March 21 to March 25 is DC Fit Week, a free week of activities geared toward bringing excitement and awareness to physical activity as a means to stimulate weight loss and motivate and empower active social adults with the knowledge to lead healthier lives. As part of the effort, organizers asked David to share his “fitness story”:
Fitness Makes Me a Better Husband, Father and Public Servant
by Delegate David Englin, 45th District
When I was in the military, staying fighting fit was part of the job, and I basically got paid to work out an hour or two a day. I was never an especially healthy eater, but I made up for it at the gym.
Plus, as I’ve since learned in my 30s, it didn’t hurt that I was still in my 20s.
Then I ran for office and won, and the new demands on my time made it too easy to eat worse, exercise less, and get out of shape.
I started heading down the same road as my Mom, who took great care of everyone but herself, grew morbidly obese, and died at age 55. That’s not what I wanted for my wife and son, so I decided to fix the problem.
First, I made exercise a priority, as essential to my daily routine as eating, sleeping, and brushing my teeth.
As an elected official, there are always three or four critical meetings or events I could be attending at any given moment. Therefore, I had to change my mindset and realize that being strong and healthy by figuring out what to miss makes me a better husband, father, and public servant the rest of the time.
I’m lucky that I have a lot of control over my own schedule, and I try my best to exercise five days a week, no matter what – the general idea being that I take weekends off.
Second, I went old school, low tech, and badass with my workouts. Forget about gyms and fancy equipment. If all I need is a pair of running shoes and a couple of kettle bells, then I have no excuse ever to skip a workout. I challenge myself to workout in the worst possible conditions. If it rains, I get wet. If it’s cold, I bundle up. If it’s hot, I wake up early.
That daily feeling of good old-fashioned American grit keeps me motivated to stick to my new lifestyle.
Third, I took control of what goes into my body. I don’t ever go hungry, I enjoy a good drink, and I still eat junk on occasion. But I try as much as possible to eat “real food” a la Michael Pollan’s book “Food Rules” (“Eat real food, mostly plants, not too much.”)
In politics, where people constantly want to feed you and are offended if you decline, this one can be tough, but it makes a big difference.
None of this is rocket science – it’s about actually following the healthy living advice most of us basically ignore.
But I’m here to tell you that if you do it, you’ll feel great.
Who knows if I can keep up this new lifestyle? What I do know is that, after more than a year, I’m in the best shape of my life – that includes during 12 years of military service – and my wife of nearly 15 years can’t keep her hands off of me. What’s not to like about that?
Click here to learn more about DC Fit Week.