Fit For Life: Can You Say You’ll Have No Regrets?

Sunday, December 10, 2017

Matt Espeut, GoLocalWorcester Health +Lifestyle Contributor

I was at a conference last weekend and the instructor did a very interesting and thought provoking demonstration. He had a woman like down on the floor covered her with a sheet and told her she was dead. Then he started giving her different scenarios to think about. He told her that if she wanted to call her old friend that she hasn’t contacted in a while it’s too late. “You’re dead” he told her. And that family member that you wanted to patch things up with... well too late, because you’re dead.

Then he went on and gave other examples. Want to climb that mountain? Take a vacation to another country? Sky dive? Take better care of yourself? Whatever it is that you wanted to do...it’s too late because you are dead and the opportunity has passed you by.

This was an eye-opening experience like a scenario I read in a book about attending your own funeral. It really hit home and got me thinking, because many of us take things for granted and always assume that we can do it tomorrow.

But what if tomorrow never comes?
What then?
What would you have missed out on?
What unfinished business would get left behind?

I know that we can’t get to every little thing that our intentions dictate for us to do, but we can start with some important tasks we don’t want to leave behind. A few things you can act on today that will shorten that bucket list are:

Start taking better care of yourself.

I can’t guarantee you will live longer, but certainly better. When you are healthy and vital, you have more energy, are in a more positive mood. When you have more energy and a better attitude you are more productive and when you are more productive you accomplish more daily and this creates a great feeling of accomplishment. Good health and feeling better both physically and mentally should be at the top of everyone’s list, and not be put off until tomorrow. It is a simple task that requires you to eat healthy, sleep better and become a member of Providence Fit Body Boot Camp. It’s that simple, so why put it off another day?

Reach out to someone important in your life.

We only encounter a few loyal, caring, and trustworthy people during our lifetime and it’s important to be around or communicate with them on a regular basis. I make it a point to have lunch with one of these people in my life at least bi weekly if not every week. I have a 94-year -old grandmother I see weekly, and I’m in contact with both my parents several times a week. And you know what? It makes me feel good every time I see a friend or family member. (even when my family drives me crazy). I also know that if I die tomorrow, I feel like I gave my best effort to stay connected, and communicate with the good people in my life. It also makes me feel lucky and grateful to have these people in my life.

Enjoy yourself more often. I need to do this ASAP. Yes, I love my line of work, my team, and all my members, but I let work consume my life. I take what I do seriously, and strive to be the best at what I do, so I go all out. When I wake up, I start thinking about work. When I travel, it’s for work, when I go home, I think about work. All this is good and I need to do it to reach a certain level of success, but I’m not really living much beyond the 4 walls of my facility. That is why I focus on developing my team and business systems, so I can create some freedom to enjoy life a little more. I realized this the other day when I saw an acquaintances posts on FB. Every picture was her hiking, biking, or chillin’ with a glass of wine and a group of friends. She is also a Fit Body owner and has been doing it longer, so she is dialed in and has that luxury to take time off and not worry about her business crashing. I am close, but not there yet. I said yet, because I know it’s coming soon!!

So the moral of the story is to not wait to do the things that are important to you, or the things you need to do. Life is short and fragile. Humans are strong survivors, but at the same time fragile and vulnerable. Your life can change in a second, and you need to take charge while you still can. If you keep waiting and putting things off until tomorrow, it could be too late.

You are alive now, so get out and live!

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitnesss consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one.

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MapMyRun

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MyFitnessPal

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Made for iPhone and Android

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JeFit

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Made for iPhone and Android

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Strava

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Made for iPhone and Android

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YogaStudio

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Made for iPhone only

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SimplyBeing

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Fooducate

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Made for iPhone and Android