We’re active. Most of us horsemen and women get plenty of exercise just taking care of our barnful.
Hay tossing, water lugging, and riding add up to being Farm Fit.
Some may be Gym Fit, too, toning and sweating in a more formal setting.
Read about Farm Fit versus Gym Fit.
Over the decades, I’ve fallen squarely in the Farm Fit camp, supplementing horse work with rigorous walks with dogs and occasional sets of push ups and sit ups.
But the other day, it hurt just climbing into the saddle.
Something had to change.
Struggling with injuries and aging, I’ve started incorporating elements of Gym Fit into the routine. Core strength training and stretching in the form of Pilates and yoga classes at a nearby public recreation center, have become essential components.
A recent radio program spoke to this topic:
Photo My Fit Station
Dr. Jordan Metzl, author of “The Exercise Cure: A Doctor’s All-Natural, No-Pill Prescription for Better Health & Longer Life” said that after our 20s and 30s, we lose naturally muscle mass if we don’t exercise. Certain regimes like Pilates can help an aging frame.
Metzl likes to consider exercise like anything else doctors might prescribe. In fact, the New York sports medicine doctor calls exercise the most effective preventative medicine out there.
He said, “what if there were a drug to treat every illness, across all body systems, proven potent against heart disease, depression, arthritis, PMS and erectile dysfunction — even in chronic diseases such as asthma, dementia, and certain types of cancer? What if it had no side effects, was completely free, readily available, and worked for everyone? Every single person who took it decreased her risk of premature death and raised his quality of life. Would you want it?”
What do you think?
What works best for you?