What Does it Take To Be Fit?

Now we’re hitting the third month in this year and many of you are still going strong in your quest to be fit and healthy. If you’ve dropped off the wagon because it was too difficult or you didn’t see results quick enough, that’s okay. Just dust yourself off, tie your laces back up and get back on because it’s never too late to keep going. You just have to know what path to take so that you can understand and anticipate pitfalls and know how to overcome them. Often I get asked what machine will fix my thighs or how much cardio to shrink my waist or what miracle supplement will make me lose weight, grow 2 inches, do my taxes and give me a pay raise. If you workout in a health club I’m sure you’ve noticed that not everyone there looks like a movie star. Same thing goes for weight loss clinics. Why? Because we get fixated on one thing and go full force until our eyes pop out. Think about it. If low fat is good then fat-free must be better. If 20 minutes on a treadmill is enough then 45 minutes must be better. Instead of going three days a week to the gym, like recommended, I’ll go 6 days a week and get burned out faster. See America’s trend? Keep it simple people! I’m going to give you the five components if fitness so that you have at least the foundation of the correct path to follow. The rest is up to you. Keep in mind; these are based strictly on science and not my personal creation.

The 5 Components of Fitness

Food Intake
Food intake simply means calories taken in by the body and calories expended by the body. If you take in more calories than your body needs in a typical day, it will store the rest for later. If we do this day after day then, guess what, we get fat! Likewise for the opposite. If we take in less then our body needs then over time we will lose weight. There are no fattening and unfattening foods. There are only healthy and unhealthy foods, remember that! Now jot this down, like I said earlier many people will read this and start cutting out all their calories to lose weight, no-no. If you restrict yourself to too little calories then your body will fight for survival and the only weight you’ll lose will be hard earned lean muscle. I’ll go more into this later. Obviously there’s more to it than this, but I want you to keep it simple for now and learn the basics. Stop fad dieting and learn what foods satisfy you and how you can eat them and still lose weight. Your goal, if it is to lose weight, should be to slightly lower your daily calories enough to still feel satisfied yet still lose weight.

Cardio respiratory Exercise
Been on a treadmill? Walked the dog in the neighborhood? Been into a kick boxing class lately? Congratulations, you are participating in cardio respiratory exercise and your heart loves you for it! Cardio (for short) is very important for the heart and lungs. It makes your heart stronger and reduces your risk of heart disease and many other chronic problems associated with being unhealthy. Cardio breathes life into your circulatory system, it makes your joints more fluid and flexible and also helps you to not get winded walking up the stairs anymore. So how does cardio play into the five components here? Simply put, you burn more calories. You’ve created a slight deficit before by consuming less calories and now your creating an even bigger calories deficit by doing cardio. Again, don’t go hog wild and jump on a treadmill now for 60 minutes six times a week. Your goal here is to burn extra calories and if you start at too high of a level, then when your body adapts you have nowhere to go but up. Learn what frequency, intensity, time and type is right for you and get started.

Food Supplementation
Okay, now we’re eating a little less, we’re burning some extra calories so everything is going great right? Not yet. Now you’re at a point where your taking in less calories and your body is requiring more of them. So what’s the big deal? Your starving your body from vital nutrients it needs to get you to your goal! Not to worry. You can remedy this little problem by a process called food supplementation. This gives you those nutrients your body is thirsting for without all the extra calories. Anyone take a multi-vitamin? How about a calcium support? Should I even ask about an anti-oxidant? You need these nutrients and supplements give you what you need without any excess calories, nice huh?
Note: not all supplements are created equal. You need to know what supplements are the purest and most potent so that you aren’t wasting your money and time. Ask a professional what is best for you.

Resistance Training
Want a little icing on the cake? Component 4 is your ticket. Now that you understand the previous three let me explain why resistance training is so important. Muscles burn the most calories at rest essentially making them a fat burning machine. Also, you store many of your vital nutrients in your muscles. So it makes sense to build lean muscle mass to better aid in fat metabolism and proper nutrition. Now speaking to the women out there, if you are afraid or unsure of weight training, seek professional fitness help and get over your fear. If you’re telling me that weight training makes you big and bulky then I’ll tell you that your eating way too much and that growth is not muscle but fat and I’ll prove it!
Just so I can clear the air, we are all body builders. This term is not reserved just for the big, massive bulls out there. We are all building a better body and our bodies will always be under construction until the day we die.

Personal Assistance
You get sick and need to go to the doctor. He tells you that you need to have your gallbladder taken out. You say “ great, I think I can do this on my own because I read about it in Time magazine” Sound familiar? Of course not! You do what the doctor tells you because he is a professional. Why then is health and fitness not treated the same way? Yes, I know there are a lot of shady characters out there that proclaim to be fitness professionals and they give us all a bad name, but it’s still important to get proper assistance. This is your body, don’t waste your time, health and money on what you read in some article or saw on the Oprah show. You need the above components customized just for you and you definitely need assistance to ensure that what you are doing is safe and effective. Treat your fitness goals like a trip to the doctor. Get the correct information the first time to create a lifetime of health and wellness without the frustration. You are your biggest investment! Talk to you soon.

Scott is a fitness coach, author, speaker and founder of the online community bodyworxfitness.com bodyworxfitness.com

Tags: diet, Heart, lose weight, muscle mass, weight Loss

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Tags: diet, Heart, lose weight, muscle mass, weight Loss