Since my last column we have had a lot of questions from our readers about fitness and health in particular how I have sculpted my body. So this month will be all about you guys and I'll try to answer your questions as good as I know how to. Hope it helps bring some clarity to our Fitness Community and spurs you on in your workouts.
I don't believe motivation is the key to success. Neither when it comes to fitness or anything else in life. Motivation is great to get you started but it's the determination that keeps you going long after the motivation is gone.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THOSE TWO THEN?
To me motivation can be listening to music or listening to a motivational speaker, maybe a look at old photos from the beach, whatever it might be it is always a source from the outside. Determination on the other hand is what you are telling yourself when the road has become so rough that all those strong voices dreams and memories are long gone and you just want to quit and give up. This is just not worth it! That's where motivation gives up on you and it is there in that deep dark hole you can find determination, your inner strength. The refusal to quit, the refusal to give up! That is what determination is and that no one can give you. You can only find it within yourself.
DO YOU MIX UP TRAINING SESSIONS? IE GYM, SPORTS/TEAM GAMES, SWIMMING ETC.
I mix things up very much. A normal week usually contains – 2-3 sessions of Crossfit, at least 1 session of gymnastics, 1 weightlifting session and 2-3 lighter sessions with mobility, stretching and additional exercises which normally are regular gym exercises. Plus, whenever any chance is given to do something out of my comfort zone I jump at the occasion. The further away we go from what we are good at the more we grow so the more we mix things up the better we get, look and feel.
This is a new question I've never heard before!! Let's start with the worst way to lose weight and keep it of. It's believing that you can do some fantastic new diet from the mountains of Himalaya that was recently discovered by science when they studied the ancient teachings of the holy minks bla bla bla – we here so much about fad diets guys, but do not follow these as unlikely to help and you could end up putting more weight on than when you started. To lose weight is quite simple assuming that you don't have any disease that makes you overweight. You need to lose more kcal then you consume and the more calories you burn during a day the bigger the weight loss. As we are habitual creatures so are our bodies. The more we do of anything, the easier it gets for us, meaning that when it comes to exercise the more we do anything the less effort is required of our bodies hence less energy spent. So to maximise your kcal consumption you have to always make sure you are really giving it your hardest in your trainings. The focus should be on different types of cardiovascular training and strength training performed in circuits.
You should always add at least one compound movement and one explosive exercise. Compound exercises utilize multiple joints, this means maximum muscle recruitment, high nervous-system activation, and more stimulus for growth and burn, whether you're a beginner or advanced lifter.
Yes I do train every day except those days my body tells me to rest. I have learned how to listen to my body and distinguish when it is my body that needs rest or it's my head that is lazy. As a beginner you definitely don't want to train hard every day as your muscles aren't used to that much intensity and you might have trouble building muscle mass if you are training more than your body can handle. Every second day as a beginner is the perfect amount of training when it comes to strength and muscle mass gain. When it comes to cardio vascular training there is no restriction. The more the better both for your health and looks.
DO YOU HAVE "CHEAT" DAYS?
As I work with fitness and am a very active person in my work and private life I don't struggle with keeping lean. Anyhow I don't plan any cheat days – I eat more when I feel my body is out of energy and feeling a bit lower and keep my regular diet to 80% of the time. To get and stay in great shape doesn't have to be so dramatic. As long as you understand that it is a slow process where the small daily routines is the things that makes us or breaks us you are on the right path. You don't have to do perfect from the first day and you definitely don't want to do a 180 degree life change as they seldom last. It's much better to start changing one unhealthy thing every week and suddenly 3 months later you are living healthier then you thought was possible and it wasn't even hard to make the change. So less preparing and planning to start your healthy lifestyle and more doing. Start tomorrow with liquidating one unhealthy thing in your life and add one healthy. It's never the one big thing that changes your life it's all the small things added up.
1,5 year as a personal trainer at HF Nordics.