Reading isn't just good for the mind...

I've never been a big reader - or so I thought. Until I started thinking about how much time I actually do spend reading. I'm just not reading what a lot of other people are reading from the NY Times Best Seller lists. But over the years I've read a ton on pop culture, music, the economy (I am big into MSN money now) - and nutrition, fitness and general health.

Just about everything that you read in this blog I leared from reading Men's Health, Men's Fitness or other fitness magazines/books - as well as Wikipedia or just somewhere on the Internet. You don't have to go to school or have a piece of paper to make you an expert. You just have to be able to back up what you say with a source.

So I recommend that you start reading some sort of fitness publication. My fave is Men's Health. A few years a go, they did a great thing and introduced Women's Health. I purchased a subscription of WH for a friend, and she absolutely loves it. She even renewed the sub on her own.

Yes, I know reading takes time. And you've got a demanding job, kids, pets, friends and not to mention a life plus other interests. So I have two suggestions for finding time to read:

First - take the magazine or whatever healthy publication you're reading to the gym. Ride the bike, do the eliptical machine, cross trainer - whatever you like best or hate the least - and read. Not only will you start gaining a ton of knowledge about being healthy that will help you acheive your goals, you won't even realize that you've been doing cardio for 30-45 mins, and then it'll already be time to go home.

Second - WARNING - this may sound a little crude...take it to the bathroom. I know. It's sounds gross. But men have been doing this since the first indoor bathroom was built - and frankly, it's brilliant. People are less likely to bother you in there, and it's an easy way to sneak away for 5, 10, or even 15 minutes to read a few pages in a fitness publication or a book on how to be healthier. Before you know it, you'll have read every page, and be sitting on pins and needles (or porcelain) waiting for the next Women's Health issue to arrive.

Recommended Reading:
Women's Health
Men's Health
Body For Life by Bill Phillips (more on this gem later)