We’ve grown up in an era of seeing gorgeously toned and sculpted fitness models on the covers of magazines such as Sports Illustrated. We aspire to be like them but what they don’t tell us is that the models have worked for years and years – consistently – to get where they are today.
To be fit and healthy is a challenging road to follow. It has amazing rewards for both your physique, physical and mental health. However, it’s not easy. To be healthy and achieve fitness in your life requires dedication, motivation and keeping your eye on the prize so that you don’t deviate from where you’re going.
Gyms trying to sell memberships and weight-loss products spin the story that they want you to believe about fitness so that you’ll – at the end of the day – buy what they’re selling:
- Diet products promise you instant results for your physique when you take their product in order to promote a sale.
- Gyms offer the latest and greatest in exercise techniques and equipment that will make your exercise experience seem not like work at all.
However, what is the truth? What should we believe?
Diet quick fixes
Many people think that being skinny is a sign that you’re fit and healthy. This has prompted many people to go after losing weight at all costs and as fast as possible in order for them to get that sleek and healthy glow.
Yes, it’s possible to lose a fortune of weight in a very short space of time and to look fabulous at the end of it. Many achieve this result because they starve themselves. The weight falls off them but, at the same time, they send a signal to their bodies that the body needs to hold onto every single calories that they can because it doesn’t know when it’s going to be getting more nutrition again. When the person starts to eat again, even though they are not eating excessively they will find that they put on weight.
In order to lose weight effectively, and avoid the scenario that we’ve described above, it’s best to follow a calorie-controlled diet. In addition, it’s also best to eat 6 small meals a day so that your metabolic rate is kept high. It will take time for the excess weight to go (and if you, as a lady, are going on diet with your hubby or boyfriend, you’ll find that he will lose weight much faster than you will – it’s just the way that men and women’s bodies are made) but you’ll find that you’ll be able to keep the weight off for longer.
Exercise hacks
Every so often, you’ll switch on the TV and will find the newest ‘exercise miracle’ being advertised. The benefit that they promote about this piece of exercise equipment is that you don’t have to do anything besides strap on a belt over your tummy, plug it in and the vibrations do the rest.
While these may look good in the ad, in reality there is no substitute for physical exercise. Yes, you spend a lot more time performing these exercises and you do perspire while doing these. However, if you do these exercises correctly, you will see some benefit. This advantage won’t be immediately, but it will be incremental. Do you have this guarantee from the exercise band that emits the vibrations?
Fitness comes in all shapes and sizes. Just because someone may look overweight doesn’t mean that they’re necessarily unfit. In fact, there are four categories of fitness so someone who doesn’t necessarily look ‘fit’ (in other words, lean and toned) can actually indeed be fit. These categories are:
- Anaerobic fitness
- Cardiovascular fitness
- Flexibility
- Strength
We’re not going to lie to you. Fitness doesn’t happen overnight. However, the results that come with adopting a fit and healthy lifestyle are boundless and can be felt almost immediately. For example, not drinking at night will improve your sleep tenfold. And that’s what happens the very same night that you stop. So give the fitness lifestyle a try – you won’t be sorry that you did!