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How you 'should' measure progress...
Let’s say you want to lose weight. You and I both know that the easiest way to measure if we are successful is to weigh ourselves. Once at the start and then during our fitness journey. If the weight on the scales is down then we have made progress, happy days. But what if it’s not? Does that mean we haven't made progress?
Many people will use the weighing scales as ‘the number 1’ measure for weight loss, but it’s not that simple. Here are some facts about weight and about weighing scales:
- Weighing scales are not always accurate.
- Your weight will fluctuate daily, up to 1kg, sometimes more.
- The time of day can effect your reading.
- Your stress levels, hydration levels and sleep can impact your weighing scale reading.
- The scales don’t show body composition, just overall weight.
I agree that if you are trying to lose weight and the scales are down, you have made progress. But I also believe that if the scales haven’t moved, you have made progress. Unfortunately, in society today, we put extra pressure on ourselves to achieve a specific outcome goal, that we forget about the process goals along the way. We overlook the little changes we make because we want instant gratification so even when we have a good week of training, eating healthy, going to bed early, citing back on alcohol and take aways etc, if the number on the scales hasn’t moved, we believe we have failed and haven't made progress. When that’s not even the case.
The weighing scales are just one way to measure. Below I will share with you some of the ways I measure my own progress and how my clients measure their progress.
- You exercise when you say you are going to exercise. This might not seem like much but it is a commitment you make with yourself. You need to hold yourself accountable so look at the week ahead and plan the days you will exercise then commit to that.
- You improve your daily step count. Walking is underrated as it is easy to do, will burn calories and improve your fitness. If last week you managed 6,000 steps a day and this week you did 6,200 steps a day, that’s progress.
- You have more energy. When we exercise we release stress and in return release endorphins, which make us feel better but also make the body feel more awake by increasing oxygen circulation.
- You cut back on the amount of take aways, alcohol, chocolate or bad foods you eat during the week. Cutting back rather than cutting out enables you to have your fix but you must control and moderate this.
- You are getting stronger in the gym. This could be that you are lifting heavier weight, completing more sets or achieving more reps. If you focus on muscle activation and execute resistance exercises at the right tempo with the right technique, you will see some serious changes.
- You sleep better. The body will be more tired from exercise but you should also get better quality sleep in terms of REM and deep sleep. Just like walking, the amount of sleep you get each night is underrated and can make a big difference to your fitness and health goals.
- You fit into your clothes better. How your clothes feel and how confident you feel wearing them is a great way to measure if the training you are doing is working.
- You have a routine. You know what days you will exercise and when you will have a rest day. Like the first point, having a routine encourages habits and commitment. Just make sure the habits are good ones.
- You have an increased appetite and feel more hungry. This is what we want as it shows our body is utilising the foods we eat for energy and we are efficient in burning the calories we consume.
- You enjoy what you do. Too many people use exercise as a consequence of eating badly when it should be a habit that we do, regardless of what we eat. If you enjoy doing group exercise classes because of the social element or enjoy going to the gym, continue to do that as you will see positive changes in the long term if you enjoy it.
Those are 10 ways in which we ‘should’ be measuring progress, so don’t get too obsessed with the scales because ultimately, if we are ticking off the points above, we should see our weight on the scales come down but we should focus on those first.
Challenges & Home workouts
How to stay fit when the gyms are closed...
These are unprecedented times. The world is on lockdown as we try to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
The gyms are closed and we have to stay at home to stay safe. But that does't mean we can't exercise. Besides, if we didn't exercise, we would lose our gains. We would lose all that hard work that we put in before and I for one, will not want to do that.
I've been busy during Quarantine, putting together "Home Workouts" you can do, using little or no equipment.
Why?
Because it helps people stay sane. It helps people stay active which then makes them more productive.
The "Burj Khalifa" Challenge
Standing at 828m tall, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the worlds tallest building. It has 163 floors and your challenge (and mine) is to run up it.
