Uhuru Family,

We are nearing the end of “resolution season.” Every year, three-quarters of the people who make New Year’s resolutions break them, and nearly half of those do so within the month of January. However, we are not inspired by a date on a calendar so much as the pursuit of self-mastery. Each journey begins with a single step, and we are here to help you with the first step to a fit lifestyle.

Before attempting any type of physical activity, I encourage you to see a health care provider, if possible, to get a better understanding of your current level of health and fitness. If you have any major health risks or are over the age of 45, please seek the advice of a professional before engaging in strenuous exercise. Not only will this visit make you aware of any potential hazards you face, but it will also give you a reference point to gauge your progress.

The next step in creating a workout routine is to choose 2-3 days per week that you can fit a workout into your schedule. Remember to allow at least 1 day of rest in between workouts when you are getting started. Overexertion will cause diminishing results and opens the door for injury. As your level of fitness increases, so will the frequency and intensity of your work. Begin where you ARE, not where you want to be. During this beginning phase, it is recommended that you resistance train your full body and focus on cardio. In other words, this is a phase for building foundational strength in all of your major muscle groups while also strengthening the capacities of your heart and lungs for more intense training.

Before beginning any workout, it is vital that you take the time to stretch. Flexibility is essential to lowering the risk of exercise related injuries and increasing the effectiveness of your workout. Stretch all major muscle groups prior to exercising, holding each stretch for 15-30 seconds and repeating it 2-3 times. While stretching, avoid jerky motions and bouncing. This can cause damage that will actually make you less flexible and as with all portions of your workout, remember to breathe deeply.

After stretching, it’s time for some cardio. Simply walking is a good, low impact exercise for beginners. Biking, running, aerobics, stairclimbing and swimming are also good options. Swimming, in particular, is a great exercise. It is a fully body workout and puts very little pressure on the joints, lowering the likelihood of short-term and long-term injuries. Start with a 5-10 minutes warm up of your chosen cardio exercise. After the warm up, increase your intensity to slightly more difficult than what is comfortable for you and maintain that level for as long as you can, comfortably. Listen to your body. You may only be able to maintain this level for a few minutes but if you stay consistent, that will change. Make sure to take another 5-10 minutes to cool down before completely stopping. You have to give your heart a chance to slow itself down naturally.

The major muscle groups that you will be working are your arms, legs, chest and back and abs. With just a few exercises you can work all these areas well.

Pull ups are one of the most effective exercises you can do. They work your back and arms but they are difficult. If you can’t do one with proper form, you can pull yourself up as high as you can go and hold that position for as long as you can or ask someone to assist you until you can do them on your own. Chinups are basically pull ups with your palms facing you instead of away. They also work back and arms but put the focus more on the arms while the traditional pull up focuses more on the back. Pushups are an exercise staple and they work your chest, shoulders and arms. Go down, at least, until your arms are parallel with your shoulders. Going further can be an issue for those with shoulder or wrist problems. If you cannot do pushups on your toes, you can modify them and do them on your knees until you build your strength up. Squats work multiple leg muscles. Make sure to keep your back straight and heels on the floor and try to bend until your thighs are parallel with the ground. If you need it make it easier, simply sit down in a chair in a slow, controlled manner and stand back up without using your hands. Lunges also work multiple muscles in the legs. When you get in down into your lunge, try to get both knees into 90 degree angles and have your thigh parallel with the ground. There are many exercises to work the Abs. In fact, both squats and lunges strengthen your core. The thing to remember about ab work is that it WILL NOT burn stomach fat. Six-packs start in the kitchen. Exercise will jumpstart your metabolism but it must go hand in hand with a healthy eating lifestyle to see dramatic change.

This is just the first step but with a commitment to consistency, you will see the results you are looking for. Recruit friends and family to join you. Motivate each other. Let’s get fit. Together.

As technology-induced inactivity combines with the chemical and biological warfare of the food industry, we have seen a significant increase in obesity, particularly in the Afrikan community in america. To combat this, we are engaging the community through ReGYMental Fitness as our platform for retooling the perspectives of health and fitness with the understanding that the body and minds are gyms unto themselves. Inspired by other groups, such as The Bartendaz, The RBG Fit Club and our ancestors who stayed in shape and a state of readiness before there were such things as gym memberships, we have honed our focus on four areas of practice. These are organic fitness, vegan/raw diets, yoga and self-defense training.

Organic Fitness is defined by a program for reshaping the physique without the need for expensive equipment or a gym membership. Every exercise we do involves your own body weight. The equipment can be found at most city parks or can be modified for nearly any location. We get creative. This is an outdoor workout which comes with its own benefits and risks which will be explained later.

