Month of Balance.

I went back to St. Louis last weekend to see my friends and family. Most of them asked how my "month of health" was going. I found that my most frequent answer was, "not bad".

And it's not bad. Different than I expected...but not bad.

During this experiment, I've learned a lot about myself and am still learning. I've grown to appreciate and incorporate a healthy balance. Have I been vigorously training for nothing? No, not at all. Why, you ask? I think it's a combination of things.

I believe that you either have to have a passion for health, or must be unhappy with your current state of being in order to focus 100% on getting in tremendous shape. Although I appreciate tremendous health, I do not have a deep passion for achieving it. I am just curious. Also, I am quite content with my state of being.

Sure, washboard abs would be nice to have. But for what price? Giving up so many other things that make me much happier than abs and concentrating the majority of my spare time on stomach exercises? No thanks. But I can balance eating tasty food that's good for you and doing crunches and sit-ups several times a week along with my usual routine of enjoying a cold beer and a cheeseburger on occasion. That keeps Matt looking and feeling pretty good and staying happy.

I've realized that I have no desire to give up so-called things that are unhealthy. Steak, beer, cocktails, cheeseburgers, lasagna, burritos...I love 'em, and will never give them up. But I've also realized that you have to balance those things out with a healthy lifestyle and moderation. At least I do. And for the record, I've had one cheeseburger, no steak, no burritos, no lasagna, and have cut my beer intake in half.

Each person is different. If someone enjoys throwing on the spandex and having a protein shake before riding 100 miles of mountain road, that's cool. In fact, that's awesome. A part of me is jealous. But the majority of me has absolutely no desire to do that. I am more than content jogging on my treadmill and doing my basement exercises. Then hitting the river and fly fishing for the rest of the day. We both have healthy days, enjoyable days, and more times than not, we both reward ourselves at the end of the day with a frosty cold beer. Everyone wins.

I have also realized that achieving good health is much more difficult than maintaining good health. But you have to have determination and discipline for both. That's why I plan on continuing less eating, healthier eating, and being active everyday even after September is over with. Going from lethargic to very active virtually overnight is no picnic. So now that I have become fairly active, it will be easier to plane out than to go from one extreme to the other.

So, I suppose in a sense I have failed. I have not accomplished everything that I have set out to do in a month's time. I have slipped more than once in the past three weeks. But I have also made some very positive steps. I have lost weight. I have woken up my sleepy lats and abs. I have learned to be conscious of my calorie intake. I have been eating much better. But the most important thing I've learned during these past three weeks and something I have thought very deeply about...Balance.

It not just applies to my experiment, it applies to everything. Everything.

For me, it keeps my body and my mind healthy. A balance of healthy food, greasy food, cocktails, water, juice, milk, country music, rock and roll, jazz, reggae, city, country, mountain, river, staying home, road tripping, patio, couch, cooking, restaurant, campfire, tv, running, lounging, work, days off, certain friends, certain other friends...everything.

Call it well rounded or whatever. I think that balance is the most healthy conclusion that one can come to. My month of health has transformed into a month of balance.

Although my month was not a complete accomplishment, it was still positive and still a success. And it's not over yet.



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