By Praveen & Maheek Nair
Fitness goals are important on several counts. They hold us accountable, expand our definition of possible, and encourage us to push through temporary discomfort for longer-lasting change. But figuring out how to set fitness goals you’ll actually want to attain can be part art, part science.
When it comes to fitness, just getting up and moving is better than nothing—whether you hit the gym, go for a run, or livestream fitness program workouts you can do in your home, moving and challenging your body (and working up a good sweat) But if an added goal of yours is to build muscle, get stronger, or improve your cardiovascular fitness, actually sticking to a regular routine or following a program can make a world of difference.
While trying something new beats boredom and keeps your body working in new ways, it also makes it tough to ever find your groove. Just hitting up a random class every now and then but never really committing fully to anything makes it hard to set and reach goals. There are a few reasons why.
Begin with Baby Steps
Often, big goals take more time to achieve, so it’s important to create smaller step-wise goals to help you reach the big goals. Otherwise, you might feel like your big goals are too overwhelming to achieve. So, if it will take six months to achieve your larger goal, you might aim to achieve smaller goals every two to four weeks to help you reach your ultimate goal.
Accept that you’ll probably encounter setbacks some of which may be out of your control. So, it’s important to devise a plan to get back on track. For example, if you have to work late and miss your exercise class, come up with a plan.
Instead of ditching your workout plans altogether, take a brisk walk as soon as you get home. Or, if you are having a hard time exercising after work, adjust your schedule so you get exercise out of the way in the morning. Sometimes a little creativity is all it takes to get back in the game. Set goals that are important to you – and write them down.
Taking pen to paper makes goals more tangible and can help you feel more accountable. Most important, don’t bite off more than you chew. If you’re not exercising at all, you might set a goal to take a short walk three days each week instead of striving to work out seven days straight out of the gate. That way you’ll feel bolstered by your success and can work your way up to exercising more often.
Even if you encounter setbacks along the way, establishing goals – and making a plan to achieve them – is the best way to ensure fitness success. With dedication and commitment, you can stay on track with a new fitness regimen.
Remembering progression with some goals may be achieved in shorter or longer periods of time.
Before you start your new exercise program, record:
- Your pulse rate (heart rate) before and after a walk
- How long you take to walk a certain distance
- How many bench push-ups or squats you can do in 30 seconds?
- Your waist circumference (measured midway between the top of your hip bone and bottom of your ribs).
- Your body mass index (BMI). This is calculated by dividing your weight in kilograms by your height in meters, squared. If you would like this accurately assessed, visit your local registered allied health or exercise professional.
Benefits of Fitness Goals
- Improved condition of the heart and lungs
- Increased muscular strength, endurance and motor fitness
- Increased aerobic fitness
- Improved muscle tone and strength
- Weight management
- Better coordination, agility and flexibility
- Improved balance and spatial awareness
- Increased energy levels
- Improved immunity
- Increased physical confidence
- Reduced risk of chronic disease (such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease)
- Improved sleep
- Improved brain function and health
- Improved general and psychological wellbeing
- Greater self-confidence and self-esteem
- Improved social life.
Balanced Diet: a Key Factor
Opting for a balanced, adequate and varied diet is an important step towards a happy and healthy lifestyle.
Vitamins and minerals in the diet are vital to boost immunity and healthy development.
A healthy diet can protect the human body against certain types of diseases, in particular noncommunicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, some types of cancer and skeletal conditions.
Healthy diets can also contribute to an adequate body weight.
Healthy eating is a good opportunity to enrich life by experimenting with different foods from different cultures, origins and with different ways to prepare food.
The benefits of eating a wide variety of foods are also emotional, as variety and color are important ingredients of a balance diet.
A well-balanced diet provides important vitamins, minerals, and nutrients to keep the body and mind strong and healthy. Eating well can also help ward off numerous diseases and health complications, as well as help maintain a healthy body weight, provide energy, allow better sleep, and improve brain function.
A diet with balance provides the body with the proper proportions of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and liquids. It is important to not eliminate any essential macronutrient, such as fats or carbohydrates, but be conscious of portion control.
