One thing we fitness pros are always babbling on about is the importance of having goals. In fact, the first thing I ask prospective clients is what they want to achieve, so I can help them get there. While there’s no such thing as a bad goal, having more specific intentions can be even more powerful especially when you can measure that progress along the way.
Physical Fitness is a set of attributes that people have or achieve that relates to their ability to perform physical activity. It is made up of measurable components that enable an individual to improve his or her quality of life and their ability to meet the demands of life safely and effectively without exhaustion or under stress.
Physical Health
A common goal of exercise for some people is to achieve a healthier lifestyle. Cardiovascular exercise improves your heart and lung efficiency. It is now recognized that an inactive lifestyle is harmful to health and well-being. With coronary heart disease (CHD) being the leading cause of death in the UK.
Simply stopping smoking, reducing fat intake, reducing stress & introducing regular exercise can dramatically reduce the risks of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer. Regular physical activity also helps improve your blood pressure and cholesterol. You are likely to feel healthier overall when you exercise regularly. You may also notice an improvement in how you sleep, as exercise tends to help you fall asleep more quickly and sleep deeply.
Psychological Health
Exercise also plays a vital role in helping to manage and reduce the symptoms of mental health conditions such as mild depression and general anxiety disorder. During exercise, a hormone is released called endorphine, which is known as a ‘feel good’ hormone and helps to boost self-esteem.
A related goal is to reduce stress levels and improve thinking and focus with regular exercise.
Weight Loss
Another possible goal of exercise for some people is to lose weight, feel more confident and improve their appearance. For those within the healthy range, maintaining the current weight is a possible goal.
Exercise aids in losing or maintaining weight by burning off the calories you consume. When the number of calories you burn through regular activities and exercise exceeds the number of calories you eat, you create a calorie deficit, resulting in weight loss.
Nearly all diets are based on calorie restriction, in order to lose weight calorie expenditure must be greater than calorie input. Many diets advise quite extreme calorie restrictions in order to guarantee short-term success and it is this “too much too soon” approach that actually guarantee’s long-term failure.
If the calorie intake is considerably below the BMR the body will consequently perceive this as starvation. The body then switches to survival mode. During starvation the primary goal of the metabolic system is to provide enough glucose to the brain and other tissues (the red blood cells, certain kidney cells, and others) that absolutely require glucose to function. Because the body is not being given the number of calories it needs glucose will have to be striped from the body’s protein store in the skeletal muscle. A little can come from stored fat, but not from the fatty acids themselves. Although glucose can be converted to fat, the reaction cannot go the other way. Muscle protein is also bound up with a lot of water, therefore weight loss in the first week would predominantly be from lean body tissue and its associated water.
So remembering if your goal is to shed pounds, you really should be aiming to lose body fat and gain (or retain) muscle. Essentially, you’re hoping to shift your body composition and lower your body fat percentage.
Strengthening
Strengthening your bones and muscles is another possible objective of regular exercise. Focus on creating a stronger body to allow you to handle everyday tasks more easily. Incorporate weight-bearing exercises such as walking, hiking or jogging to reach your goal of increasing and maintaining bone mass. This protects you from osteoporosis as you age. Strive for stronger bones and muscles to give yourself a more stable body to prevent injuries and falls. Setting the objective to increase lean muscle mass also helps increase your metabolism so you are able to more easily burn calories.
Make fitness a part of your routine
I meet people daily who want to shape up for a specific event – a wedding, a school reunion, bikini season… While I would never begrudge anyone wanting to look and feel her best for any reason, I try to encourage a more long-term approach. Sure, you’re motivated to work hard for the grand occasion, but do you really you want to put in all that effort only to let it fall by the wayside later?
Train for an event
There’s one exception where shaping up with a deadline can actually come in handy, and that’s training for a fitness event. Some of us are just more deadline-driven than others, and by giving yourself a specific point at which you’ll have to prove your stuff (beyond looking fit in the photos), you’ll be that much more motivated to keep up with your training. So sign up for a triathlon or cycle event. After the rush of completing your first one, you may decide to make it a habit.
If improvements in physical fitness are to be achieved, the best approach is one that will be structured, progressive and specifically designed to meet the needs and goals of the individual.
The use of a personal trainer is becoming more and more popular these days with them being able to offer health-related fitness assessments and programmes specifically designed to meet your personal goals. Goals are often achieved more quickly when working with a personal trainer, rather than training alone.
• Provides a more personalised and individual training programme
• Regular one to one contact to help aid motivation, support and adherence
• On-going observation and assessments to monitor progress
HEALTH-RELATED FITNESS ASSESSMENTS:
Why have a fitness assessment?
• To assess current fitness level
• To help develop and establish an effective fitness program
• To identify potential areas of health or injury risk
• To establish goals and motivation
• To track and evaluate progress
• To establish a baseline of your current fitness level
• To identify your strengths and weaknesses in relation to your physical fitness.
What a Health-Related Fitness Assessments Includes:
What a Health-Related Fitness Assessments Includes:
• Anthropometric Measurements
• Resting Heart Rate
• Resting Blood Pressure
• Resting Blood Pressure
• Body Composition
• Cardiovasular Fitness
• Muscular Endurance
• Muscle Strength/Power
• Range of Motion
• Motor Fitness & Posture
• Grip Strength
• Lung Function
• V02 Max
Check out www.cadenceandwatts.com and sign up to one of our challenging cycle rides. Alternatively email lorraine@cadenceandwatts.com if you wanted to discuss personal training or health-related fitness assessments further. With every six-week block of personal training booked you will receive a complimentary fitness assessment at the start & the end of your training programme to measure your progress made.
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