Lately there seems to be a push to bring everyone back to nature…and honestly, it’s quite refreshing.  Now I cannot say I am totally sold on this yet but it has my learning antennae up and on.  The following is just a brief synopsis of the different ways you can take food or training back to nature.

Barely There

The first push out there and the one with the most steam is the barefoot running craze.  I am eyeballing this one like a son of a gun.  I know many that have tried this but they have been on treadmill and to me that’s not much of a stretch.  What I want to know about is the person who went running on the Charles in 40 degree weather with no shoes on–can I get a report on that? 

I know about Vibram Five Fingers and have thought about trying them out (I will do a full review if I do) but I have not ventured there yet.  Right now I am living vicariously through my clients and friends to see how they handle the winter time.

Geico to the Rescue

The next push is to eat like our ancestors do.  I can definitely get on board with this type of eating and thinking when it refers to eating foods in their natural state.  I have been saying this for years and truly mean it:  the more natural that you can eat—the better you will feel.  But eating like our ancestors takes it one step further by eliminating all grains, potatoes and dairy and focusing more on meat, fruits and veggies. 

I am not pro-paleo diet as a 7 day per week prescription for your food but I can see it having its benefits at least 3 to 4 days per week.  My biggest issue with the diet is eliminating oatmeal.  I can’t.  I’d cry.  Maybe if I went through extensive therapy and mind control I could do it, but not right now.  Everything else is easy for me but I would need counseling for the oatmeal.

Your Backyard is Your Gym

Lastly is the go-into-the-backyard-and-grab-a-big-rock-and-squat movement.  This one has been around the longest for me and frankly, I think it’s hot.  I love the idea of going into my back yard and lifting something outlandishly heavy, blowing out my back, ripping a good outfit—that’s matching none-the-less—most likely breaking a few nails, scaring the neighbors but releasing some major tension all during the process.  Ahhhh.  How about showing up at your kids favorite park and doing something ridiculously embarrassing on the remote end of the park so that your 11 year old never speaks to you again.  Mmmm, love it!

Training like a beast can be fun if you have the right equipment—nature!  Bodyweight exercises, rocks, tires, sandbags and etc. make for some really fun training if you dig that kind of stuff and can really make your friends and family talk amongst themselves.  The best thing is to let them see you go wild like that, grunting and all, and then 2 hours later you have the hottest outfit on with the best makeup application.  Ah yep, perfection for me.  Who would ever know?

Well, I will keep an eye on the trends and let you know of any good ones hanging around out there.  If you run into any in the mean time, let me know in the comments below.  Stay focused!  Woop Woop!:o)