Habits and Hustle - Episode 474: Zarina Del Mar: Why Walking is the Best Exercise You're Ignoring

Episode Date: August 8, 2025

What if the best exercise on the planet costs nothing and requires no equipment? Movement expert Zarina Del Mar returns to the Habits and Hustle podcast to cut through the fitness industry noise and reveal why simple walking trumps expensive supplements, complex workout programs, and trendy wellness hacks. We explore why the fitness industry's "all or nothing" mentality is failing us, despite being surrounded by more wellness content than ever while becoming unhealthier as a society. We also dive into why your body knows better than social media influencer and how to break free from the cycle of extreme dieting and over-supplementation. Zarina Del Mar is a fitness personality who transitioned from practicing law to teaching body awareness and sustainable movement practices to women worldwide. What we discuss: Why Walking is the Ultimate Gateway Drug to Fitness The Myth of Calories In, Calories Out for Real People Why We're Unhealthier Despite More Wellness Content Than Ever How to Ignore Fitness Industry Research and Trust Your Body The All-or-Nothing Culture That's Sabotaging Your Health Why Social Media Supplement Advice is Dangerous Intuitive Movement vs. Following Expert Rules How to Handle Fitness Naysayers and Lost Causes Thank you to our sponsor: Momentous: Shop this link and use code Jen for 20% off Therasage: Head over to therasage.com and use code Be Bold for 15% off  TruNiagen: Head over to truniagen.com and use code HUSTLE20 to get $20 off any purchase over $100. Magic Mind: Head over to www.magicmind.com/jen and use code Jen at checkout. 99designs by Vista: 99designs.com/jen20  – click "Claim my discount" to get $20 off your first design contest.  Find more from Zarina Del Mar: Website: https://www.whateva.club/  Instagram: @zarina_del_mar_world Find more from Jen: Website: https://www.jennifercohen.com/ Instagram: @therealjencohen Books: https://www.jennifercohen.com/books Speaking: https://www.jennifercohen.com/speaking-engagements

Hi, guys. It's Tony Robbins. You're listening to Habits and Hustle. Crush it. Hey, friends, you're listening to Fitness Friday on the Habits and Hustle podcast, where myself and my friends share quick and very actionable advice for you becoming your healthiest self. So stay tuned and let me know how you leveled up. Before we dive into today's episode, I want to thank our sponsor, Momentus. When your goal is health span, living better, and longer, there are very few non-negotiables. One of them, quality. And when it comes to supplements designed for high performers, nobody does it better than Momentus. Momentus goes all in on NSF certification, which means every single batch is tested for heavy metals, harmful additives and label accuracy. And that's why they're trusted by all 32 NFL teams and top

collegiate sports dietitians across the country. Here's the thing. They don't sell every supplement under the sun because they believe in nailing the basics with rock solid consistency. And those basics are protein and creatine. Momentous sources creopure. The purest form of creatine monohydrate available, an absolute must for both men and women who want peak physical and cognitive performance. So if you're serious about leveling up, go to livemomentous.com and use code Jen for 20% off. Just act now. Start today. Gen for 20% off. Live momentous.com. I think there's a lot of misconceptions. Give me me a couple, give me a couple other myths in the fitness business.

In a fitness business? In the fitness world. In the fitness world. Okay. So calories in calories out. I realize that it doesn't work at all. Because first of all, it's not suitable for me, for my lifestyle. I don't want to count calories even if I have these beautiful apps where I need to put

the photos or like describe my meal. And our body is constructed more complex than. just calories in calories out because you may not even move, you consume food and you spend, let's say it depends, but 1,200 or 1,500 depends on your parameters calories per day without moving at all. I don't think that you need to count calories. And heavy lifting and sprints. You need to practice, you need to find the best way, the best types of movement for your yourself, just your appropriate time, your appropriate way of movement. You don't need to listen. Do you say a myth is heavyweights? Yeah, that is the only way to stay healthy,

to get toned and sculpted body. Maybe they are selling something. Maybe they really believe, but many, many people, they are praying for researches, like, oh, that's recent research telling we need this and we need that. I am making a research now understand the subject of research. Who are these people? Yeah. I was going to say men or women, so you cannot rely just on research without practicing and finding. I think

most people, unfortunately, are selling something. And so when they're selling their own programs, they're going to like gear whatever they're real is to the program that they're sending, selling, right? So if it's a supplement, they're going to say you need the best calcium. If it's, you know,

strength training, you need heavy weight. I think that to be, Totally honest, I think the best, best, best exercise on the planet is just plain walking. It's free. You don't need much. You just need your legs. It's the best mood enhancer. It's the best way to, you know, just get the circulation going.

And like, because it's not sexy or fun, people think it's not enough. And it's free. So, you know, I say it's free. And it's like, it's the easiest thing in the world. But you need to make some mobility because we have these bad patterns. bad walking patterns, movement patterns. Like even me, I feel... Like flexibility and mobility is super important.

To support yourself. Like before walking and after, just intuitively, what do you feel? Where you feel tension? Work on this part of your body. Just move in the way you can move. Well, I think flexibility and mobility are extremely important, right? But I'm saying to get someone from going from zero to something, just go for a walk, right?

