Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Man Who Started It All

You've probably heard by now that Jack LaLanne passed away on Sunday afternoon from complications with pneumonia. He was 96 years old and he exercised till the end.

When LaLanne was young, the future "Godfather of Fitness" of he was sick more often than not and very weak. He didn't play sports as a kid; he was addicted to sugar and junk food until he met Paul Bragg, a pioneer in nutrition. After that point, he was compelled to change his ways and focused on fitness and eating well the rest of his life. He also changed the lives of countless others by pioneering the health and fitness industry that we are all a part of today!

By the 1930's he was spreading the word about weightlifting, bodybuilding, and chiropractic medicine, which was revolutionary at that time. And his promotion of strength training for women and the elderly was extremely controversial. Nevertheless, he forged ahead and opened his first health spa in 1936 in Oakland, California. From the 50's through the 70's, LaLanne had a popular television program and he never retired from his work. He created several of the first weight machines including a leg extension machine and a pulley machine.

As a vegan for much of his life, he truly believed in a balance of healthy eating and exercise. While reading about him yesterday, I came across several of his most well-known sayings, these are my favorites:
  • If man makes it, don’t eat it.
  • Better to wear out than rust out
  • Anything in life is possible and you can make it happen.
  • Your waistline is your lifeline.
  • You eat everyday, you sleep everyday, and your body was made to exercise everyday.
  • People don’t die of old age, they die of inactivity.
  • Your waistline is your lifeline.
  • Exercise is King, nutrition is Queen, put them together and you’ve got a kingdom.

He didn't expect to live forever, he just wanted to live the healthiest, most fulfilled life he could and he wanted others to as well. I think we should all be grateful for what he has given us and hopefully in his death, even more people will learn of his mission and follow in his footsteps.



Who, or what, inspired you to get fit and live a healthy life?
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today's workout -
50min elliptical
2x40sec planks
lots of stretching (super tight hamstrings)

8 comments:

Doug said...

Thanks for finding and posting the Jack LaLanne video. I am going to watch some more in memorium today.

Michelle said...

He also started all the rage for juicing. He will be missed.

Rose @ Eat, Drink, and Be Meiri said...

He was AWESOME. Fingertip push ups? And, his attitude was amazing. He lived a good life, and helped so many people.

Nicky @ Eat, Run, Read said...

What a great video find and what an amazing life he led. Great post.

J said...

He had some really great tips! I should start doing those! Thanks for posting!

AM! said...

Hi there!
What a great post! And funny, I hadn't heard of him til' yesterday when one of my training clients forwarded me an article about him-as his push ups reminded her of the push-ups I have her do;-) (just regular ones tho!)

H Love said...

I don't think I could make it 50 min on the eliptical! way to go!!

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