The basics
It is science but not rocket science. We need to stop trying to make all of this health and fitness stuff more complicated and difficult than it needs to be. Be generally active, minimize sitting time, stand and walk whenever you can. Do some resistance training and vigorous "aerobic" activity. Work hard and progressively on both so that you stimulate adaptation. Rest enough to grow and recover so that you improve. Pay attention to safety. Stay mobile enough to squat and sit on the floor. Diet is responsible for your  bodyweight, not exercise.

It is not about the tools
Not mentioned: the tools or the protocols.....because lots of things will work. The tools: kettlebells, bodyweight exercise,  barbells. The protocols: one set to failure, 3x8-12,  5x5, Reverse Pyramid etc. intervals or a 400m run. They are not the important concerns.  Lift stuff, sprint, recover. Just make sure to pick safe and sensible exercises.

Listen to your Mother
Then there is all the stuff your mom told you:  stand up straight, get to bed early, eat your greens, don't snack between meals, stop worrying so much, wear sensible shoes, brush your teeth, get some sunshine and fresh air.

A distraction?
Yes there is science...but really all the focus on the science can be a distraction and an excuse for most of us. The science actually says what I've recommended. The search for the perfect becomes the enemy of the good enough. As I've said before, most of us are not elite athletes either by genetic ability, or profession. For most of us being elite is about maintaining function as we get older. This is not defeatist. Doing these things will get you fitter and looking better than most of those sitting next to you in your office, on the bus or at the pub. Don't stress about the details so much. Get on with your life.

Wolfie
Eat for growth, train for strength, live for the MOMENT.

Our program trains athletes in ten capacities: cardio/respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, accuracy, agility, and balance. Reading these ten physical traits of fitness, you may think to yourself “I could stand some work on…”  This deficiency in all-encompassing fitness may seem rather unimportant, but I beg you to reconsider.  Think for a moment about our friends over in the Middle East.  If they have deficiency in any one skill, let’s call it… stamina… what are the consequences of their deficiency?  Injury, mission, life?

You see, we don’t aim to have an excess of any one or two skills, rather our goal is a general capacity at all ten skills.  It’s fine and dandy that a powerlifter is able to back squat 1000# or that a runner has a 16:00 5k.  But the fitness we seek is a compromise of all ten skills – an athlete with a 450# back squat and a 19:00 5k. 

We all have chinks in our fitness, but I challenge you to face your weaknesses as an opportunity to develop a more well-rounded fitness.  Make a list of your weakest movements and dedicate 10 minutes a day (or more) to making yourself more comfortable with one of those movements.
Wolfie
Eat for growth, train for strength, live for the MOMENT.

Well, fertilizer can play an important role in replenishing soil of depleted nutrients. Organic fertilizers (like chicken manure) have been known to improve soil life and the productivity of soil, even improving plants absorption of essential nutrients. Fertilizer can be very important to a plant’s overall success and growth. Similarly, our own failure can be used as fertilizer. Failure plays just as important of a role in our own development as fertilizer plays a crucial role in a plant’s development.

Failure is essential to one’s growth and ultimately, success in whatever endeavor they pursue. This, of course, is only true of those who take failure for what it is, an opportunity to flourish. Denis Waitley also brought out another point when he said “winners focus on the rewards, losers focus on the penalties.” How do you view a perceived failure? Negatively, like a penalty given for playing the game of chance, or with optimism?

I started applying this mentality in the gym. Not in some feel good, have a smile on your face at all times way, but in my own mindset with how I approach my training and my athletes. The first thing I immediately changed with this new perspective was to take risks. I tend to be conservative in my workouts. I will hold back the slightest bit because I am worried about my energy reserves for the remainder of the workout. However, after deciding to take more risks (also encouraged by everyone I workout with), I have reaped many benefits. Instead of pacing myself in a workout, I will push myself harder than ever. Instead of approaching the workout with doubt in my abilities, worried about what might happen if I don’t make a new personal record, I approach the training session with the view of taking away a new lesson on how to listen to my body, push myself to break through that wall and how to hold on for one more rep. Missing a lift isn’t so terrifying now, it is just another opportunity to improve on my movement pattern. Coming off the bar during pull-ups doesn’t mean that I am a failure, it just means that I will take more opportunities to work on cycling my pull-up rhythm. The crazy thing is, this approach has actually worked! Not only have I improved my performance, but my attitude for training has been reinvigorated!

I recently read a Chinese proverb that has continued to fuel my approach of taking risks. It states, “Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of standing still.” This evokes the same sentiments as losers focusing only on penalties. If this is your mindset then yes, any risk will seem too daunting to take on because the penalties will be too great. On the flip side, growth will always be elusive because you have robbed yourself of a chance to evolve. Instead, be like Thomas Edison who said the following after he had an estimated 10,000 failed attempts at creating the light bulb: “I have not failed. I’ve simply discovered ten thousand ways that don’t work.” How many opportunities do you think you would have if you adopted this motto?

It is this mindset that distinguishes elite athletes from others; their approach to their own shortcomings. No elite athlete has arrived at their peak without taking risks and facing failure. It is what they have done with their failures that have produced their success.
Wolfie
Eat for growth, train for strength, live for the MOMENT.