"Six Paradoxes of Fitness"

  I attended the SCW Fitness Mania in New York City last weekend. SCW is a leading education and certifying body in the fitness world, and hosts nine "Mania's" across America each year. I attend to keep my certifications current, but also to keep learning and growing myself. Once you are that arrogant or bored as a trainer where you stop educating yourself, you are moving backwards!
   The keynote speaker was Lawrence Biscontini, M.A. Lawrence is an entertaining and knowledgeable fellow who is highly respected in the field. If your image of a fitness presenter is someone who looks or sounds like, say, Rob Gronkowski, think the opposite when imagining Lawrence. His online bio describes him as a "chocolate lover,  tea-ologist, lecturer, and mindful moment specialist!"
   His informative and witty keynote talk was entitled the "Six Paradoxes of Fitness:" THELBM, or, The Lawrence Biscontini Method. Here goes:
   THINK: Lawrence attributes this one to Sister Agnes, a teacher of his in parochial school. "When silent, you can think." Thinking has a component in fitness. Mind-body is not separate from fitness.
   HUMORIZE: "Intensity doesn't have anything to do with happiness," Lawrence, who specializes in Yoga and Tai-Chi, said. "Laughter builds up our immune system, boosts endorphins, creativity, and problem solving, and improves our memory. There is nothing more serious than a corpse!"
   EAT: "America leads the world in nutritional research, obesity, and sedentary lifestyles," Lawrence, who grew up in Pennsylvania, but refers to himself as a citizen of the world, said. That certainly is a paradox the fitness industry is looking to change!
    LOVE: Lawrence describes this as the most important point. He asks the fitness professionals in attendance if they are (metaphorically) "giving love and receiving love." He makes a valid point when he says, "We are not in this field for the income, but the outcomes!"
  BREATHE: "The common thread of yoga, Pilates, running, or any form of exercise is breathing!"
   MOVEMENT: "This has nothing to do with exercise!," Lawrence exhorts. He says the three excuses people use to avoid the gym are "Lack of time, fear, and intimidation (which should not apply to Mountain Fitness, by the way!). He asks if fitness professionals are making it easy for newcomers by keeping fitness simple, fun, and not necessarily within the club's walls. Exercise seems like a scary word for some people, but movement does not!
   Concluding, he had a great saying, which he used in describing Sara Kooperman, the Founder and Director of SCW: "When you get a get a step up, turn around and take someone else with you!" I could not have said it more succinctly. 
  Besides teaching and presenting, Lawrence has written several books and has many fitness products on his website, the proceeds of which are donated to several charities close to his heart.