365 & Still Alive! 
One Full Year of Daily Exercise

Jones Gang-Forged by Fitness!

I just wrapped up 365 straight days of daily exercise in 2007.  I did not miss one single day.  I exercised at least 30 minutes per day all year.  NO EXCUSES--or at least any that were good enough to take a day off.  This might surprise you, but I had NO PLAN except doing 30 minutes of "something" each day.  My workouts ranged from a casual walk to vicious strength training or a long bike ride for hours.  My biggest surprise?  How much I did with less. 

Most of the time I had an excuse to NOT exercise and take a day off.  I forced myself to exercise anyway, and guess what happened?  After I got out there and got going, I was glad I did.  About 70% of the time I did not want to exercise,  but 100% of the time I was glad I did!  That's amazing!  I think the battle was won in the first five minutes--those moments of truth where I went from sitting to moving.  It was only five minutes of struggle for the most part--then everything flowed.

This whole thing started off as a 30-day kick start in January 2007.  I'll be honest and admit weakness which many people in my profession would never do because of ego or brand image--but I'm a straight shooter.  I tell the truth about health--even mine.  I got busy.  I missed too many days per week of exercise and went from 5-6 days per week to 3-5.  In 2006, I gained a few pounds and lost too much fitness.  It was crap, and I knew it.  I started exercising and living healthy 20 years ago on New Year's Day 1987.  I've been exercising ever since.  I figured New Year's Resolutions were good for me, so why not try another with the 30 straight days of exercise.  The first three weeks were agonizing!  To not allow myself ANY excuses for missing a workout was very hard.  But a funny thing happened after about three weeks--I kind of got used to it.  It worked so well, I thought why not go two months?  After two months, I thought I might as well go all year! 

It makes me feel better even if I go slow and easy.  This is worth reading slowly and thinking about if you are struggling in your life with making exercise a lifestyle and daily routine.  I hope you think about it then move into action!  J

Here's the breakdown on my process for success in 2007:

• Lack of Specifics?  On first glance, just saying you are going to "do something" all year for 30 minutes a day sounds like a plan that would fail.  In my Wellcoaching of clients, I recommend more specific weekly goals; however, one cannot deny individual differences.  For me personally, I'm tired of paperwork, computer logging, data tracking, and more crap to stress me out!  I wanted (and NEEDED) to keep it simple.  Anything beyond simple, and I felt like I would fail in 2007 because of my work travels.  It's hard to save America!  And stressful--even for the coach!  Hence, I stripped it down the bare essentials--30 minutes of dedicated exercise per day of some sort of movement.

• Variety:  You're supposed to get weekly cardio, strength, and flexibility.  I did all this, but without a specific plan.  I just use variety--and old Jack LaLanne trick.  I do some of this and some of that.  Unless I'm racing, I don't use progressions of macro cycles, micro cycles, or get hung up on any other complications for general fitness.  I'd rather spend my time working out instead of tracking the workouts!  (Note: If I was in season, racing, or body building, this would be different--I would use more formal programming, but I'm not.)  For those that say without a more specific plan the guy must have failed, read on!

• 7 Days Per Week:  My mentor Jack LaLanne has exercised seven days a week for over 50 years!  Even by my standards, this is extreme, but he made a point and got me thinking.  Last year I met another lifetime exercise professional in his late 70s named Dan Mackey.  Dan remarked that he exercised nearly every day all year long and has for decades.  Then I really started thinking about this daily exercise thing.  I had to ask myself--is exercising each and every day better for my health or would it be worse because of the stress and pressure of trying to never miss a single day?  For purposes of stress reduction, I decided to proceed with the daily plan with a twist.  The twist is I never put a requirement on intensity or mode of exercise--I just did something.  I figured an easy walk for 30 minutes is better than sitting around stressing about money and work...and it was!

• Overtraining & Burnout?  A lot of people asked me this year if what I was doing was healthy because I never had a day off.  My answer is yes--but only because I wasn't going hard all the time.  I used to go hard nearly every day as a competitive athlete.  Now, for purposes of general health and fitness, I just go!  You need to understand that many of my workouts were just casual walks on the bike path or in the neighborhood.  If I broke a sweat, I was good.  I walked hard enough and long enough to at least break a sweat and stimulate my metabolism.  Doing something this easy does NOT require a day of rest or time off!  Easy walking IS rejuvenating, so why would I need a day off from something that is restful in the first place?  I didn't!  That's how I did it without overtraining or burning out.  Just move.  Keep it simple.  It will all workout just fine.

• 30 Minutes Minimum Duration:  I chose 30 minutes because this is the basic recommendation for daily exercise.  I also felt like this was the most I could handle in 2007.  If I got more, great, and many times I did.  Some days I went for  a few hours.  Many days I went for around 45 minutes.  Some days it was all I could do to get through 30, and I was at times counting the seconds!

