Industrial Strength
Below, the author
"exercising" his
2nd amendment
rights.
We the working class are actually professional athletes. We use our bodies hard, in often poor climates and dangerous conditions. We lift, twist, press, pull, push and bend. For a minimum of 8 hours per day, sometimes 12, even 16...And sometimes without a day off.
Our bodies are incredible, self healing machines! Except, almost all of us are guilty of improper maintenance, and down right abuse of our given faculties.
I would like you to imagine a vehicle is plopped down out of the sky directly in front of you. The vehicle can be modified in whatever way you like, you don't get to pick the size, it's shape, or it's color, but you can "supe" it up. You are responsible for it, you get to choose the fuel, and decide how and when to schedule it's maintenance.
If you wish to install after market accessories, you certainly may! Superchargers, turbo, the sky is the limit!
Except, as the vehicle gets older your bad habits take over...
You neglect the oil change, and run fuel you know is bad because it's a few cents cheaper or more convenient,
You don't buy new tires.
Neglect a car wash.
You don't let the vehicle warm up before you rev the engine.
And you don't really care, until it doesn't want to start and things fall apart.
You can always buy a new car, but you can't go out and buy a new body, and if you think a new engine or transmission is expensive, you definitely will be in shock when you see what kind of bill you get from the "body shop" after your new heart valve and knee replacement.
When your car can't breath, you simply replace the air filter, when you can't breath, you are hooked up to oxygen or cpap machines, their is no suitable replacement (yet) for a healthy human lung that you don't already have.
Their is nothing better for aftermarket parts!
Sorry to make things sound so dismal. But the flip side of the coin is, their is allot you can actually do about it.
Not every-body has the genetic potential to be a formula 1 race car. Not every vehicle on the street is a Lamborghini , some people have them and life isn't fair, we should all know that by now. While we are all created equal, we do not live that way!
But, if you want to increase performance, and keep things running smooth, it might be a good idea to start treating your body the way you should treat any vehicle you want to keep.
Use good fuel!
Bad fuel will not allow any vehicle to run correctly, formula 1 or not. Eat good, clean food. And stop lying to yourself, your local fast food eatery wasn't cheaper when you factor in the costs your body will eventually pay. Packing a lunch to work full of healthy and nutritious food (but not too much) is the only way to start treating your body like the high performance machine it really is. In the photograph above I experimented with a diet comprised of lean meats, vegetables, fruits, and the other roughly %50 algae... That's right! Blue green algae and other dietary supplements. If I told you what my output at the gym and at work was you wouldn't believe it, so I won't bother saying it, but it was incredible. Never mind the fact that my own physical power was how I got to and from work, walking, running, and cycling! And it was actually easy, it's allot easier being in shape than being out of shape. Not the other way around. The point is, good fuel = high output, if you feel the need to question what food is healthy or not, don't eat it! We all know fruits, vegetables, and lean meats are healthy so stop B.S.-ing.
Go in for scheduled maintenance!
We all hate having to go in and let people take a peek under the hood. But, it can save you! Staying up to date and informed on your personal health is a great way to alleviate concerns and nip problems in the bud before they become catastrophic...by the way...how many overweight doctors have you met? I have met several doctors, and not a single one overweight that I can recall...coincidence, I think not! Ask questions when you meet these highly qualified (we hope) mechanics, they can tell you exactly where and how to improve.
Make sure you have good tires!
Tires are to cars what shoes are to...
Everyone!
One leading cause of workplace injury are slip trips and falls, but never mind that. Consider what bad shoes do for your balance, and posture. Buy something lighter, get something better. Experiment! Find what works best for you and the terrain you end up on the most. The benefits to your body, and your hygiene are immediate!
Clean out the junk.
We can all have a tendency to allow things to pile up, get dirty and messy, on the outside and the inside. Periodically, and more often than we already do, we should be making sure we take the time to maintain ourselves. We need to get rid of the junk, the garbage, and all the grime. It's amazing how much better a person can feel after something as simple as a haircut, and a shave.
Warm up.
I have been a weightlifter and fitness enthusiast most of my life. And to summarize my experience, there is little else more important to a productive and safe work out or work in general than a warm-up and stretch or vice versa. Don't just take off like you are late for work, make sure you take the time for a propper warm up so you don't cause damage. Any professional athlete in the world does it, and a NFL player doesn't put in the kind of hours that you do! Lets bring the same mindset to our everyday lives, we are athletes, let's start behaving that way.
Putting in a turbo!
Once you can actually perform the above basics, you may actually feel the need to start making some other big improvements, and you can! Keep in mind you are going to spend a good amount of time and money in the shop (gym) or on the track (jogging) to achieve absolute peak performance, and from my experience every dollar and minute spent is worth it! Of course you CAN do it all simply with diet and exercise you may want to try a few shortcuts some work, some don't. Like any new skill there are many ways to go about it, you can spend allot of time and read and research. You can spend allot of money and hire trainers and experts, and purchase special diets. Keep in mind the fitness industry is exactly that, it is a method of making money. But truthfully, it really boils down to trial and error, and making a conscious effort to constantly improve! And that really is what most of us want! we simply want to be improved versions of our original selves!
All you must do to improve is to do the thing you did yesterday a little better!!! You do not need perfection, you need improvement!
So to sum it all up.
Put good in, get good out!
Maintenance is a continual process and never stops!
Warm up and make sure you have good tires!