When I first started writing these Energy Bites a Decade ago, they were in the form of a PDF printable Newsletter. Often, they included a review of a particularly appropriate book that fit the message of Health, Fitness & Personal Energy for Active Seniors. I recently read a book which stands out with its more enlightened message of Health and Fitness, and I feel compelled to share it with you.
The book, Grit & Grace, excels in the genre of fitness books. It’s not an exercise or diet book, but instead, is a book on living a healthy and fit lifestyle at any age.
The author is the well known country singer, Tim McGraw, who along with his wife, Faith Hill, recently completed the highest grossing tour in the history of Country Music.
Country music has always been an enjoyable genre. And Tim McGraw is one of the very best in that field. He puts on a very physical show and has to be in top physical shape to do it (without external substances to give him the unsustainable short term energy that many performers indulge in).
McGraw’s fitness routine goes beyond what most of us would do. He sometimes works out not once a day, but several times a day with his entire band and support team. He says the workouts are as much mental as they are physical and he includes full sensory visualization as part of his warm up (Hmm, where have you heard that before?).
The book runs through his entire rationale for exercise and good eating habits. Although his routine is quite extensive, he takes a practical perspective throughout the book. For example, while he talks about the importance of healthy eating and provides some recipes, he says he has to enjoy the food he eats and succumbs to cheeseburgers or pizza on occasion. He says he isn’t a complete fanatic about how he eats. That is as it should be.
McGraw’s approach to fitness is much the same as my own. His message certainly is similar. His back story of stopping drinking, changing his eating habits, losing substantial weight and getting fit is similar to mine. But he and his co-author, writer, Amely Greeven, have a much better way of expressing it than I do. The way he explains the feeling that he and others get from living fit, makes me want to head off to the gym and put in an hour of exercise right now. It just might do the same for you.
Here are three bullets from the introduction to the book that I found to be somewhat descriptive of the book as a whole:
“1. One small choice to move your body daily can spark a cascade of changes that will turn around the health of your body and mind.
“2. It’s never too late to start, and if you commit with purpose and push a little more than you might normally push, even small efforts count big . . . and
“3. Transforming your health is not just about knowing what to do. It’s about knowing why you’re doing it, and discovering what stands in the way. . .”
— Tim McGraw, Grit & Grace, Introduction, p. ix
Two more things from the book: First, if you haven’t exercised for a while, start by walking and build from there. Build slowly. Don’t try and start a major exercise initiative with heavy duty exercises at the beginning, and
Second, McGraw learned about the importance of hydration and drinking plenty of water the hard way. He collapsed during one of his shows after having done heavy workouts without hydrating himself before the show. Take note please.
I am not a shill for the book. I don’t get a commission or any compensation if you choose to buy it. It is a fitness book and it says you should exercise and eat right. But it puts it in a way that you are much more likely to respond to than the typical book on fitness.
It’s $10.99 today at Amazon (Prime). In bookstores it retails for $29.99. You will benefit by reading it. I sure did.
Thank you for reading.