Chronicle EditorInnocent Choga : Fitness
I hope we all took a deserved rest from exercising and had time to celebrate and enjoy our 36th Independence birthday. This week I would like to address a question that was presented to me via email by a young man whose case identifies with the topic we discussed last week. The young man says whilst he was at school he was small and started gaining weight at a tertiary institution. He says he is now weighing around 110 kilograms. The problem is he did not mention
his height and I did not see his pictures. He says he started weight training with peers and then stopped. He took up jogging in the big yard they have at home and stopped.
His biggest worry is that his weight increase has affected his confidence and oratory skills, major disasters as he is into debate and public speaking. I have also been approached by a friend who I think is big boned and is mistaking that for being overweight.
The Body Mass Index is calculated as: Body Mass Index equals the weight of an individual in kilograms divided by the square of height. If the Body Mass Index equals 25 to 29,9 one is said to be overweight and if it is over 30, one is said to be obese.
In my opinion I think that when we asses our weight, there is need to consider our skeletal structure. This is because the skeletal structure is a serious contributing factor as to how much we weigh.
Some people have thick bones, some of us have average-sized bones and others have tiny bones. I am sure this determines the bone density and this is something that I think the height and weight method used in determining body mass index does not take into consideration. Being big naturally does not imply one is overweight or obese.
A naturally big skeletal structure requires a relatively large amount of meat to make up the skeletal muscles to move the big bones.
The human being has about seven hundred skeletal muscles that are attached to and have to move two hundred and six bones.
In this case, I will take the reader’s word for it that he is overweight, as he is unhappy about his body image. It is a good thing that he is aware of the situation he is in. What he needs is the motivation to stick to an exercise routine.
The first thing that I would prescribe would be that it would be wise to use a trainer and there is need to set up your own targets every year to motivate yourself to work harder.
Psychologists regard motivation as the fuel that pushes us to take part in rigorous physical activities. You also need to find out exactly what physical activities you enjoy the most.
In some cases individuals have no inclination to do physical activities at all. In such case you have no choice you just have to do something.
Rope in somebody close to you if you can, a brother, sister, spouse etc, but do not depend on them entirely. You need to surround yourself with the right kind of enhancers, that is, people who can positively influence you to exercise and eat right.
I think the main purpose for an enhancer is honest feedback and encouragement. When an enhancer is waiting for you, are more likely to stick to a programme. An enhancer does not need to have more knowledge than you.
When I was involved in bodybuilding competition, I would regularly ask my wife for feedback. Although she is no an expert, she would honestly note negative or positive changes in her own layman terms. That would be enough for me to analyse and decode what she noted and I would think of how to correct the situation if the feedback was negative. The fact that she did not sugar coat her opinions made her a valuable critic.
For motivation there are other things that can assist, for example hang your heroes’ pictures and motivational speeches on the wall in your bedroom, also hang your pictures in a sequence that shows how you are progressing.
Your mission statement should be included, for example: “To exercise 5 days per week. To eat well. To loose 10kg in 2016.” Stick to your promises. Do not keep your intentions to yourself; let everyone who is close to you know about your aspirations. They may assist you to attain you goals.
Your family members could ask if you are sticking to your routine. They could discourage you from eating the wrong foods. They could also provide feedback on how you are changing.
Most of the time we stop doing exercises because we do not see any change and we lack direction, so feedback is important. After all who does not like positive feedback? We all enjoy basking in positive comments when we do well. We like our efforts to be recognised despite the fact that we are doing it for ourselves.
Working out in environments where there are other people with similar aspirations can help as positive vibes can be infectious.
But if you want to do it alone then there are other options you have to consider. You can enjoy a variety of exercises in your yard. You can put a punching bag in your yard which you could hit anyhow, without any style at all.
An exercise bike can help. If one does not like weights calisthenics will do. These are exercises that you can do using your own body weight. There so many exercises one can do. Just make sure you exercise the whole body. You just need someone to show you then you can do them by yourself that is if you feel you do not need a trainer.
You definitely need an organised routine that you have to follow, and targets which you have to strive to beat to make the whole thing interesting.
You also need an audience to cheer you on, especially the people you love. It does not have to be a lonely journey.
Make exercise a priority; since being overweight is greatly affecting you, it is important. You need to carry out your business with confidence.
Much depends on how you feel about yourself in how you impact on others despite the fact that other people might not care about how you look.
Exercising and looking well builds confidence, that is why we should strive to look good for ourselves first. You have to invest time and resources into your well being. We spend fortunes on clothes to look good why do we hesitate to invest on the physique that we are covering with expensive material?
Time management is also important. Try to exercise at the times you have set for yourself, but do not spend more time than you allocated for it. This is usually the case when you train with partners. You will then feel like you are spending all your life in the gym and begin to miss workouts.
Think about how you are improving the qual-ity of your life, boosting your immune system, warding off the diseases such as non communicable diseases like cancer, diabetes, etc
For one to stick to an exercise routine there is need to self-motivate by self initiating in the regulation of one’s actions; you realise what you want to do and you plan how to do it. This means no one has to tell you should lose weight you should know it yourself. No one should impose an activity for you to take part in. No one imposes a trainer on you, you select one for yourself; doctors do not move around inviting the sick to their surgeries.
Self initiation means you are involved but you just do not go through the motions as instructed by a trainer. You know what, how and why you are doing what you doing in order to enjoy the workouts. Enjoy the camaraderie associated with the gyms. Share the energy with others.
If you are exercising outdoors connect with the environment enjoy the scenery and the cool air. Be focused, concentrate, enjoy the experience and derive pleasure from moving towards accomplishing your goals.
[email protected]. Innocent Choga is a six time National Bodybuilding Champion with international experience. He is studying for a science degree in Physical Education and Sport
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