“Fat Loss”
“Tone Up”
“Loose Weight”
“Be Stronger”
“Be more Fit”
These are terms personal trainers hear at the gym
daily. Most people do not join the gym
because they are already in shape, they join because they have a desired goal
and have not been able to accomplish it on their own. Furthermore, many of these new folks at the
gym lack the working knowledge on what certain equipment is used for, how to
reach their goals, how long it will take, and the relationship between
nutrition and exercise.
I am not saying this to be demeaning, I am saying this
because this is what I work with every day. People come to the gym who do not
know what to do, and I am here to help them along the way. The truth is that what most people think and
believe is true about health and fitness is actually based on false
advertising. This is especially true
about how fat and muscle relate to each other.
People see a number on a scale and have a built in reaction, without a full
understanding of what that really means in terms of their health and fitness.
So many people come to the gym wanting to “tone up” and
“lose weight” go to a group cardio exercise class or jump on the cardio
equipment for long periods of time followed by exercises with equipment that
targets their “trouble areas”. Then
after a couple weeks they step on the scale and find out not much has
changed. Sound familiar?
Here are a few things you or someone you may know is missing
out on when it comes to attaining your health and fitness goals:
-The weight scale is
a farce
The truth about the scale is that it is basically a
measurement of how much gravity is pulling on your frame. I have seen numerous times two people who
weigh the same on the scale with very different physiologies. What is forgotten is that Muscle weighs more
than Fat on the human frame; skeletal muscle is denser than fat stores. Muscle is the reason for that “toned” and
“shredded” look so many people strive for in today’s world, so in order to look
like that one has to forget about the scale and focus more on their Body Fat
Percentage number. This measure
estimates the amount of your body that is just fat, while the rest of the body
is comprised of muscles, organs, skeletal bones, and water retained.
Using the scale as a
measuring stick of your fitness progress is misguided and has led to many
people quitting while they are making progress, so stay away from the scale as
much as possible.
-Cardio is not the
key to fat loss
Cardio is a short for Cardiovascular Exercise. Cardio exercise initializes a caloric burn in
the body when done for a long enough period of time or a high enough intensity
to spike heart rate. The dark secret
about cardio is that sustained cardio will also burn off muscle from the body;
this happens because those muscles are not being maintained through exercise or
physical activity so as a result, the body harvests energy and nutrients from
wherever it has been programmed to think is not in need of nutrients or use. That phrase “you lose it if you don’t use it”
is very true for your health.
The reality that is unknown to many people who are at the
gym is that anyone can garner the same caloric burn from lifting weights as
does cardio if done at the proper intensity.
This way a person can reprogram their body to not burn off muscle while
instead using fat storage for the burn off.
Performing functional strength exercises will do two things biologically
that improve your health better than cardio exercise:
1. Prolonging the protein
synthesis process, which causes the body to better utilize nutrients and slow
down the process of fat storage;
2. With strength training, the building and maintenance
of muscle will burn more calories at rest, which increases the metabolic rate
and works to reduce fat retention.
-Nutrition is more
important than exercise
It does not matter how many hours you spend at the gym each
day or how sweaty you are when you leave; if you do not put the right types of
foods in your body each day than you are just fighting an uphill battle. The human body is a complex machine of
numerous biological processes that depends on the intake of Macro (Fats,
carbohydrates, Protein) and Micro (Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids) Nutrients
in order to function properly. When we
go hard at the gym and then do not put the proper nutrients in the body, these
biological processes do not operate optimally and problems occur such as injuries,
cramping, headaches and sometimes more severe side effects.
What you put in your body is almost more important to your
health and fitness than what you do with your body on a daily basis. Without the proper balance of Protein, Carbs
and Fats then all those hours at the gym is just another activity in your day. Your body needs a certain amount of fats for
hormonal and organ function, a certain amount of carbohydrates for glycogen
production that is used for energy in the body, and a certain amount of protein
for the maintenance of skeletal muscle as well as organ function.
-You need to speak
with a Health and Fitness professional
This may be the most controversial point I make on this
list. Every day in the gym I see people using bad form with exercises, ask me questions
that have origins in misinformation, and too many people doing the same exercises
every day with no variety. No one has it
all figured out, we all have things to learn in life. If your health and
fitness are important to you then the same applies for those areas also. Most certified personal trainers and
certified nutritionists are people who want to help others and will not be
condescending or judgmental towards those who come looking for help. Even if you work with a trainer or
nutritionist for a few months, it is still time well spent learning how to
correctly do different exercises, learn how to eat according to your body’s
needs, and build good fitness habits so you can live a better life.
Also, do not be fooled by so proclaimed “Fitness Experts”,
check the credentials of everyone giving you advice and find out from them the source
of their knowledge and information they attempt to give you. Too many of these self-proclaimed Experts do
not have the time spent in the classroom, gym, and kitchen to support many of
the claims they make; instead these people propagate information based on
subjective knowledge or based on marketing a specific program or product they
insist that you buy because their way is the “only way” to get “results.
Do not let any excuses, whether ego or fiscal, stand in your
way of getting the help you need to better your life. Health and Fitness is something all of us
should invest our time in, improving our physical, mental and emotional
well-being. Today is the day to take the step away from
the fads and misinformation of yesterday, take the steps forward to change your
lifestyle and create new habits that will sustain you for the rest of your
life.
