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Showing posts with label fitness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fitness. Show all posts
Sunday, 26 April 2015
ICAN2 Women's Health Event
with
Friday, 24 April 2015
Be Fit London: Women's Health and Fitness Festival
Be Fit London: Women's Health and Fitness Festival
An event you wont want to miss!!! Get whipped into shape, Learn from Wellness experts, Free Nutritional checks, Live Cookery Demos, Restorative sports Massages and a Performance and Recovery Clinic.
We would like to give our viewers the chance to attend this prestigious event for women the likes of which have never been done before, bringing together high quality brands that together provide the overall health and fitness solution you need.
The UK's best-kept fitness secret
Imagine beating the stop watch. Imagine strength. Imagine confidence. Imagine 15,000 women becoming healthier and happier. Join the movement.
The likes of Ankh Rah Ltd high quality food supplements will be teaming up with Ex-Olympic champion and Ambassador for the 2012 Olympic Games Tessa Sanderson and Kangen Water in London.
For 3 days, Be:Fit London will take over the Business Design Centre to equip women with the tools to ditch the fads and become healthier and happier.
With everything you need to upgrade your lifestyle under one roof, you’ll train with the UK’s master trainers in our bespoke fitness studio, learn from the capital’s top wellness, nutrition and health experts, meet Olympic icons and discover over 125 hand picked premium brands.
Ankh Rah Ltd will exhibiting at the event, providing you with the Highest Quality in natural nutritional supplements including our Award Winning High Quality Moringa Leaf Powder, amongst others.
Ankh Rah Ltd will be attending this event. We will be at the Tessa Sanderson Foundation Stand #F91, come and meet us.
The UK's only Health and Fitness Festival for Women, tickets starting at £18 for more info or to book your ticket now visit;
Sunday, 29 March 2015
Fitness Differences Between the Sexes
Dorene Internicola
When it comes to fitness, experts say men generally want to be bulkier and women want to be trimmer and everyone wants to do what they are good at.
That’s why as more women tackle brawny boot camps and men seek flexible peace on the yoga mat, crossing traditional gender lines, intelligently, can be a good idea.
“Women want to lose body fat, men want hypertrophy (bulk),” said Geralyn Coopersmith, national director of the Equinox Fitness Training Institute.
There are also hormonal, structural and body composition differences between the sexes, said Coopersmith, who trains the personal trainers for the chain’s fitness centers.
“So if they’re both training for a marathon they’ll train in very similar ways but we’ll look out for different things.”
Women’s wider hips leave them more prone to knee injuries, while men, pound for pound, will always have more lean body tissue.
“Technically the man is more fit in that regard,” she said.
It’s harder for women to tackle extreme workouts, such as Crossfit or P90X, Coopersmith said, but they can do it.
“They’re not going to beat the men but will probably get pretty good at it and get very fit,” she said, adding that too many young, healthy women don’t challenge themselves enough.
Gender Fitness Differences — Spotting the Trends
Dr. Michele Olson, an exercise physiologist with the American College of Sports Medicine said while everyone needs aerobic, strength and flexibility, the activities needed to achieve it can be very different, depending gender and age.
“In the early years women need to focus on bones and men on aerobics,” said Olson, a professor at the Auburn University Montgomery Human Performance Lab, in Alabama.
She added that research shows it’s important for younger women to take on activities with sufficient impact, such as jogging, jumping rope or step aerobics, at least 20 minutes twice a week, to develop good bone density.
“Bone density can fail women in their 40’s,” said Olson, “while men tend to have robust bones until very late in life.”
She added that heart health is especially important for men, who are plagued with heart disease at a younger age. They need to focus on the correct exercises for the heart, including low-impact cardio exercises like bicycling or swimming.
Women at any age should lift weights, she said, adding interval-style training is more efficient in burning the mid-belly fat women tend to store after menopause.
“It doesn’t have to be a boot camp. You can do it on a treadmill by adjusting speed or incline at one-minute intervals,” she explained.
