# Fitness > Published Jan 01 2025, last updated Jan 01 2025 > By Ryan Fleck and written without LLMs! > Original manual at > Incredible writing of astonishing quality and insight - Happy Hacking! # The Body Training the body and building yourself physically is crucial to keeping a sharp mind. The mind is part of the body, and when the body fails, the mind also is impaired. Allowing it to deteriorate, sitting in a chair day in and day out, is *no good.* > Besides, it is a disgrace to grow old through sheer carelessness > before seeing what manner of man you may become by **developing your > bodily strength** and beauty to their highest limit. But you cannot > see that, if you are careless; for it will not come of its own > accord. > > -- Socrates [^1] > Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit > who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For > you were bought at a price; therefore **glorify God in your body** and > in your spirit, which are God's. > > -- 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV ## Consistency is Key Disciplined **consistency** is the name of the game when it comes to fitness. A regimen must be established and kept, or else you will succumb to habit and decision fatigue. ## Measure It Also critical to building health is **tracking** your progress. As the old management adage goes - *"If you can't measure it, you can't improve it."*[^2] Measurement is also key to keeping **motivation** high. Seeing yourself improve, especially when weightlifting, is highly rewarding psychologically. Critical to measurement is a concept I'll term *low access friction*. Have the set of exercises you are going to perform taped to your wall, with a pencil set nearby or hanging on twine. The fewer steps that are involved in beginning a workout, the better. Apps can be OK for this, but often our phones are more of a detriment with their distracting properties. # Calisthenics When forming a habit, or deciding on a workout routine, the time to begin the exercise plays a large factor in how easy the habit will be to keep up. Calisthenic exercise has the huge advantage of being able to begin instantly and anywhere - no commute or money required. I have done sports and strength training in my day, but calisthenics offers freedom from paid gyms, recreation centers, and even home gyms. If you can pick up some dumbells or install a chin-up bar, that would be fantastic. - [Convict Conditioning](https://stevenlow.org/overcoming-gravity/) by Paul Wade - [Overcoming Gravity](https://stevenlow.org/overcoming-gravity/) by Steven Low # Running - Start with [Couch to 5k](https://c25k.com/), a 9 week baseline establishing program - A GPS watch is a fantastic tool to assess your progress # Fighting **There is no substitute.** Training to fight instills toughness, courage, and quick thinking. Combat sports can take a serious toll on your mental acuity, but with care the benefits massively outweigh the risks. Nothing raises your assertiveness like taking a hit. If in Calgary I recommend [Champion's Creed](https://championscreed.ca/), where I trained for half a year myself as a novice under Chad Anheliger. The gym is friendly to beginners with watchful and mature staff who are able to quickly correct any dangerous behaviour. [^1]: **Socrates**, according to Xenophon, Memorabilia, 3.12 [^2]: **Peter Drucker**, a classic quote, per [prooveintelligence.com](https://www.prooveintelligence.com/blog/an-ode-to-the-kpi-if-you-cant-measure-it-you-cant-improve-it/) > Thank you for reading! > Find more content at > Source page: > Site index: [llms.txt](https://manuals.ryanfleck.ca/llms.txt)