The quickest path to achieving and maintaining a fit and healthy physique is to have a holistic approach to your fitness.
The holistic approach will involve all areas of your life. Instead of just focusing on exercise or clean eating you will consider both the physical, psychological and social aspects of your life. It is surprising how little attention is given to these issues when embarking on a fitness overhaul. There is a fine balance between each and neglecting one has a direct impact on the other.
Here are some examples to give you an idea of what each may involve.
1. Physical:
- You exercise regime
- Your daily activity pattern
- Hours a day you sleep
- Time spent being sedentary during the day (treat this separately to how active you are during the day) etc
2. Psychological:
- How well you plan and prepare for your sessions.
- How healthy is your attitude to nutrition
- How well you manage your stress levels.
- How you deal with work related issues.
- Finding time for yourself during the day to focus on your priorities/relax/meditate etc
3. Social
- Creating or becoming a part of a group who have the same interest in achieving their fitness/healthy goals – support network.
- What kind of people do you surround yourself with: energetic/optimistic/passionate or draining/pessimistic/lazy etc.
- Planning holidays that allow your body and mind to rest and regenerate etc
From effecting your daily activity levels to nutrition and psychological well-being, habitual lifestyle dictates your overall health and fitness. Approaching your health from such general view point will allow you to introduce gradual, positive changes to your lifestyle. These will complement your training regime and will ultimately lead to a better quality of life. The result is improved body composition, energy levels, psychological strength and ultimately overall health.
Best wishes,
Dmitri Tkatchev
Read on:
Introduction to the 31 Day Fitness Kickstart
Day 1 – Water
Day 2 – Protein at breakfast
Day 3 – Meal frequency
Day 4 – Sugar
Day 5 – Lifestyle
Day 6 – Carbohydrates
Day 7 – Sleep
Day 8 – Start easy with Cardio – frequency not the quantity.
Day 9 – Get clever with your fats!
Day 10 – Find or become a role model
Day 11 – Coffee
Day 12 – Exercise improves your appetite response.
Day 13 – Consistency over intensity
Day 14 – Add cinnamon to your diet
Day 15 – Energising morning fix
Day 16 – Active rest
Day 18 – Minimise muscle loss.
Day 19 – Don’t forget steady paced cardio
Day 20 – Eat plenty of fibre
Day 21 – Take up a physically demanding hobby.
Day 22 – Hire a qualified and an experienced Personal Trainer
Day 23 – Eat Cake
Day 24 – Don’t forget that the feeling of hunger is the best cue for when to eat
Day 25 – Tune in to your training
Day 26 – Sort out the calorie density of your meals.
Day 27 – Eat more grapefruit
Day 28 – Eat within an hour after your workout!
Day 29 – Stay in the low range of Glycaemic Index and Glycaemic Load
Day 30 – Cycle crunches.
Day 31 – Learn to listen to your body