What is your "Fitness" Age??

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology has created a calculator, which calculates your "fitness" age rather than your numerical age. Utilizing information including your age, weight, gender, location, and how much you exercise, the calculator figures out what your VO2 max is. Your VO2 max shows how much oxygen one can take in, and is greatly influenced by your exercise levels.

The study that the researchers at the Norwegian University found that with every decade that people aged (men or women), their maximal oxygen uptake decreased by about 7%.

About 28% of people in the US are obese and about 35.6% are overweight. This means that most Americans who take the fitness age test using this calculator will have a fitness age that is higher than their actual ages. It was found that "fit people were relatively younger than were people who were out of shape." (NYTimes)

If your fitness age is higher than your actual age, start exercising or increase your activity. It's never too late to start! Exercise can help reduce diseases or even prevent certain types of cancers. Dr. Ronan Factora calls exercise "the best medicine no one wants to do" (Washington Post). (Just remember to consult a doctor if you're starting a new exercise regime). If your fitness age is lower, keep up the good work.

I tested out the calculator on myself. I am 32 and exercise about 5 days a week (back training for a marathon!). I plugged in all of my info and found out that I have the fitness of under an average 20 year old! This is despite being a tad heavier than I would like. My actual fitness level is 45 VO2 Max. This means that my "heart's capacity to transport oxygen is good, which decreases my risk of dying prematurely from lifestyle related diseases.

Yoga - A Practice of Mindfulness 🙏🏻

Yoga has become one of my favorite exercises - something to practice several times a week. I slowly began practicing when I started running - as a way to strength train, to stretch, and to center myself.

While I often go to classes at local studios or my gym, I also practice on my own, at home. Yoga is constant work, something I'm always striving on, and by going through the routines, the rhythm of it, I allow myself to release the pressure that I sometimes put on myself in other more competitive situations.

Yoga emphasizes being willing and open-minded. In order to get through some of the poses, you have to dare. You have to be able to kick your legs into a handstand and not be afraid to fall. If you fall, you try again. And that's how you succeed. Through this, it also teaches mindfulness. Mindfulness is defined as "the intentional, accepting and non-judgememental focus of one's attention on the emotions, thoughts and sensations occurring in the present moment" (Zgierska, 2009). By focusing on the yoga, you can move through the movements intentionally and be able to feel the sensations. This allows one to learn mindfulness and take it to others spaces in life, such as eating or stress relief.

One of my favorite yoga instructors is Emily (pictured above). For more information about her classes, please visit emilytullyyoga.com

I hope you take some time to go practice this week. Namaste.