The Swedish Pilates Studio

In the head of a Personal Trainer

 People often tell me – It’s easy for you to exercise because you have always done it and you have those genes. Yes, I was born in an active family where exercise was a natural part of life. But I exercise because I have made it part of my life, I feel good when I’m fit and my body doesn’t struggle to get out of bed in the morning.

I have a wonderful job where I’m giving the opportunity to help people to a fitter and healthy life, but at the same time it is sad to see how unfit our societies have become.

How can we say that 70 is the new middle age when we have twenty years old with age related diseases due to bad eating habits and an inactive lifestyle?

 Our bodies deserve a long healthy, fit and happy life.

You hear a lot about living a healthy lifestyle, but what does that mean? In general, a healthy person doesn't smoke, is at a healthy weight, eats healthy and exercises. Sounds simple, doesn't it?

The trick to healthy living is making small changes...taking more steps, adding fruit to your cereal, having an extra glass of water...these are just a few ways you can start living healthy without drastic changes.

Despite the enormous expenditure on health, which is crippling many economies today, the incidence of the two great diseases, cancer and heart disease continues to rise.

So if there are simple changes which you and your family can make which could greatly reduce the risk of developing crippling illnesses or prevent an early death, then don’t you want to try them?

One of the biggest problems in world today is lack of activity. We know it's good for us but avoid it like the plague either because we're used to being sedentary or afraid that exercise has to be vigorous to be worth our time. The truth is, movement is movement and the more you do, the healthier you'll be. Even moderate activities like chores, gardening and walking can make a difference.

You can start the process of a fitter body now by adding a little more activity to your life. If you're not ready for a structured program, start small. Every little bit counts and it all adds up to burning more calories.

·         Turn off the TV. Once a week, turn off the TV and do something a little more physical with your family. Play games, take a walk...almost anything will be more active than sitting on the couch.

·         Walk more. Look for small ways to walk more. When you get the mail, take a walk around the block, take the dog for an extra outing each day or walk on your treadmill for 5 minutes before getting ready for work.

·         Do some chores. Working in the garden, raking leaves, sweeping the floor...these kinds of activities may not be 'vigorous' exercise, but they can keep you moving while getting your house in order.

·         Pace while you talk. When you're on the phone, pace around or even do some cleaning while gabbing. This is a great way to stay moving while doing something you enjoy.

·         Be aware. Make a list of all the physical activities you do on a typical day. If you find that the bulk of your time is spent sitting, make another list of all the ways you could move more--getting up each hour to stretch or walk, walk the stairs at work, etc.

·         Enjoy exercise. Incorporate whatever you like doing into your fitness routine. Do you like nature? Do a bush walk. Do you like raising money for charity? Enter a charity run. Do you want to spend more time with friends? Go for a walk with them or play a game of tennis together. Why not have Saturday morning as a set time for husband and wife to go for a walk or a run.

This was my day today; 6.30 am woke up and had a cup of hot water with lemon. Did my training session, today it was a session in the gym doing back, bicep, legs and core. Then it was time for breakfast, oats, sunflower seeds, linseeds, cinnamon, sultanas, and almonds, a bit of Special K and blueberries and strawberries with milk and a cup of tea.

I always have a glass of water after breakfast; it is a good routine to make sure that you have plenty of water in the morning. You are dehydrated after a long night and you need to get the balance right in the body again.

Time for clients.

Lunch, I had left over red lentils soup, perfect for a rain day. After a cup of green tea mix with rooibos tea, our dog knows it is time for her walk.

I didn’t have any clients in the afternoon, but I met up with the physiotherapist that I’m working with. It’s a 15 minutes’ walk to where we are meeting, so I took the opportunity to get some extra steps in and walked there.

Back home, and was already time to prepared dinner.

As you can see; I haven’t done any extreme amount of exercise, but I have used daily activities to be active. And that’s what it is all about making you daily life more active, and making sure we feed our bodies with healthy energy. 

Our bodies deserve a long healthy, fit and happy life.

Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta
www.newfitness.com.au