Health and Fitness

October 9th, 2024

I’ve recently been focusing on my health and fitness. I’ve learned that fitness is endless. Health IS wealth: just like how you can always be wealthier, you can always be healthier. I easily fall prey to the “growth mindset” AKA easily tempted by excess and extremes, so I wanted to set down some thoughts on balance and sustainable goals.

First off, while my fitness is currently my highest priority, it obviously won’t be forever. In the short-term, I’d like to workout 8 hours/week, but long term, I’m aiming for 6 hours/week. Ideally, my future daily life incorporates a fair amount of walking and some sports, but I ultimately, I want to lay down a good basis and have any sports or physical activities be the “sprinkles” on the cake.

In particular, one new development is I’ve been weight lifting, for aesthetics as much as health. Maturity has made me realize that aesthetics matter¹ and while I don’t need to be a “fitfluencer”, I’d like to have a reasonable body shape: some level of shoulders, back, and core. Put another way: I’d rather look good in a swimsuit than in a tank.

Short term 8h/week:

20m run 6x
45m workout 6x, alternating arms and leg/abs.
45m yoga/dance/tennis/swimming 2x

Long term 6h/week:

20m run 6x:
60m weights M/W/F
60m dance/yoga/tennis/swimming

In the long term, I want to move to full body² weight sessions. I also want to work in calisthenics, just because gymnastic rings are incredibly cool and seem long-term more sustainable/functional.

In body measurements, I’d like to have a BMI under 23 and less than 17% body fat, which means keeping weight under 149lbs and waist under 32in. If you’re not East Asian, this may seem too strict to you, but for middle-aged East Asian men (which is me), I consider this to be in the middle of the healthy range.