The evidence against the sedentary lifestyle is mounting. Sitting is killing us. When I began my attempts at a standing desk, I was told that it was weird. I replied simply that the longer we sit, the quicker we die. I firmly believe this, and the science backs it up. We can no longer think that throwing an extended cardio session at an otherwise sedentary lifestyle will stave off obesity, ill health, or make-up-for last nights extra large pizza (even if it was with a diet coke). If we take as given that the previous posts in this series - which covered the primal blueprint eating laws - are sound, then the next few posts will build upon this basis.
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| Masses of fast food and the occasional heavy exercise session does not make a healthy, fit person |
Before going any further, lets get one key element out of the way. Some 80% of body composition is determined by diet alone. This is why massive exercise sessions do not make up for a diet heavy in our primal avoids and the SAD diet. Have you ever seen those people who are regulars at a gym/exercise class, they show up dedicated every time and work the hardest of all- but remain overweight and under-toned. Well, the answer is simple, our bodies adapt to perform our exercise easier - but, these people have already adapted to theirs. That's right, the benefits eventually slide with continued prolonged and unchanging exercise (avoiding this will feature in my next few posts) because your musculature has already adapted to it. That excess fat you're trying to get rid of - I have already explained the best way in my previous posts - eat lots of plants and animals, and avoid poisonous things. To this I can now add; move frequently at a slow pace.
I've spent a long time writing against the methods some have tried and failed with to become healthy. Now it's time to look at the primal blueprint law and how we can follow it. The crux of the matter is this, we have evolved into bipedal walkers because we needed to. We would have walked for hours daily, either to relocate, or to hunt and gather as that's what we were - nomad hunter-gatherers. So, what does moving frequently at a slow pace look like?
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| Walk, walk, and walk some more |
Firstly, lets define moving at a slow pace is personal to ourselves. One persons easy run might be another person's deathly sprint. Take the tour de France, it is likely that the cyclists rarely leave what would be described as moderate level activity - whereas if I attempted one of those mountains I would pass out within five minutes. Perhaps the best way to capture low level aerobic pace is to keep your heart rate between 50-65% Max heart rate, any higher and you begin to move into higher levels of exertion. Want to know the best thing about movement at this pace? You burn fat. Blasting through an hour session at 80% or higher heart rate will burn carbs (and leave that fat around your belly). Moving at a slow pace for 2-5 hours a week (or more) is a fair trade for lasting health.
What does moving at a slow pace look like? The options are massive, to name a few:
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| If you can, enjoy the scenery |
- Walking or hiking
- Cycling
- Swimming
I also class mobility drills and compensation yoga as part of my low level activity. On my 4 day exercise cycle (to be discussed more in later posts), my first day involves around 20 minutes of mobility drills. Think of it as an extended warm up - without the exercise following. I also do similar mobility drills as a comprehensive warm up on my medium and high intensity days. Compensation yoga fits into my second day of the cycle. The focus is not on stretching per se - but performing recovery exercises that allow full recovery from the more high-impact exercise I do. In this way I am enabling full recovery from exercise while maintaining movement regularly. Add in daily dog walks, bike rides to University, walking with and to work and the bike rides me and Claire have started going on more regularly and you have plenty of low level activity. Now, my favorite bit, how does this impact type 1 diabetics? Well, you lose the excess fat that hinders insulin responsibility, by virtue of having a leaner body composition you need less insulin. You don't need to worry about hypos - as you should be burning fat at this intensity. Mostly, it's just healthy - as we already have a long-term health condition, it's important we look after ourselves as a whole, and then our bodies will look after us as well. Remember, the lower your activity level, the quicker you die.
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| If you want to begin going barefoot for all the additional benefits - grab some vibram five fingers They are awesome :-) |
Low level activity, when combined with the primal blueprint eating plan really are a match made in heaven. Fat burning activity, with little injury risk and all the benefits. Now, you likely wont build muscle with only laws 1,2, and 3; but, thats where the next law comes in - Law#4, lift heavy things. See you next time.
Respectfully,
Sam
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