• Intensity:  There was NO requirement on how hard!  As long as I was doing something that was "dedicated" EXERCISE, this met my goal.  Why?  Because I was worried about imploding with anything beyond.  This is odd when considering my background as a competitive athlete.  Because my work schedule and travel requirements, I just do not have the same life as ten years ago.  I don't have the time to workout 2-5 hours per day for six days a week anymore like I used to do.  When I tried to push this edge in recent years past, I failed.  So in 2007, I just said exercise for 30 minutes--period.  Slow, moderate, fast, easy, hard...it didn't matter as long as I was doing it.

• Mode or Type of Exercise:  It didn't matter!  As long as I did something, this was good enough.  At the end of the month, it all worked out just fine.  I got a mix of cardio, strength, and flexibility/mobility without any specific or regimented plan.

• "EXERCISE" vs. Activity or House Chores:  This is probably one of my biggest points to make--I made 30 minutes per day ONLY for exercise.  I never counted random chores around the house, parking further away from the mall entrance, taking the stairs at work, mowing the lawn, raking the leaves, or any other utilitarian-type tasks.  Why?  Because I see too many people using house chores as an excuse to not do anything harder.  The chores around the house and random walking around the office become more of an excuse than a method to significantly improving fitness.  A textbook definition of exercise is: "to practice, strengthen, or condition the human body through physical activity--more deliberate than just general activity."  My suggestion is this--DEDICATE true EXERCISE time each day.  If you have to mow the lawn and it's hard--great!  But you'd be mowing the lawn regardless of needing to exercise.  There is a higher level of dedication to health when you specifically set time aside to EXERCISE instead of just counting this and that, because doing it that way is usually just a cop out.  Interestingly, "exercise" has become a bad word to many and not politically correct.  We now refer to just being physically active instead of exercising for fear of turning someone off.  It is what it is!  Even I avoided this word for a while after being indoctrinated in school.  I prefer calling it like it is now and telling the truth.  Physical activity is one thing--exercise is another...and better!  Exercise is not a bad word--it's one of the best words!  Don't just be active--EXERCISE!  It's truly a higher level.  You can BS or lie to yourself all day, but at the end of the day are you better off for not exercising?  That is the question you will have to live with--and maybe die with.  The choice is yours.  The choice was mine.  I made the right ones in 2007.  I was better off in terms of stress and general health to do some sort of exercise 30 minutes a day.  I BSed myself in 2005 and 2006 and lost ground.  I gained some weight and lost fitness.  Did I deserve these days off in 2005-2006?  Yes.  Was it worth it for my health?  No.

• Results:  I'm amazed at how much I got for so little!  While I'm not in race shape, I'm still in good shape.  I lost about 5-6 pounds this year while adding more muscle.  I am lifting at my all time max with many lifts like the bench press, back row, and lat pull (and with NO formal lift program!).  I can ride my bike hard for a few hours straight, lift for an hour or two really hard, get through a 90 minute yoga class, hike for 3-5 hours, and pretty much do what I want to do for health and well-being.  And all with a 30 minute per day base of fitness with NO particular schedule, plan, progressions, or requirements other than just exercising 30 minutes.  This is amazing!  I'm convinced after 2007, KEEPING IT SIMPLE is the answer for most people and especially me.

• The Discipline:  I'll be honest, it was hard to never miss a day of exercise all year!  Flying across the US and completely jet lagged, I had to force myself to walk the neighborhood in the cold and even rain after traveling to get in my DAILY workout.  Once I forgot until it was 10:30 PM.  I cursed my mindlessness!  I cursed that damn exercise goal that I made public!  Then I forced myself out into the dark cold to walk 30 minutes on the bike path anyway!  Even that night I was glad I did it after it was over!  My foot injury with plantar fasciitis has given me daily foot pain for about two years straight--to the point where I could not even walk at a moderate pace for a workout.  I had to ride a bike or do something else off my feet on many days.  It was hard, but like I said, the hard part was the first five minutes of going from sitting to moving.  It takes discipline.  Do the right thing for your health by exercising, and you'll reap the benefits of health.  Don't BS yourself.  FORCE the fitness if you have to, but get it done.

• What's Next in 2008?  I was successful in my 2007 goal to go all year with 30 minutes a day.  Being careful about burning myself out, I have a couple of additional goals for 2008.  Doing one day of core bridging per week for at least 5:00 is the best back injury prevention I can have, so I'm adding this one.  I need "at least" one vigorous day per week--preferably "vicious"--but at least vigorous, so I'm adding that one...maybe a couple more...we'll see...

One thing is for sure, unless I'm dead, I'll be doing something.  Seven days a week in 2008 for RJ?  Yep.  It works for me.    Like Jack LaLanne says, "Anyone can die.  You have to work at living."

I hope this will help some of you become more regular with daily exercise.  We are all busy with work and family, but the body needs maintenance and support no matter what is in our day planners.  Even if your workout schedule is not seven days per week, make sure it's MOST DAYS of the week!

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(Updated 1.4.08)

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