As a qualified Personal Trainer and someone who grew up on a no-wheat, low-fat diet I know a fair bit about keeping fit and what to put into my body. As an influencer and blogger, I also know a fair bit about the daily struggles of the modern day world. For every HIIT session or superset, there is a delicious single malt whisky or ten-course meal to sample. Life isn’t hard, but it ain’t easy either.
On that note, here is my first official foray into fitness on Twenty First Century Gent. I’ll start with the basics; no outrageous workouts or diets here. This is simply a few pointers and tips on where to start that will hopefully create the groundwork for the “future you” (that will be my only use of a cringe-inducing industry buzzword in this article). Let’s keep it simple with three ways to improve the way you approach a healthier 2017.
Moving To A Beat.
We all have different music tastes and all have music tastes that probably differ inside and outside of the gym or a 10km run. Science will happily back me up on this (more calories burned, higher intensity etc.) but let’s think about the logic. Music is an emotional tool that can distract us, motivate us, or transport us to a moment in life. Certain songs on my playlist tell my brain that this is the final rep or the final mile in a gruelling workout. The obscene drop in a drum and bass track signalling the crescendo of a workout rather than the morning commute; hardwiring my brain to ignore that pain and focus on getting through the next few seconds only. Invest in good headphones, plan a routine around your music, and forget the world around you. No-one else is going to stop you or help you in smashing those fitness goals.
Accept Help Where You Need It.
In the same vein, this is not to say that you should start any new challenge alone. There are a few, free, tools that I will use to track my progress and they really help with accountability when it comes to training and diet. You may have heard of MyFitnessPal before; not a smiley Personal Trainer but rather a macros-tracker that will identify every crumb that enters your body. It still relies on your discipline to be counted, but there is real value in firstly acknowledging, and then breaking down, what it is you eat every day. The truth will probably surprise you.
While the mirror is a great long-term tool to track your results, there are other apps out there that will tell you on a weekly or daily basis how your body is changing. It can be difficult to spot a kilo of weight loss in a reflection, but apps such as Boditrax can analyse your body at a microscopic level. Nothing is a perfect science and, while I won’t ignore the way I actually look too, apps like Boditrax really help with motivation on a weekly basis.
If you’re willing to spend money, and are more focused on those smaller changes in day-to-day life rather than just in the gym, then gadgets such as a FitBit offer a fun way of challenging yourself daily. Every journey starts with a small step, but if you can constantly take 10,00 of those small steps each day then it’s a good introduction to discipline and routine.
Liquid Diet.
Food is very important in generating and maintaining change but there are also three liquids that are integral to my diet: water, caffeine and protein.
Water is an obvious one, but I can guarantee that most people reading this don’t actually drink enough H20, especially on exercise days. Grabbing a larger bottle means you can track your intake and, if like me you are a bit wary of the quality of local water, a Brita filter helps things taste smoother and cleaner.
Caffeine, or coffee, is the simplest and most economical way to get that kick before each workout and it has a thermogenic effect that will keep you burning calories throughout the day. Green Tea, others will argue, is a better choice, but I prefer the taste and texture of a well-made Americano. Just try not to stray over 200mg a day or your heart may give up before you do. Pair it with a banana; it is a digestible carbohydrate that is packed with potassium, perfect for maintaining nerve and muscle function. Fuel with a purpose.
Finally, and to the most marketed product in the whole fitness industry, there are protein shakes. A monumental disclaimer here: NOTHING SHOULD EVER REPLACE REAL FOOD. A synthesised protein shake, or even a “natural” protein shake cannot, and will not, contain many of the essential vitamins and minerals you need from physical food. I use mine post-workout for recovery and to top up the grams of protein in my diet. They also taste bloody good as a dessert too. My protein pancake recipe is coming soon.
Hit Record.
I’m approaching 1,000 words on my intro piece here so I’ll finish with a brief mention on recording what you are doing at the gym or at home. If you’re tracking diet and general activity, then that is great but if you’re randomly selecting weights and repetitions then you’re simply not going to be progressing (unless you get incredibly lucky or have an obscene memory). Your biggest challenge in change is going to be yourself. See what you did last week? You can do better. Write it down and prove you can do better. Then do better again. Only has to be small improvements and sometimes you might have a bad day or week, but in the end, you can see where you started from. Marathon runners don’t run 26 miles every day after all; it is all about those small, tracked, improvements.
At the risk of turning this into a second dissertation I’ll end this here, but there will be plenty more to come on Twenty First century Gent. Stay tuned for more on workouts, diet and motivation.