#29 How I Stay Fit

Ah, the glorious thirties. It´s a time of joy and, let’s face it, some serious adulting. By now, we’ve spent years constructing the grand masterpiece of our existence, piling up responsibilities. And as we navigate this chapter of our lives, our bodies decide to play games with us. Suddenly, what used to be effortless - partying all night and bouncing out of bed for work - now makes us look like zombies from The Walking Dead.

Life changes and our bodies remind us of that fact. We morph and transform, becoming wiser individuals (or so we like to believe), and it’s all too easy to neglect our physical fitness. But there is a way to achieve a harmonious blend of grown-up duties while staying fit.

Join me on this journey to a fitter and healthier you and discover these three ways to stay fit after 35 that anyone can embrace and will make your younger self jealous.

You’ve Got This!

My three suggestions will bring you in great shape, regardless of age. Now, here’s the catch - while these approaches may appear simple in theory, the challenge lies in integrating them into our daily lives. We all know the eternal struggle of forming habits!

Let’s face it - sticking to a healthy lifestyle isn’t always easy. Social conventions and expectations have a way of trying to derail us. It requires dedication and a resolute spirit to overcome these challenges.

Break out from social norms and expectations

Too many people in modern society live an unhealthy lifestyle. Hence if you blindly follow the crowd, it’s very difficult to stay fit. A significant portion of the population is wasting too much time with unhealthy and destructive behavior. Don’t follow them. Break out from social norms and expectations that don´t serve your fitness and overall health goals.

Don’t be afraid to go your own way. Let’s go.

Three Ways To Stay Fit After 35

1. Sleep

Yes, you read correctly. Sleep is my ultimate weapon for staying fit, and that’s why it’s number one on this list. Sleep is a cornerstone of my overall well-being.

I’m an early riser and treat my sleep like a sacred ritual. So, after 7 pm, consider me off the grid for any social gatherings. My fit and healthy self needs those precious hours of sleep, and I don’t negotiate about that.

Sleep plays a crucial role in allowing the body to recover, conserve energy, and repair and strengthen the muscles that were exerted during exercise. When we get sufficient and high-quality sleep, our body produces growth hormones.

Hormones that not only - as the name indicates - induce growth during our childhood but help develop lean muscle and promote the body’s repair process as we age.

However, that is not the only reason why you should get a minimum of seven hours a day of sleep. There are more reasons, as Andrew Huberman tweeted:

How much sleep do we need as adults?

A commonly suggested recommendation is to get at least seven hours of sleep daily. However, there are several prominent examples of athletes who feel at their best when they get eight, nine, or even ten hours of sleep per day.

2. Exercise

Exercise is the obvious thing. To stay fit, being physically active and moving is essential. But that doesn't mean you must go to the gym or run regularly. Find something you genuinely enjoy doing, like dancing or gardening, anything that involves using your body.

For me, exercise is vital. Being active, especially outdoors, gives me energy and, most importantly, makes me happy.

Why exercising will make you happy too

Exercise increases the demand for oxygen and nutrients in your muscles, which makes your heart beat faster. This boosts blood flow not only through your body but also to the brain, delivering essential nutrients and energy. Studies have suggested that well-oxygenated brains can help manage depression and anxiety.

Furthermore, when we exercise, we produce a cocktail of hormones that contribute to making us feel good.

It's not fully understood yet how the release of certain hormones is connected to our happy mood after exercise. However, this lack of understanding doesn't change the fact that exercise positively impacts our well-being.

Even without conducting formal studies or having a precise understanding of the underlying mechanisms, Joseph Pilates intuitively recognized almost 80 years ago that:

(Joseph Pilates, Return to Life through Contrology, 1945)

And I believe he was right.

3. Nutrition

I’m not a nutritionist or in any way an expert on nutrition. But common sense tells me that since food is the fuel of our body and without fuel, no machine runs, it is important what we eat.

The food industry is a complex network of diverse businesses with significant financial interests at stake. The global revenue forecast of the food market in 2023 is projected to reach a staggering 9.43 trillion USD. Just like in any industry, businesses aim to generate profit, and as a result, the food market has become a fiercely competitive battleground for marketers.

They manipulate you

In the last few months, three people have told me that they don’t eat fruits - either avoid certain fruits or completely eliminate them from their diet - because of the high sugar level in fruits.

This is how far we got!

It´s disheartening to witness this perspective gaining traction. Suddenly fruits are being portrayed as unhealthy. Such remarks almost make me lose faith in common sense and humanity itself.

And at the same time, we are witnessing “a growing consumer preference toward ready-tp-eat (RTE), meal replacing, and packed food items (which) is boosting the demand for protein/nutrition bars.”

Seriously?! We no longer eat fresh fruits, but somehow industrial, processed nutrition bars are considered great?

While researching for this section, I went down a rather disheartening rabbit hole (similar to the one in "The Health Dilemma"). It was such an eye-opening experience.

In a nutshell:

The PowerBar Energize bar is an excellent example of how misleading the industry has become.

Pretty fancy text on the right side, or?

And “scientifically developed” sounds great and trustworthy.

Let’s have a look at the Nutrition Facts:

Per serving: 21g Added Sugars (!)

In comparison, let’s examine the “evil” banana, which people mistakenly believe contributes to weight gain:

Per serving of ripe banana: 15g sugar (naturally occurring)

Unfortunately, bananas are not “scientifically developed”. Bananas are a creation of nature. And for some people, that’s not good enough.

But the simple truth is that a healthy diet categorically excludes any foods containing added sugars!

What I Eat

I am a healthy and fit woman in her late thirties. I exercise in one way or another every day. My activities range from Pilates, running, surfing, and walking. And I feel energized most of the time.

But again, I’m not a nutritionist. So if you choose the “scientifically developed” products over old-school food, that’s fine with me. Go ahead and poison yourself.

This is what I usually eat on a daily or weekly basis:

• Bread (all sorts and almost every day - even the notorious one with gluten)

• Eggs (in all possible variations. Whole eggs - not only egg-whites. For breakfast up to four whole eggs. And if you’re concerned: My cholesterol levels are fine)

• Fruits (a wide range that usually follows seasonal availability)

• Veggies (all kinds, whatever is available and in season)

• Chicken & fish (I also like beef, but getting good quality beef where I live isn't easy.)

• Potatoes, rice, and pasta

• Oatmeal (hot water, +cow milk, and oats. Nothing else. No fancy seeds or spreads.)

• Yogurt (even the "bad" one made of cow milk)

• For my sweet tooth: mostly Chocolate Cookie (every day:) Certain options are not detrimental to your health, and I enjoy them without regrets

I don´t take any supplements. I don´t add any magical powder to my meals. I don´t follow any specific diet. Maybe that´s why I´m fit, healthy and happy.

My two golden rules are:

1. To keep things simple: if it passed the taste test of our ancestors a hundred years ago, it's probably safe to eat today. So anything that people didn’t eat back then but is available today is likely to be “scientifically developed,” and I’m not sure if I want to consume that.

2. Don´t eat before having exercised, and only eat when you are hungry (this means I skip meals, and once in a while, I don't eat at all. Simply because I’m not hungry.)

To summarise:

Sleep: Dedicate ten hours of your day to sleep, allocating one or two hours for whining down and the remaining time for truly resting. Make sleep a priority.

Move: Every day. Walk, dance, play! You will be happier.

Eat: People, eat your bananas!!

Sleep, move, eat.

Stay fit and thrive.