How to stick to your fitness goals this year
Interview with fitness coach Jeremiah Dasaolu included
I don’t normally do this but for this week’s digital entry, I spoke to a personal trainer to get some advice for you on sticking to your fitness goals. More from Jeremiah Dasaolu later.
You may be wondering why fitness or health is important to builders. I don’t have the research but I suppose there is something about an active mind being married to an active body that makes it more likely that you will be able to go faster for longer. In essence, if you take care of your body, it will take care of you. Around a year ago, I remember being in a particularly busy spell. I was speaking in different cities in a month period and so had to travel around quite a bit. I struggled to sleep, my digestion was way off and I was perpetually tired. I realised that if I wanted to last long, I had to get my health in check. Things compounded when I got injured in my lower back and developed a pinched nerve which meant my health went down the drain. This year, I hope you will join me in setting goals and targets for your health and well-being. Your goals only need to make sense to you so no need to do too much.
Some of my goals
Complete two marathons
Compete in 3 tennis tournaments and win one
Stretch daily
Range between 81kg and 88kg
I have more but these are just some to maybe get you started.
Doing exercise
Exercise shouldn't be something you do only when you want to drop those 10 extra pounds or prepare for the charity 10-kilometre run. To be successful, it should be something you do as routinely as eating, sleeping, and taking your morning shower. That can be difficult, as you may already know. The information below may help you stay on course when your motivation starts to flag. Remember, the result is worth the effort.
Let’s take a look at some research. The value of maintaining an exercise program became evident when the results of the Harvard Alumni Health Study were published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The men who had been moderately active but later became sedentary had a 15% higher risk of death than their counterparts who had never been active. On the other hand, those who started and kept up an exercise program had a 23% lower risk of death, which approaches the 29% decrease in risk enjoyed by the men who'd always been active. But knowing the benefits of lifelong exercise or even creating a personal exercise plan will be of little use if you don't stick to your program. As you plan an exercise routine, you need to prepare for the challenges that await you, so you won't be thrown off track.
Make it personal
Your first step on the lifelong path to healthy physical activity is to identify what works for you. Give some thought to what kind of activities suit your lifestyle, time constraints, budget, and physical condition. Don't forget to factor in your likes and dislikes.
Make it fit
Are time constraints a big problem? Start planning your exercise sessions by making a detailed schedule for your week. Look for ways you can work in blocks of exercise. Can you get up half an hour earlier every morning for a walk? Would this mean going to bed earlier? Be realistic. Don't schedule exercise after dinner if you know that's when you always have to help the kids with their homework unless you think the entire family might benefit from a break and a brisk walk. Look for ways to add bits of activity and recreational exercise to scheduled activity time — an extra lap around the mall when you're shopping, some stair climbing, or a Saturday morning bike ride. After the first week, adjust the weak points of your schedule. The good news? As you become more conditioned, you'll be able to boost the intensity of your exercise without further exerting yourself. This means that you'll be able to fit more into your allotted time; for example, walking 4 miles in the time it used to take you to do 3.
Set some goals
We already discussed this earlier. Shifting overnight from being sedentary to becoming an exercise buff isn't in the cards for most people. What's more, unrealistic expectations will set you up for frustration and failure. A better approach is to set a long-term goal, such as walking for 30 minutes five days a week and break it into monthly targets. During the first month, focus on walking three days a week for at least 10 minutes or longer each time. During the second month, walk an additional day per week (so you're up to walking four days a week). Add another day in the third month. Then, every two weeks, extend each walking session by five minutes until you reach your goal.
Chart your progress
Once you've set your goal, start measuring your performance. Record your minutes walked each day in a daily planner, or make a simple chart that you can post on the refrigerator. Either way, keep a written record of what you have accomplished. You can create similar charts for your strength training, stretching, and balance programs.
Reward your efforts
Meeting your exercise goals, even short-term ones, is cause for celebration. It reflects your commitment to improving your health. Find ways to pat yourself on the back. Whether your reward is small or large, make sure it's something meaningful and enjoyable. Avoid rewards you may regret soon after, such as eating an ice cream cone if your ultimate goal is losing weight. A better choice might be a new CD to listen to while you walk.
I spoke to my friend, personal trainer to African global superstar Davido for his take on this issue. How does he address this?
Why should people set fitness goals?
Setting goals gives you direction, without goals you’re setting yourself up for failure. Having direction is your motivator, without direction it's harder to stay motivated. Short-term fitness goals are essentially the fuel that will carry you to achieve your main long-term fitness goal, setting smaller short-term goals that will eventually carry you to your main goal is the best way to keep yourself motivated.
The gyms are going to be full this year, would you recommend people get memberships?
I would definitely recommend still getting a gym membership, because you’d still be able to utilise other aspects of the gym, such as classes which will always be limited numbers, and eventually, the gym floor will free up as the year goes on. It's important to remember that your fitness journey is a marathon, not a sprint, so treat it like one. In the same way at the start of a marathon, there will be a huge crowd raring to get started, but as time goes on, some people may stop, and you’ll start to notice there’s more space. It's important to focus on your own race.
What’s the main advice you would give to people trying to stick to their fitness goals this year?
My main advice would be to set achievable goals, instead of setting goals like losing x amount of weight, focus on building healthy habits such as “attend gym 3 times a week” or “eat 5 pieces of fruit a day”, these goals are more controllable. Also, give yourself enough time, you may not see changes straight away, and physiological changes take time. I would also recommend scheduling rest/active recovery days. These days are just as important as your gym sessions as they give you the opportunity to recover mentally as well as physically.
What’s the difference between your clients that achieve their fitness goals and the ones that don’t?
The main differences are their priorities, my clients that achieve their fitness goals prioritise their fitness, and see the long-term benefits of being in the gym and staying fit. When clients aren’t achieving their fitness goals it’s usually because of other aspects of their life such as nutrition or other bad habits such as smoking or drinking. Going to the gym is one aspect of improving their fitness, lifestyle and healthy habits also play a huge part.
I hope you have found this helpful folks. Have an amazing week
M.T. Omoniyi