Why this blog? Because, I want to help.
We are connected to one another. The Dalai Lama calls it ‘Interdependence’.
I have been thinking a lot about H.H. the Dalai Lama’s teachings on compassion and his goal to end suffering. This prompted me to think about what I can do to help those around me. Besides making donations and giving of my time, I want to contribute in a way that I am deeply passionate about, and that I believe will help now.
I am passionate about health and fitness.
Around me I see people struggling and suffering, not only with health issues but poor body image and low levels of physical fitness. Lack of attention to one’s health has a snowball effect, which leads to further complications associated with ageing. I have to believe that my years of experience and personal experiments were not a selfish journey, but, rather, a way to make a difference. Humans are meant to be strong, agile, flexible and powerful. What happened? We’ve all got our own list of what happened. For most it is a lack of time. However, it could also be the result of known or unknown effects from chemical/pesticide exposure, mineral deficiency from food sources that are dangerously lacking, long-haul CoV-19 and/or long term chronic illness, which at the time of this update (May 2022) I am recovering from CIRS.
So, what can I do to help? I can show you how to take care of your body by doing what I call: a “4 minute morning”…
…everyday –
For the rest of your life. Update: But I also want to inform you that you are likely very mineral deficient too. Restoring the minerals in my body has played a massive part in my recovery! Use this affiliate link when you visit RnA ReSet.
Twenty-two Thirty-three years ago I started my journey into fitness as a profession: Aerobic/ Step/ Cycle Reebok Instructor, fitness tester/consultant, Personal Trainer, amateur bodybuilder turned fitness competitor, Pilates & Gyrotonic Instructor/ Studio Owner and Yoga & Meditation & Reiki student.
My name is Kathryn Palumbo. Today (April 2011), I am 40 years old, a wife and mother of two school aged kids (8 and 6 years old). I sold my studio prior to the birth of our second child, to focus on my family. Now that our kids are more independent and at school full time, I am able to devote time once again to what drives me. I am back with a clear vision.
This past year I experimented with short duration High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and Tabatas. After a few weeks of this type of training I started seeing small changes. But I waited ‘til after three months before I started talking about it. In fact I was bursting at the seams with excitement and passion for this type of training. Sure it was intense, but it was also quick and it covered all the bases: functional strength, cardiovascular fitness, muscular endurance, agility and power.
It was like opening “Pandora’s box,” for anyone who asked what kind of workout I was doing. I would forward the links to two websites, and offered some of my own advice. But not everyone was ready to get started in the same way I was. In fact, for most, it was quite overwhelming.
I needed to figure out why this approach to fitness didn’t grab everyone. I spent some time casually interviewing people about their ideas on health and fitness. In this blog, I will share what I’ve learned.
As a starting point, my hope is to encourage everyone to get moving for a minimum of 4 minutes each day, upon waking, using one’s own body-weight as resistance, regardless of any other physical activities or sports are planned for the day. These 4 minutes are just to get your body going for the day. Like a reminder for body and brain how to move. (Similar to how the firefighters do their morning equipment maintenance check).
Update May 2022: Even during my very debilitating experience with CIRS and Chronic Fatigue I almost always did my “Bed Stretches” because I really couldn’t get out of bed in the morning without doing them (Thyroid dysfunction). Sometimes it would take me about 45 minutes to an hour to do what would typically take less than five minutes of stretches! Now I’m back to what seems closer to normal and I can do my morning bed stretches in a healthy amount of time and I’ve even started doing my basic level of the 4 minute morning and slowly (when my lessening levels of Chronic Fatigue have allowed) I’ve been learning some other techniques from GMB Fitness and My Foot Function which I’ll share in the blog! There is hope for a comeback.
It is your daily duty as the owner of the Living Machine you call yourself.
I believe that we will do ourselves a service if we focus less on the aesthetic and more on our body’s function.
In short, as we age, its not the dumbbells we will need to pick up, it’s ourselves.
You As A Machine is dedicated to the improvement and maintenance of the body’s functional strength.
My hope is that you find something in this blog that resonates such as to initiate the spark for change.
LET’S GET STARTED!
“Each one of us is responsible for all of humankind, and for the environment in which we live. . . . We must seek to lessen the suffering of others. Rather than working solely to acquire wealth, we need to do something meaningful, something seriously directed toward the welfare of humanity as a whole. To do this, you need to recognize that the whole world is part of you.”—Dalai Lama, from How to Be Compassionate