In my career as a health and wellness professional, I have worked with literally thousands of people. From nonagenarians to World Strongest Man competitors and everyone in between. The interesting thing is that everyone, whether they admit it or not, is looking for “The Secret.” They want some tiny piece of knowledge that was handed down through generations of shamans or some herb that was harvested on a Himalayan mountainside that was blessed by monks. They think that if they want to run faster, there’s a secret to that. If they want to lose weight, there’s another secret, and so on. Then I’ll ask, did you try eating a nutritious diet, exercising regularly, or managing your stress, and they deflate? Almost everyone knows what they need to do to live a long, quality life, but they want something more, something extra, a shortcut.
Years ago, while I was still competing in powerlifting, I would ask every expert I encountered for any tip or trick they would offer to be a better competitor. I remember being 20 years old and running into a friend of a friend who happened to be an author for every major fitness magazine and coach to many of the great athletes and bodybuilders of the day. After some cajoling and an exchange of handwritten letters, I’m dating myself; he sent me a workout scribbled on a half sheet of paper. It consisted of four exercises. There was almost nothing to it. I was disappointed, to say the least. It was pretty much the same advice one of my friends had received from a famous bodybuilder, which was to keep it simple and train hard. Surely, those famous people at the peak of their professions did more for themselves than the advice they were dispensing. They must be holding something back, I thought. But I discovered over the years that they were not. Sometimes, the most profound things are extremely simple.
This same advice applies to general health because it is almost always appropriate to stick with the basics. Do you have high blood pressure? Eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, get quality sleep, and manage your stress. High cholesterol? Eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, get quality sleep, and manage your stress. Overweight? Eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, get quality sleep, and manage your stress. See a pattern here? Yes, you might need more intervention for certain things, such as medication or, in extreme cases, surgery. No one, however, can argue that it isn’t a good idea to, you guessed it, eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, get quality sleep, and manage your stress.
But Dave, they ask, I know all that, but what else can I do? I then give the same advice I gave to a member of the gym I owned years ago who asked about what type of cardio exercise was best. “Dave, what’s better, a stepper or a treadmill?” “What do you do now?” Well, nothing.” “Then it doesn’t matter. Anything is better than nothing.” Before you look for “The Secret,” ask yourself if you are doing everything you possibly can to take care of your health and well-being. Are you eating a diet that is rich in non-starchy produce? If you eat meat, is it high-quality and from local farms? Do you exercise most days and do both strength training and cardiovascular exercise? Do you stretch or do yoga to maintain mobility? Are you sleeping at least 7 or 8 hours daily, and is it quality sleep? Do you meditate or do breathing exercises to manage stress? Do you get regular check-ups with your physician? If the answer isn’t “Yes” to all of these questions, you might just be looking for a secret rather than sticking with the basics and doing what you know you need to do to live your best life. There are no shortcuts.
