I am a list-maker at heart. I love making them and I enjoy checking things off. I also like reading lists, or listicles as they are sometimes called. It’s a handy thing to look at when you want some quick insights.
I decided to amuse myself one evening and check out lists of health and fitness tips. I quickly found more than 30 different kinds of tips. In reviewing them all, I saw I could group them into five broad categories:
- Goals (setting goals, tracking goals, and evaluating goals)
- Motivation (positive self talk, asking for help, having a health and fitness buddy, rewards)
- Nutrition (what to eat, when to eat, what not to eat, how to eat, how to shop)
- Drink (how much water to drink, switching from coffee to tea, soda to sparkling water, reduced to no alcohol)
- Movement (when — every day!, outside, what kind — stretching, cardio, resistance, weights, yoga, rest/sleep/recovery).
If I tracked the frequency of certain suggestions, the number one types were:
- Setting goals
- Moving everyday
- Getting enough sleep
- Drinking water
- Eating good food
- Doing a variety of things
- Staying motivated
Curiously, the most varied content came in the form of food tips. These included
- Eat good food every day
- Make healthy choices
- Eat your vegetables
- Track your calories
- Watch your portions
- Buy from the perimeter of the store
- Makes sure 80 percent of food choices are healthy
- Quit coffee
- Eat more protein
- Eat green
- Eat mindfully
- Don’t diet
Now, this isn’t a scientific meta-analysis of trends in fitness tips but I did find it interesting, especially the vast array of guidance relating to nutrition and fitness. My top five favorites of all the tips were:
- Don’t diet.
- Move every day.
- Have fun.
- Get good sleep.
- Go outside
What would be in your top five?
MarthaFitat55 is w writer and listmaker who enjoys powerlifting, yoga, and swimming,
Other than your 5, I would add “drink (good) coffee”. That’s my answer to the “cut out coffee” suggestions.