exercise class that you like, but the instructor moves away and the new one just isn’t the same.
You sometimes take an exercise class but you can’t do all the moves so you try to ride it out, or you stop going.
You have various aches and pains and you wonder what kind of exercise would work for you.
You prefer to go to lunch, watch TV, check your computer (you can add your own list here) but feel guilty that you don’t get enough exercise.
You’ve been active, and work exercise into your life regularly, but you would like to see if a few changes could be helpful.

This list is by no means complete, but you get the idea. The point is, do we ever think about checking in with our bodies to see where they are at? I mean, REALLY at?

My vision for fitness is to empower you to be your own fitness teacher.

To that end, my assessment, mindset and educational tools are designed to help you start and then progress to being more fit and healthy. Here is a simple way to begin the process:

Posture and Breathing for Fitness

Stop exactly where you are RIGHT NOW. You are probably either sitting at your computer or possibly seated or standing looking at your phone. BEFORE YOU MOVE, take stock of how you are sitting or standing. Chances are you are slouching, rounded, have your head forward, and many of your muscles feel pretty switched off. You are in your default posture. Now, stay in that position and try to take a deep breath. Not so much? Now, uncurl yourself, straighten your spine, put your head back over your shoulders, and try that deep breath again. And again. And again.
Did you know that your diaphragm, the muscle that does up and down when you breathe, is actually a huge muscle that attaches to your lower back vertebrae and the bottom six ribs of your rib cage? And that breathing involves some 20 other muscles, most of which are involved with our posture?
The point here is something that you may have already felt. When you have better posture, you breathe better. This can have HUGE implications for you during your day, giving you more energy, and making you feel more like exercising. Another bonus is that if you are walking or doing some other cardiovascular activity and your posture is good, it will probably not feel like such hard work. And THAT may keep you coming back for more, thereby getting you on the road to meeting some of your fitness goals.

Enough said for now. My blog and updates will show you more ways to give yourself a Fitness Check-Up™. You can sign up on the sidebar form and get all my updates.

Meanwhile, if you are curious, you can also check out some of the archived articles on my web site and fitness blog.

I welcome your feedback! Feel free to make a comment below, or email your comments or questions. I want to know what you are thinking, so that my site is responsive to your concerns.

Regards,
Kristen Carter, MS

P.S. Please share this post with anyone you think may benefit from using my Fitness Check-Up™ or the information on my website. Thanks!