My take on fitness vs wellness

Posted In: Wellness January 5th, 2019 divider No Comments »

I completed my last Ironman (Ironman Canada 2008 in Penticton, BC) more than a decade ago. Some days it feels like 50 years ago and sometimes a few minutes. It’s weird the tricks your mind plays on you.

There is no denying I’m not as fit as I was back then. I’m pretty sure any metric you look at (weight, 5k time, VO2 Max, etc), my 2008 self would beat my 2019 self.

And during my 20’s and early 30’s, metrics is what it was all about. I think the triathlon world is all about that unfortunately. I still look at some metrics (what you measure gets done!) but the ones I care about these days are steps/day, sleep and resting heart rate.

Being fit is fun but I think being well is much more important in the long run. Yes I probably don’t look (or feel) as good in a wetsuit these days but I’m also not in constant pain and tightness. And I have better conversations at dinner parties. :)

Now I’m mostly about sleep, nutrition and activity but usually in a less structure fashion. Except the sleep part, I’m really adamant about that now.

There’s also a reason I didn’t name my podcast #FitnessFridays. And it’s not because I didn’t want to publish on Fridays. I find wellness encompasses some of the best of fitness but then so much more like mental health and quality of life.

Doing a yoga class or slowing down to have a cup of coffee on your back deck might not help your 5k PB but it sure helps your wellness. And that’s my jam these days.

To me, they’re two different concepts. I think to some they are not. And that’s okay too. I find one part of wellness is being happy where you are and not always comparing yourself to others in your age, weight  or gender category!