It's that time of year when people come out of the woodwork (off the couch is a more accurate phrase) looking to find a personal trainer and/or a gym membership as part of a New Years Resolution to get into shape, or loose weight, or get back to a size 8, or ...
This post is not to stroke your ego and tell you how great you're doing by starting a workout program, how it will increase your quality (and quantity) of life, improve mental and physical health, relieve stress, be fun, and make everything in life easier. You know this. You also know that you will most likely drop out of any new activity and revert a sedentary lifestyle before the second week of February. Instead let's look at the realistic outcomes from some of the more popular modes of activity people commit to at this time of year.
Workout videos at home: Your home treadmill is used as a clothes rack, your bike is rusted and doesn't shift properly, you can't find your left running shoe, you hire some guy to plough your driveway. You have lots of opportunity for exercise at home and you don't do it. Videos are no different.
Join a running club: If you're a runner, a running club can be a good idea. There are also many learn-to-run programmes available. Both meet regularly. You'll expected to attend. You'll meet others who can serve as motivators (or competitors: "I ran 10k yesterday. Did you?"). Running requires a high caloric expenditure. All this is good. At some point, since your biomechanics are less than perfect (weakness, technical flaw, old injury) you'll have to stop running and will consider coming to see me to fix your problems and make you a more efficient runner. This is great for me.
Fitness classes: They have the same pro's as a running club, but unfortunately are not ongoing. When the month is up or the 12 week session ends, you are unlikely to continue because you missed 3 classes in the original session, and you've got a really busy month coming up, so you'll just pay the drop in fee instead, but then that doesn't work cause your favourite instructor is no longer teaching on Tuesdays, and sometimes your meeting runs late on Wednesday and...
Gym memberships: If you know what you're doing (you don't) and you will actually stick to a regular workout schedule (you won't), gym memberships are a great way to go. Make it worthwhile: before you sign up, select a personal trainer (see below) and commit to an ongoing relationship with them. Then pick a gym where they can train you.
Personal trainer: A good (or excellent) personal trainer will work with you on a FREQUENT AND ONGOING BASIS to help you achieve your goals. Selecting a good (or excellent) personal trainer is like picking a good (or excellent) plumber, mechanic, lawyer, or surgeon: A piece of paper, or a fancy advertisement means NOTHING of their competence as a professional. Do your homework, interview them, check their references, their credentials and scope of practice, and professional liability insurance. Once you've chosen one, you will form a relationship that will help you adhere to a programme over a long term.
Diet: C'mon dieting doesn't work! You need to change your relationship with food and your approach to eating. Check out the Gaining and Losing Weight section of this blog.
Take the stairs: Challenging yourself to take the stairs, walk to the store, and do calisthenics during commercial breaks, will help increase your daily activity levels. They probably are not intense (or long or frequent) enough to count as exercise, so don't expect to see major changes in your body or continued improvements beyond the first couple months even if you do stick with it.
No comments:
Post a Comment