Welcome to Nudge360!
Congratulations on taking the first step to a new and healthier life!
Over the next several months, we will travel on a journey...one in which we are *not* focused on diet and exercise, but rather healthier nutrition and more activity. As such there are a few ground rules:
- we don't (and won't) use the word diet
- we focus on activity rather than exercise
- I don't care what the scale says and neither should you - the number on the scale means diddly-squat.
- our goal is to be healthier tomorrow than we are today
So, where do I start?
Without a doubt, the first ingredient you need in this recipe is your own motivation...your desire to do more of the things you like, put better fuel AKA food in your body and live a healthier, more complete life!
Most of the folks on this journey are absolute beginners. We may have been the star lineback in High School or the track and field queen of yesteryear, but over the course of time, we've become distracted with life...getting an education, raising a family, securing a business, etc. Along the way, we've settled into the great American lifestyle of minimal activity and maximal comfort food. Today that changes!
Yeah, but I've done all this before....
Actually, you probably haven't. You may have joined a gym, started a new "diet", bought a treadmill, etc but I suspect that all of those things seemed like insurmountable obstacles after a few weeks. The treadmill becomes a coat rack. The gym seems so far away. "I'm tired of this damn diet"....yeah, been there, done that. This is something completely different.
Rule #1 - no diets
Let's be clear. We're not going to start some "latest and greatest" diet craze. We are not going to starve ourselves. We are not going to purge our system (actually we probably are, but you won't know it). We will have a discussion about nutrients...what's good and what's bad and we will stress putting good fuel in your body. After all, you wouldn't put cheap gas in a '67 Shelby would you?
Healthy food in = healthy body throughout
Rule #2 - put down the weights, step off the treadmill and be active
I don't want to harp on this a whole lot as there are distinct benefits to a regular exercise program. Lifting weights, cycling, going for a run are all great things to do, but we need to start at a different place...we need to start with moving our body through space. Sure, as we move along, we'll be talking about specific "exercises" but those are all in the context of helping us climb Chick Hill or walking a mile (or as one enrollee has already planned out...walking a 5K!) or having the energy and stamina to walk the pier at the Samoset in such a way that we don't need an oxygen tank when we get to the lighthouse!
Rule #3 - step off the scale
I....don't.....care.....what....you....weigh and NEITHER SHOULD YOU!
Who cares anyway? Sure, overall weight is an easy thing to measure, but what does it really mean? Our body weight reflects what effect gravity has on our body. It's not a reflection of health...it's a number some stupid insurance company uses to determine your life insurance rates.
Here are the numbers we should be focusing on:
1. what is my heart rate recovery?
2. what is my body fat percentage?
3. what is my waist line?
4. what is my sit and rise score?
5. how long does it take me to walk a mile?
For decades, healthcare has been focused on static numbers....weight, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, heart rate, etc when what really matters are the dynamic numbers....those that reflect our movement.
Rule #4 - you are not alone
We are in this together which is why I'm encouraging each of you to use a fitness tracker and download the *free* NudgeHealth application. Also, as the community builds, we'll be able to share our victories with each other which, in turn, will motivate each of us.
Rule #5 - you are more than the sum of your parts
There is an adage that goes something like this...80% of your health comes from the kitchen, 20% comes from what you do.
I'm adding that 100% is governed by our mind. While we will be talking about good nutrition and moving out body through space, it is crucially important that we take some time, each and every day, to....pause....and....reflect. Our brain has some very powerful "juju-juice" - no doubt you've heard stories of people who have "cured" themselves of X condition simply on the basis of their outlook and perspective. Over the course of nudge360, we'll be tapping into that juice.