What do I mean? Think about raw foods for a minute. If your remote ancestor living in some peasant village (or castle if you like!) walked among the fields and got hungry, what would he eat? Depending on the season, he'd pick an apple from the tree, or perhaps pick some vegetables to eat. He'd recognize naturally raw, living foods as sources of food nourishment.
Natural Exercise that Fits a Raw Food Lifestyle
Just as those food choices came naturally to your remote ancestor, certain things we now call "exercise" came naturally to him too. Walking, perhaps as much as eight to ten miles a day, was a very natural exercise. I remember visiting a living history museum once and watching a tour guide demonstrate a big spinning wheel called a walking wheel. The lady of the house had to walk back and forth during the spinning process to feed materials into the wheel to spin them into thread, which she later made into clothing. The tour guide pointed to the worn groove in the floorboards from years of a housewife walking back and forth, and mentioned that she'd once spun all day and worn a pedometer just to see how much exercise she got. She said she walked 8 miles that day just treading a few feet back and forth while spinning!
Our ancestors got so much exercise just from doing their daily chores that we forget that our modern lifestyle isn't a natural lifestyle. From chopping wood for fires to carrying pails of water, spinning fabric or plowing fields, our ancestors worked major muscle groups, performed aerobic activities before the word aerobics was coined, and built strength. Many holistic health practitioners believe that these so called natural exercises are best for health. They're certainly the easiest to incorporate in your daily lifestyle.
Play Like a Child
Another wonderful way to encourage more daily exercise in a raw, living foods lifestyle is to play like a child. Perhaps you, like me, grew up in a different world, a safer world, in which we roamed the suburban streets and got together with our buddies on the block for impromptu kickball or baseball games. Many spring afternoons were spent at the playground climbing the jungle gym or swinging from the bars. Swimming during the summer months at the town pool or where I grew up on Long Island at Jones Beach were just fun things you did, not exercise.
What did you love to do as a child? My favorite thing was bicycling. I rode my old blue bike to the library, to school, to my friend's houses and to the store. Today, I love to ride my mountain bike around the back country roads feeling the warm sun on my face and enjoying the same free feeling I did as a child. Not only am I building up my heart muscle through aerobic activity, I'm toning and conditioning my leg and buttock muscles. I'm also relieving stress by feeling joy!
Perhaps your fond memories are of roller skating, team sports, jump rope, or playing tag. Why not find a way to rekindle them and play like a child again?
Raw Foods and Healthy Living Go Hand in Hand
It's good to remind yourself from time to time that raw foods aren't always just about foods. It's a holistic, synergistic approach to health and wellness that includes good-for-you things like loving movement (exercise), detoxification, positive mental health, emotional well being, and spiritual growth. Make time for natural exercises. Play like a child. Make time for your physical well being and love your heart through healthy exercise choices. You don't need to struggle through something you don't enjoy. Just as you embraced raw, living foods with joy and delight, embrace natural exercises and find your own daily joy.
No comments:
Post a Comment