The Trouble With Getting Out of Shape

Staying in shape can get tedious and difficult, which is why it is very important to keep it constantly changing. Once we start to see all the positive benefits, our brains choose to go one of two ways: Rock even harder to see more results, or Take the changes for granted and start slowing down. Th negatives of slowing down? The body takes about twice as long to get in shape as it does to get out of shape.

A Backslide-Free Year

Yes, you made your resolutions, checked them like a million times, cancelled them out, and made new ones. We all know how resolutions usually turn out. It is evident from the number of people at the gym on January 2nd, and the number that are still there by February 1st. Resolutions tend to fizzle.

But that doesn’t mean that if you plan to be fit this year, you are destined for failure. There are a few decisions you can make to help you stick to your plan:

Try something new: So you were on the treadmill last January and that failed? Keep it interesting this time! Try something you haven’t done before. Is it spinning, swimming, or yoga? Give it a go.

Mix it up: Everyone gets bored of exercise when we do the same things. While you’re trying new things, try a large variety of new things. Mix up what you do on different days to keep yourself from getting bored. Maybe run on Monday, do Zumba on Wednesday, and go to a spinning class on Friday. But whatever you do, keep it interesting.

Create accountability: You’ve heard that when you work out with a partner, you work harder. That’s because we’re all competitive. But you can do more. Attend fitness classes regularly so the instructors and other attendees know you. It’ll make you less likely to miss a class when you know you’ll be asked questions later. Plus, fitness classes are always super competitive.

Track your progress: Keep a consistent log of what you do, and if you’re doing better week after week. You could use one of these websites to keep a detailed log.

Stop making excuses: So you failed last year? What did you do wrong? Find your mistakes and fix them, rather than use them as a clutch! You cannot move forward if you keep finding a reason not to succeed. If you want to get fit, you have to put in the work.

Find diet choices that work for you: Because Weight Watchers worked for your friend does not always mean it is the best option for you. Nobody knows your weaknesses better than yourself. Do your research before you choose a diet, and make sure it is something you can stick with.

Pamper yourself: If you can afford some spa time, try to get some in this year. Our bodies need pampering after all the hard work we put them through. However, try to make your pampering time a reward for all the workouts you've done. Push yourself harder so you can get pampered after. That's my policy ;)

Good luck Eights & Weights! We're here to support you every step of the way.

Photo credit: sportsnfitnessar.blogspot.com

Falling off the Bandwagon

It is a shame that most of the African teams in this World cup always seem to start a match out well, and then let the other team carry the match halfway through. Unlike the African football teams we’ve seen, we don’t have to give up all hope when we fall out of our exercise and nutrition routine and back into our old habits. There’s always the option to dust yourself off and try again.

Most people that are on a strict diet program tend to demonize food, and so when they backslide for a moment and eat that slice of birthday cake, it’s like they’ve sold their soul to the enemy. They get affected psychologically and start to think “I’ve already made a mistake, so I can go ahead and eat the whole cake and it won’t matter.” And then that one mistake leads to binge eating.

My opinion is that in order to stay healthy and fit, we need to change our relationship with food. If we treat cake as a complete no-no when we know we do love cake, do you know what happens? Our minds would constantly remain on cake. Thinking about cake 24/7 will inevitably lead to stuffing our faces with cake at some point because we feel so starved of something we enjoy. I was reading an article in SELF magazine the other day, where the True Blood actress Anna Paquin was interviewed. My love for her immediately grew when she said (and this is paraphrased), “I won’t feed you the lie most actresses do. I have to watch what I eat to stay fit. But I also believe that one dessert a week won’t kill me.” If we can have this type of relationship with food, we’d avoid the yo-yo effect caused by demonizing food and then bingeing on it.

This relationship is not only true of food. We also do the same thing with our exercise program. If we can’t make it to the gym one day, we think “I’ll make up for it tomorrow.” When we are too tired to go the next day, and the next day, we start to feel really guilty. Knowing we cannot make up for a few lost days, we turn our guilt into nonchalance and just stop going. Or as one of my readers felt this week, we may feel intense pain when we start working out, and that could drive us to wait a few days or weeks before going back to the gym. Our exercise routine could get so spaced out that our bodies don’t get used to exercising and we feel pain every time we work out. What happens then? We say “To hell with it!” and just quit.

Therefore, we also need to change our relationship with exercise. Exercise comes with pain, no doubt. But let’s not rest in the ‘now’, but the future. It will hurt for a few days or weeks, but as our bodies strengthen, we’ll see an increase in our endurance for pain, and a decrease in the pain itself. With these compounded, and as we see the effects of exercise on our bodies, we’ll be driven to do even more.

Now, let’s back up a little. We’ve talked about changing our relationship with food and exercise. But we also need to be a little softer on ourselves sometimes. Recognize that we may backslide just because that’s the way the human mind is wired. If we do backslide, how should we deal with it? We deal with it by realizing that a small mistake does not change our whole lives. So you missed one workout session? Jump back on the horse tomorrow and don’t dwell on today. You ate 5,000 calories in one meal? Oops! There’s always tomorrow. Continue controlling your portions then.

If you have a ‘falling off the bandwagon’ story, or have any questions, please leave a comment.

I’d also like to point out two things:

• The Nigerian Blog Awards group B nominations end today (May 27th). Please go and nominate Eights & Weights today before it’s over! Click on this link to nominate: Group B nominations.
• Starting next month, the Eights and Weights page will have a segment called ‘What I Want to Know Is…’ Please click here to send me a message about a question you have or a topic you’re concerned about, and it may make it to next month’s pool of questions!

Again, thanks for your support! Cheers!