Tip 2: Get more active in general
Don’t just rely on taking up an exercise regime to get in shape and lose a few kilos. Make the commitment to be more active throughout the day. This keeps your metabolism elevated and helps you burn more calories. It may be challenging at first but it is well worth the effort. To lose body fat, the formula is simple: calorie expenditure must exceed calorie income. Examples of increasing calorie expenditure are:
- Taking the stairs instead of the elevator.
- Taking a brisk walk at lunchtime before returning to work.
- Going for a walk or work out instead of watching a movie.
These additional items don't take a lot of extra time and are well worth the extra effort. Besides burning additional calories and "jump-starting" your metabolism, these changes keep us focused and productive, moving in the right direction to a healthier lifestyle and better, long-term, results.
Tip 3: Train appropriately for your goals
If you are to maintain your exercises regime, then it is essential to choose activities that (a ) you enjoy, and (b ) will move you closer to your goals. For example, if you prefer to train at home due to time restrictions, then there is no point in paying for a membership to a gym that you never attend. Instead you would be better off investing in home equipment so you can work out without worrying about car parking, the drive home, etc. If, on the other hand, you need a class or gym atmosphere for the motivational environment, then get out of the house and take up a class or train with some friends at the gym.
It’s not just your environment that’s important. The specific type of training you do should lead you to your ultimate goal. Always train with the end-result in mind. Do you want a muscular, lean, streamlined build? Yes? Then long-distance running is not going to accomplish this for you. If you want to achieve fat loss and muscle growth, then you may want to avoid too much cardiovascular work and focus on resistance training of the appropriate loading and repetitions. Your instructor or coach can help you with the specifics.
Next week: More tips for progression in training.
Is there a topic you would like to see covered in a future column? If so email requests to [email protected]
Shane Fitzgibbon is a full-time martial arts and fitness instructor and has dedicated his career to bringing his sport in to the modern era, constantly evolving and improving his training methods in line with the latest research. Using the above principles Fitzgibbon has won countless gold medals representing Ireland in European, World and Intercontinental Taekwon-do Championships. He runs taekwon-do classes all over County Galway and is available for personal training and sports consultation. He can be contacted on 087-2070577.
