Health and Fitness - Oscar Nominees Show the Way to Wellness

It’s time for the Academy Awards, so I’ve taken this opportunity to honor all the Best Picture nominees. Enjoy this metaphorical montage of masterful movies meant to motivate you to health and happiness. (Answers are listed below.)

1. So you’re feeling like a washed-up superhero. Don’t be a birdbrain. Go out and start over with Act One in the play of your life. Set your ego aside, and find some folks who also want to become more hale and hearty. After all, birds of a feather flock together. It’s not going to be easy to get your name on that Broadway marquee of wellness. But you can move toward fitness with help from friends and family who are on the same mission as you.

2. It’s best if you aim for a goal with pinpoint accuracy to get your fitness where you want it. Having a target helps you know where you should be aiming. Don’t get bent out of shape if your other tours of duty with dumbbells and barbells haven’t worked out so well. Find a way to leave those bad experiences behind and move on with your life. It’s time to go for success with guns blazing.

3. Losing weight can seem like a mathematical pursuit. Calorie counts, target heart rates, minutes on the treadmill ― trying to figure it all out can seem like deciphering a code. It may feel like you’re in the midst of some raging war, in a race against time to get in all your fitness duties each day. Stay calm and carry on. Believe that you have the ability to solve this numbers game and save your own world from the grip of obesity.

4. No matter what happens during your fight for fitness, always keep hope alive. Don’t get distracted. Be civil, and march your way to success in an epic way. Make your voice heard when you proclaim that you’ll live free from the restraints of diabetes or heart disease. Be the change you want to see.

5. Perhaps you have a theory on why you stuff your face with too much junk food. It’s not complicated, though, and you don’t need a degree from Cambridge to tell which is the good food and which is the bad food. Everything in the produce section is probably better for you than everything in the potato chip displays. That sounds like a super simple theory sent from the cosmos.

6. You’re a big boy now. You spent 13 years going to school before heading out into the real world. Use what you learned growing up to make your life the best it can be. When in doubt, use common sense. Sometimes that’s all it takes to separate the men from the boys.

7. You may get the feeling that the world is working against you as you try to achieve great things in life. It doesn’t matter much though, if you’ve got the will to succeed with your dreams. It’s a cutthroat world out there, and you’ll get whipped around along the way. It’s OK to march to the beat of a different drummer. The world needs your kind of music.

8. Your desire to improve your wellbeing may take you all over the place. You could be chasing that fitness carrot on motorcycles, trains, sleds, and skis. It might be wise to lobby your trusted friend to be your sidekick -- it’s going to be a grand adventure. Go ahead and book a room with the Budapestian boniface for an extended stay. Success won’t happen overnight.

That’s all, folks. I’ve presented the eight nominees up for the big prize this year. Good luck to all who seek that Oscar statuette, and good luck to you as you pursue your picture of health.
Answers: 1. Birdman 2.American Sniper 3. The Imitation Game 4. Selma 5. The Theory of Everything 6. Boyhood 7. Whiplash 8. The Grand Budapest Hotel.

This wellness article with an unbroken spirit is brought to you by that guy with foxcatcher finesse, Ron Blake. He can be found with no inherent vice or maleficent intentions at rblake5551@hotmail.com.

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