Exercise is a major part of the “Old Medicine” programme and in this post, we will talk about exercise generally, the benefits of regular physical activity and ideas of activities you may enjoy.
Hello, my name is Hanif, owner of Criterion Fit. I help men achieve varying goals in the areas of fitness and nutrition. A major part of what I do is listen to my clients in order to design gym plans that they can utilise and achieve personal goals. Exercise can take many shapes and forms from circuit training in a group setting to traditional cardio and strength training.
Pre-covid 19 there was already much talk about the increasing number of overweight and obese people in our western societies. This would only increase due to the long period in which we lived “lockdown” in the United Kingdom. Many people were encouraged to get active during this period by buying bikes, peloton subscriptions and kettlebell sets but many more decided to order from Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat.
Exercise is one of the best ways to sculpt the body although the old saying “you can’t out-train a bad diet” still remains true. Exercise is a form of physical activity and physical activity by definition is:
Any form of body movement that has a significant metabolic demand. Thus, physical activities include training for and participation in athletic competitions, the performance of strenuous occupations, doing household chores, and non-sporting leisure activities that involve physical effort. [1]
Not every client I work with has the desire to train or exercise in a traditional gym facility which is not a problem at all. I believe that we can achieve health goals in a variety of ways, some may take longer than others but the goal being attained and enjoying the journey, learning and so on are just as important as the time it takes.
There are untold benefits to regular physical activity so here are just some of the reasons why you will want to increase your fitness levels through exercise and the like:
- Lose weight
- Increase Lung Output
- Look and feel younger
- Lower Blood pressure
- Increase endurance/ stamina
- Prepare for marriage (look good on your wedding day)
- Increase in strength
- Increase flexibility and agility
Getting to the goal is what we all want, we don’t necessarily want to go through the hard days and nights of struggle to get there. But, the sooner you come to realise the journey is a part of the process and that you need to take a measured approach to get to the end goal, the sooner you’ll be gliding through the task.
The physical activity pursuit of choice is and should be totally up to you since you’ll be on the grind getting to those wins day-in and day out, not to say you won’t need assistance, coaching or advice! When starting out on a fitness journey it definitely makes sense to employ a Personal Trainer, watch some videos and seek out a coach until you can roll without training wheels.
Have you ever thought of taking up any of the following forms of fitness training/ sports?
- Gym Training (traditional cardio and weight training)
- Cross Fit
- Virtual Training (AppleTV etc)
- Rugby
- Football
- Cricket
- Cycling
- Jogging
- Martial Arts including MMA, Muay Thai, Boxing, BJJ, Taekwondo
- Tennis
- Swimming…
With the Olympics going on at the moment you should be feeling charged up and motivated to get active. If you’ve always wanted to try shotput but haven’t till now it’s as easy as googling your closest athletics team and making some enquiries. Maybe you have a disability that would make pursuing your dream a bit harder but don’t give u on yourself or the goal. Many charities and organisations such as Sports England could have the answers.
I hope you’ve enjoyed and gained some knowledge from this short article. Staying active alongside a balanced diet can help lengthen your life and increase your quality of life so you don’t need to depend on family in your later years. This life is a steady walk, not a short sprint, I advise myself first, seek the cure in good food and regular exercise. The Old Medicine is an 8-week programme that will help you tune your mindset into one that works for the long term so live long and strong.
References:
Criterion Fit 