I did this challenge (see image above) in my apartment building. It is 9 floors high so I had to run from Ground floor to 9th floor, then walk back down for a total of x18 times (plus a one more floor)
It's a great challenge mentally and physically. However, if you live in a taller building, you have an advantage and it is less tedious or repetitive. Give it a try and let me know how you get on.
As well as doing challenges, I have been filming live workouts each day which have been posted on the instagram page @nicky__fitness
Home workouts
We filmed and posted 84 Bodyweight exercises in 14 days for you to follow.
Then people started to purchase their own gym equipment to use at home, so we decided to help encourage people to use that equipment, by showing them what exercises and workouts they can do.
We filmed another 64 exercises with home equipment in 16 days, which you can copy and do at home.
All videos are posted on @nicky__fitness instagram page.
The reason WHY you are not achieving your GOALS
There is no secret formula to success...
When it comes to health and fitness, many people think they are being good, but actually they could be doing a lot better, just by listening to their body. Sometimes good is ok, it’s average. For example, you might be exercising regularly, eating the right foods, cutting down on smoking and drinking alcohol, getting up earlier to go to the gym…which are all great by the way, keep doing that. But you might still not be achieving your goals. WHY?
Last months article spoke about BMR which is our Basel Metabolic Rate and RDA which is our Recommended Daily Allowance. Both are key if you want to improve your nutrition and both are tailored for every individual. Understanding these two factors will have a big impact on your health. But there are other factors which contribute to our success.
This months article will get you to think. First of all, I have a little quiz for you to do. I want you to choose which word you believe, is the most important out of the 3 questions below.
- Nutrition or Exercise?
- Sleep or Productivity?
- Mindset of Performance?
I will reveal the correct answer in next months article, so stay tuned. Going back to the reason WHY. From my experience as a Personal Trainer, having worked in the fitness industry for over 10 years, in management and now as a Trainer and Tutor, we often hear people talk about question 1 above, Nutrition and Exercise. People will say Nutrition is 70% important, Exercise is 30%. You need to be in a calorie deficit for the body to break down and burn fat. You need to track your calories and macronutrient breakdown of Carbohydrates, Proteins and Fats etc. I’m not disagreeing with the above, but there is more to it.
Think about the amount of times you have started a diet. Monitoring what you eat, trying to be good by cutting down on big portion sizes. Eating salads for lunch, not having dessert after dinner. You need a fair amount of discipline to do this and to sustain this mindset. More often than not, we start this but we slip back into old habits and routines, which ultimately affects our goal and our health. Before you know it, you’re back to square one again.
Then there’s exercise. From my previous articles, you will have read that this doesn't have to be running on the treadmill for 30 minutes. It doesn't have to be boring, it just has to elevate your heart rate and increase your core temperature to burn calories. Think about how many times you have joined a gym, gone out for a jog, started a training programme but then lost interest and stopped. Before you know it, you’re back to square one again.
The key ingredient
One thing which connects Nutrition and Exercise together is sleep. I’ve listened to a lot of podcasts lately from Professors and Doctors, who say that optimal sleep duration is 8 hours a night. When we sleep, our body is healing. Muscles are recovering, the nervous system is relaxing, the digestive system is breaking down food, the endocrine system is regulating hormones and so on.
If we don’t get enough sleep, we are tired. Our stress levels increase, we become more hungry, quick tempered, our performance drops, there is a decrease in our hydration and energy levels. So here’s what I want you to do. Keep on top of your Nutrition and your Exercise but monitor your sleep. It will make a big difference to your body and you achieving your goals.
Visit my Instagram page @nicky__fitness for more information.
Best wishes!
Nicky Fitness
EID Fitness Tips
Where to go from here...
Nicky Fitness would like to wish all clients, friends and families of Dubai EID Mubarak. Best wishes for the year ahead!
Even though it is still summer time and extremely hot outside, you probably have a Fitness or Health goal you want to achieve?
Exercising should be fun. You should first start with bodyweight exercises before you do resistance machines or free weights. This is important because it develops a basic level of strength. If you are heavy, your bodyweight may be hard, therefore I will give you alternatives tips which you can do.