A vegan/raw diet is promoted to eliminate the immense hazards of processed food and meat bi-products and to also boost the energy levels by eating as many live foods as possible. This affects all areas of health, fitness and life in general. You will be amazed the transformations your body and mind go through with a change in eating habits.

Yoga is our method of increasing flexibility, core strength, posture and mental clarity. The practice opens up the range of motion and with increased flexibility unlocks muscle capacity. Core strength and posture add stabilization to the body while aiding proper breathing. Mental clarity not only increases problem solving ability but also allows us to use our bodies in the most efficient manner when called upon.

The final practice we have focused on is self-defense training. We have found it vital in honing discipline, fluidity of movement and acquiring basic techniques to defend Self, Family and Community. When it comes to this, discipline is everything. It is the underlying foundation of all work and success. Martial arts/sciences are a means of actualizing static power and we view defense as the hidden concept that brings full effectiveness to the trinity of Food, Clothing and Shelter.

ReGYMental Fitness is available 5 days a week and the people can come and go as they please. For our more dedicated members, we have compiled a book and media list which we come together once a week to discuss in an effort to further fortify the political education of our members while we strengthen their bodies.

Many have asked us, “Why exercise outdoors?” Although this question has many answers, the most important are it is widely available and IT’S FREE! Not everyone has access or funds for a gym membership but with our Organic Fitness regimen, you carry most of the gym with you and with a little creativity, you can find many everyday places to work out. Being outside also provides you a fresher supply of air and vitamin D from sunlight exposure, which strengthens your bones and builds your immune system. Also, scientists have concluded that exercising outdoors will improve your energy level, decrease stress and can even be used as a treatment for depression.

There is risk involved in any workout but outdoors comes with its own. Training in the elements requires some getting used to and temperature extremes can put extra stress on the body. Be sure to dress for the weather. In the cold, dress in layers and protect your hands, ears and feet with gloves, hats and thick socks. In the heat, make sure you have plenty of water, dress in loose, light-colored clothing and try to exercise in the early morning or evening. Most importantly, always listen to your body. If you don’t feel well, stop.

Remember: Health is wealth. We must invest in ourselves. The children are watching. Be an example.

Uhuru

Today, I took some time to look at a few of the many RT’s that I issue out into Asylum’s Twitter stream. By doing this I sought to understand a bit exactly

what makes me RT Black Bloggers, and possibly give others an understanding of how they could generate more popular content. So, this is a list that I’ve composed based on my years presenting Owl’s Asylum on Black Twitter.

1. Be Passionate – Emotion is the essence of life. Without it, we would forlorn the working hours and possibly increase the rate of suicide. The more dynamic the element, the sentiment, the more people are willing to embrace it on Twitter. To be able to energize people via two-dimensional media is a gift, let alone when that is limited to 140 symbols. Black Twitter has an automatic advantage over most cultures: Black mothers that could stare at you and send a vibration through your soul that spoke in encyclopediac volumes and not say much. From my experience, passionate on Twitter ultimately means authentic and candid. As an analytical thinker, I would tell you to consider those conditions you see in front of you and not so much that which is going to take you more imagination than passion can confine it Self to.

2. Be Witty – Black Twitter is a fun place. We tend to have an interesting set of pains that ironically forms a robust sense of humor. Although Black Twitter frowns highly upon that which is forced or contrived, I suggest a fun spirit and heart felt humility in all that you update. What gets quoted in Asylum is usually that which is visceral or thoughtfully wry, but I’ve also seen very stand up comedy type lines being updated.

3. Don’t Be Pushy – Black Twitter is not the hood. You know? It is difficult to force a person into a corner in a box that everyone knows doesn’t exist physically. I’ve seen the pressuring of followers to RT updates being met with ridicule and embarrassment. Black Twitter is much more organic and closed to the structured. Those that are capable of running their timelines from behind scheduled updates typically don’t last that long. Black Twitter, once again, is the home of online authenticity and ultimately that means allowing people to choose when they want to quote you…or not.

4. Be Concise/Not Wordy – I don’t want to spend too much time transcribing “to” into “2″ and “in” into “n” while playing Terminator on a mission to kill all punctuation that might prevent the update I wish to quote from being sent into the future. The idea is supposed to be the art of 140, not the art of a link to Twitlonger. Be concise. Fit it into the box with the thought in mind that someone might find this worthy of being spread to those of their following that isn’t also yours.

5. Be Informative – On that note, Black Twitter is a reflection of the Black community’s insatiable thirst for information. I will whip out my space and period killer if I find the update pregnant with information that I just have to spread to my followers. Now, this tends to be highly subjective, but it is your following, you should know what they will deem informative or not. Black Twitter typically is a diverse audience, I follow every sort from call girls to prophets on a mission to secure land. There should be room for authentic choice making even in this regard.