Control Body Weight
Eating a healthy variety of nutrient-dense foods leaves less room for those calorie-dense foods that typically lead to weight gain. These would be such foods as, processed foods and fatty or sugary snacks that provide little nutritional value. The body has little use for these foods and will tend to store rather than use them for energy.
Eating carbohydrates like whole grains, oats, vegetables, fruits, legumes, and quinoa that have a low glycemic index (ranking of carbohydrates on a scale from 0 to 100 based on how much they raise blood sugar levels after consuming) will allow the body to stay fuller over a longer period of time. These complex carbohydrates break down and release into the blood stream over an extended period of time preventing triggers in the brain to crave simple sugary snacks.
Along with lean proteins (chicken, most seafood, eggs, lean cuts of pork, etc.), the metabolism can stay elevated longer limiting the feeling of hunger after a short time frame.
Fight Off Disease
When eating a balanced diet, essential nutrients will produce and help maintain key germ-fighting cells in the immune system, and greatly improve vascular function. The immune system relies heavily on blood flow, so better vascular function will help provide disease fighting cells to areas of need quickly. Deficiencies in certain nutrients can impair immune system function, such as vitamin A, B-vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E, Zinc, and Iron. A diet filled with fruits and vegetables also increases the production of infection-fighting white blood cells and materials that help prevent bacteria and infections from attaching themselves to cells in the body.
Some of the most important aspects of a balanced diet is the reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease. Vitamin C raises levels of good cholesterol (HDL) and lowers blood pressure, two very important potential stresses to the cardiovascular system that need to be monitored. Vitamin C also helps interfere with fat being converted to plaque in the arteries. Essential fatty acids also protect the body against damage from over-reactions to infection.
A balanced diet will limit the amount of excess body fat that can develop, which puts extra stress on the cardiovascular system eventually causing serious problems.
Have More Energy
The food we eat has a tremendous impact on the energy we have throughout the day. Nutrient-dense foods will digest and therefore be released into the system over a longer period of time. On the other hand, easily digestible food (sugary/simple carbohydrates) will digest much quicker, causing the body to feel hungry again in a much shorter time frame. This can cause spikes in the release of energy into the bloodstream, immediately followed by lows. Ideally, the goal is to maintain energy levels through the day without these extreme highs and lows.
Eating well keeps our energy on a relatively level base from morning until night. Proteins can help provide satiety much more effectively then processed foods or simple carbohydrates. Every 3-4 hours consuming a source of protein can be a very important rule to live by to prevent unnecessary snacking. Also, make sure to increase healthy fats, which the body will use for energy more compared to unhealthy saturated and trans-saturated fats. These unhealthy fats can make you feel sluggish as the body fights to break it down and absorb harmful byproducts. Food that is also iron-rich, like dark leafy greens, can also help provide a boost in energy because iron helps deliver oxygen to working muscles and the brain, which is what they run on.
Sleep Better
There are few things our bodies need more than sleep. It allows our muscles to recover and replenish from the day’s activities and workouts. Sleep will rejuvenate the brain and its ability to function at a high level for the next day. Without it we feel sluggish, energy levels remain low, focus and concentration levels are affected, and cravings for less beneficial food are triggered. Poor eating habits often cause stomach and digestive issues due to the toxins that may be released into the blood system. Raised acidity can also put a strain on the digestive system, making it very difficult to get a good night’s sleep.
It is important to not overeat at nighttime, which many people are guilty of due to poor eating habits during the day. Making sure meals are spaced out effectively becomes an important rule once again. We do not want our bodies starving by the end of the day and have to make up for a lack of nutrients with a large dinner. It makes it extremely difficult for the body to prepare for sleep when it is working hard to digest a large number of calories. Plan the next day out, so you don’t run into a situation that leads to a sleepless night.
More Brain Power
What could possibly be more important than our brains? We have an opportunity to keep it healthy and functioning at a high level based on our eating habits. Omega 3 fatty acids provide a number of important benefits, such as improved memory and the ability to learn. They also help fight against debilitating mental disorders, for example, depression, dementia, and schizophrenia.
Foods such as salmon, walnuts, avocado, and kiwi contain these important fatty acids. Omega3’s can provide long term benefits to support synaptic plasticity which is how our memory and learning are developed and possibly improved. So, make sure they become an essential part of your diet for a clear and highly functioning brain.