Start small, then build from there...
My Top 5 Bodyweight exercises are shown below. For more fitness tips, keep checking out our page. You can follow these Bodyweight exercises after you have done your warm up and mobility exercises. Once you are warmed up, proceed with the following -
1. Squats
Start with feet slightly wider than hip width apart. Turn your toes out a little and keep your chest up. From there, bend your knees whilst keeping your back in neutral spine (not curved) then push through your heels to stand back up. Try to do this 10 times. Rest and then repeat for 3 sets = 30 reps. You should feel this working the muscles in your legs. Easier option is to do half range reps so don’t go down too low.
2. Push Ups
On the floor, facing down, extend your arms and hold that position. From there, bend your arms to bring your upper body closer to the floor. Then push back away from the floor. There are two options, number 1 is to perform this exercise on your knees. Number 2 is to perform this exercise on your toes. Aim to do this 10 times. Rest and repeat 3 sets = 30 reps. You should feel this in your upper body, mainly the chest, triceps on back of the arm and front of the shoulder. Easier option is to do push ups on your knees so they are resting on the ground for better stability.
3. Sit Ups
Also on the floor, but this time in a lying down position facing the sky. Bend both knees and keep your shoulders flat on the ground. From here, place both hands on the top of your thigh. Then aim to slide your fingers to the top of your knees, in a sit up position. Try not to twist your spine but keep it straight as you reach forward. Do this 10 times. Rest and repeat for 3 sets = 30 reps. You should feel this working your abdominals in your stomach. Easier option is to start with your hands lower down on your thigh then work up to reaching past the knee.
4. Lunges
This challenges your balance, whilst working your legs. You need to set up with a split stance, one leg infront of the other. Make sure both feet are facing forward and hold still. Then bend your back knee to the floor, whilst keeping your back straight and posture up right. You can start doing half reps as the easier option, then build up to full range where you go all the way down. Aim for 10 reps on each side = 20 in total then repeat for 3 sets = 60 reps.
5. Plank
Probably one of the most dreaded exercises…why? Because it’s hard and holding your body flat in a still position for a period of time can be uncomfortable. Start in a lying position facing the floor. Then rest on your elbows with your legs straight so you are up on your toes. From here, keep your back flat in a ‘plank’ position. Try to focus on balance by holding as still as you can. You can drop down to your knees if it gets too intense. Try to do 30 seconds, then adjust the time accordingly depending on how easy or hard you find the exercise. Repeat for 3 sets.
Motivation
Find something you enjoy doing. Something that is fun and involves exercising. This could be re-living your childhood days and taking up old hobbies.
Make exercise and your health a lifestyle change!
For live updates and videos, follow @nicky__fitness on Instagram
Why does Training LEGS help with Weight Loss?
If your trying to lose weight, read this...
Gone are the old days where the traditional method to lose weight would be to run on the Treadmill or spend an hour solid doing Cardio...that's just boring!!!
Of course, it has it's benefits. By doing that you will:
- Improve your fitness
- Burn calories
- Lose Weight
- Drop Body Fat%
But in this day and age, many of us don't have the time to spend doing boring cardio. And also, if something is boring and we don't enjoy it, then we are less likely to stay focussed and keep it going.
So, if you are trying to lose weight and all your currently doing is cardio. STOP
You need to incorporate some Strength training as well. Unless you want to lose weight but look shapeless and flat like a pancake.
Legs are a big muscle group, the main muscles are the Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Gluteus Maximus, Gastrocnemius & Soleus.
Training legs will increase your heart rate. This is good as it will help get the blood pumping to the muscles and it will burn calories. You need to focus on technique, speed of movement and repetitions. Once you have mastered this, then you can increase the weight.
You may find that you are out of breath from doing the exercises in the video below and that's ok, do what you can and give yourself recovery time in between sets and exercises.
To lose weight, along with good Nutrition, you need to train the big muscle groups effectively. Most leg exercises are compound moves which help increase your metabolism and get you sweating, so grab your trainers and go TRAIN LEGS!