And I think that to me is a gateway drug to all the other fitness modalities out there, right? If you're not even able to go for a walk around your block, then we have a problem, right? Like, to me, if you can shift the way you think, like how you feel and how your mood is, go for a walk and that will lead you as like a ripple effect. Once you feel a little bit better about that,

then you can work on your flexibility. Then you can work on maybe like getting a little stronger by doing this weight or doing like gentle movement, right? Right. But like people have to like, you've got to meet them where they are. And the problem is with all the, all the attention and money and popularity around wellness trends and fitness trends and longevity hacks, we are a society and a nation that's fatter than ever, more unhealthy than ever, more miserable and lonely than ever. What is that telling us, right? Like all this noise is just noise. Nobody's actually doing the things. that they should be doing, which is really kind of a problem in itself. So like to undercomplicate, it, just tell people to go for a walk. And then from there, you know, maybe just drink some more water. Like, but people are looking for magic pills. And then it's a sad, I just think that like so much time and energy is being spent on something that really doesn't require any of these fans.

You know, for people like you and I, like we're already at a certain place and level and we love it and we're doing everything. So then you can, like, supplement with, like, all the other accoutrements. But for people who are doing nothing, like, walk. And these people who are doing nothing, they usually send me messages, like, prove me. Is it safe? Show me that it is absolutely safe and it will bring... What safe?

You're walking? Like, any of my advice or any of my movement in respect of movements. So the one who doesn't do anything, they... they prefer to sit and to criticize. To criticize. I think that those people, by the way, to me are a lost cause. If I were you, I would just like not even, I would just delete that comment because there are people out there who just want to complain and be a naysayer.

If people want to do something, they're going to figure out a way to do something, right? There are those people who are overwhelmed and have no idea where to start and that's where I say, just go for a walk. But there's also, there's a bunch of assholes out there who just like just want to complain and want to be victim and don't want to do anything and we'll find fault and everything, you can't like worry about those people. You got to worry about all the other people in the middle. That's what I think anyway. Absolutely. And about walking, you're telling them this is the state of balance in your body. When you feel that you're supporting your body and your nervous

system with your brain are doing their job and you don't need more. Like if you don't want to become super big. You don't to become a bodybuilder. It is more than enough to just move all day around and to keep this level of physical activity. Like your brain will do everything. You don't need much. But we are all or nothing. Nothing or the best shape in my life. But you can be in the middle. By the way, I'm a victim of that. You know, I sit here and, you know, I should practice what preach sometimes because I'm an all or nothing too, right? Like, I'm the kind of person if I eat, like, if I'm eating and I've had like a thing of French fries, I'm like, forget, I'm going to have another order of French fries and I'm going to have the pizza. Like, I like, you know what I mean?

Like, I have to practice. That's my thing. That's my Killy seal. It's really hard. I'm not a good, I'm not really great with moderate, like moderation in that way. But you're right. I think we are a culture that we're going to, we're going to go extreme or we're going to like do nothing, right? And it is so much better if we can find a place where we can be more in the middle and be more, you know, in moderation. What's your take on supplements? Do you take anything? I take vitamin D, omega-3, and some supplements for my digestion, because now I'm curious about gut health, about gut microbiome, and I'm exploring. I'm just trying to find the best way to feel myself good. And it is just you take notes, you take any supplements for, let's say, for a month, and then just sit down and

write down what's happening with you, what's happening with your digestion, what's happening with your, let's say, movement. Maybe you, what I've noticed, when I'm doing my mobility before breakfast, I'm feeling better than after. But now many, many OBG Wayans and professors telling that all women should have their breakfast within 30 minutes after they woke up, because this is the cortisol level, et cetera, et cetera. But what I feel, it is comfortable for me to do my mobility. Like, I feel that the range of motion is better when I'm doing it before breakfast without eating anything during the night.

So this is like my body. I feel it. That's why I'm doing it. So the same with the supplements. Maybe you feel that you have gained, like, huge range of motion when you're taking your supplements or your mood become more stable. So rely on yourself. not on what, and of course, blood work, like every year.

I think you have to take blood work because how do you know if you're, people are just taking supplements willy-nilly. They don't know if they, even a deficient or not. And they can be taking them for like years on end and they can overdo it like I did on vitamin D. I was initially told, oh, yeah, you need to take vitamin D. Okay, so I take vitamin D like everybody else. And then lo and behold, I get my blood work and I'm way over in vitamin D.

So that happens all the time. People need to be like, people are just taking. whatever because they're looking on social media and they're like oh that person is talking about that I'll do it like you don't know like your body might everyone's different what you are might be deficient in or is very different than what I am versus him and so I think we need to take control of that stuff and don't just take supplements because someone on social media told you and then if you take something you should be tested every I think every four months everything yeah I'm low in vitamin D that's why I'm taking it but I know that maybe you won't be in a year from now right like or people start a vitamin or they take a supplement, and they just keep on taking it for, that's what happened with me and the vitamin D. They can start taking something, and then five years later, they're still taking the same thing where they're now, like, over the limit. So you've got to be super careful. But, well,

thank you for being on the show. Thank you. Thank you, Jen. Just what I can say. You need to move, guys. In a way, you were, you were born, you were structured to move, find your joyful movement consequences, anything. Maybe intuitive movement, because many, many of my subscribers are telling me, oh, wow, I didn't know that this is the right way of movement, because I thought it was just my intuition telling me. And I didn't, I didn't, so many people are underestimated what they are doing. But your body knows everything. I believe that it's like the main source of information, your body. Thank you. Where do people find you?

I'm on Instagram, Zerina Delmar. I'm on YouTube. I'm on TikTok. I'm on former Twitter. So, Lingadine. I'm everywhere. Where can't we find you, I should say, right? Well, thank you for being on the show. Thank you. Thank you. Bye-bye. Thank you.