As men age, their lack of flexibility catches up with them, but estrogen has made the tendons of women more elastic.
“Women and men both play to their strengths,” she said. “Even as children, athletes naturally select what they feel they’re good at.”
Connecticut-based fitness instructor Ellen Barrett believes the genders require different fitness formulas.
Even a simple bicep curl might not work for a woman, whose range of motion is generally greater, said Barrett.
Super-intense, military-style workouts and long-distance running are among the activities Barrett feels are made for men, while Pilates and yoga are so much more woman-friendly.
Barrett said when she attends a yoga class with her husband “it’s like a tale of two cities.”
“I feel like I’ve had a massage,” she explained. “My husband has to recover.”
Saturday, 17 January 2015
This Inspiring Fitness Video Celebrates Real Women Working Out (Yes!)
BY EMI BOSCAMP
A new video, which features a bunch of sweaty women busting their butts outside, at the gym, on the field, and on the court, has gone viral. Why? It could be because any video that plays "Get Ur Freak On" by Missy Elliott in the background is bound for success. Or, as a more likely option, it's incredibly inspiring.
The women are of all shapes and sizes, and they're determined to get into shape. And that doesn't mean they're trying to get stick-thin. They're striving for health. They want to get their blood pumping, to sweat, and as one can tell by the look in their eyes, they're not apologizing for it.
The video opens with the text "I jiggle therefore I am," which sets the tone for the entire campaign.
And get this: The video wasn't created as an attempt to sell you anything. Instead, it's message to all women around the world that it's perfectly normal and acceptable to have some some jiggle happening as you work out.
The campaign, called This Girl Can, was created by Sport England, a U.K. government agency. The agency did some research and found that 75% of women want to be more active, but they don't because of a "fear of judgment." So they figured that the best way to get women to feel comfortable working out would be to make a video with realistic-looking women — dimpled legs and all — who look powerful, strong, and most importantly, proud.
With sassy one-liners like "Sweating like a pig, feeling like a fox," "I kick balls, deal with it" and "Damn right, I look hot" popping up throughout the video, the message is clear: This is what real workouts look like. There's nothing glamorous about them — no makeup, no perfect hairdos, no uniform body type.
Exercise may not be "pretty," but it's necessary. You've got to keep your body moving in order to stay healthy. And no one can judge that — no matter what you look like. So keep kicking asses, ladies.
Watch the video below to get inspired:
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-17099/this-inspiring-fitness-video-celebrates-real-women-working-out-yes.html?utm_campaign=recommendation&utm_medium=popular&utm_source=feature
A new video, which features a bunch of sweaty women busting their butts outside, at the gym, on the field, and on the court, has gone viral. Why? It could be because any video that plays "Get Ur Freak On" by Missy Elliott in the background is bound for success. Or, as a more likely option, it's incredibly inspiring.
The women are of all shapes and sizes, and they're determined to get into shape. And that doesn't mean they're trying to get stick-thin. They're striving for health. They want to get their blood pumping, to sweat, and as one can tell by the look in their eyes, they're not apologizing for it.
The video opens with the text "I jiggle therefore I am," which sets the tone for the entire campaign.
And get this: The video wasn't created as an attempt to sell you anything. Instead, it's message to all women around the world that it's perfectly normal and acceptable to have some some jiggle happening as you work out.
The campaign, called This Girl Can, was created by Sport England, a U.K. government agency. The agency did some research and found that 75% of women want to be more active, but they don't because of a "fear of judgment." So they figured that the best way to get women to feel comfortable working out would be to make a video with realistic-looking women — dimpled legs and all — who look powerful, strong, and most importantly, proud.
With sassy one-liners like "Sweating like a pig, feeling like a fox," "I kick balls, deal with it" and "Damn right, I look hot" popping up throughout the video, the message is clear: This is what real workouts look like. There's nothing glamorous about them — no makeup, no perfect hairdos, no uniform body type.
Exercise may not be "pretty," but it's necessary. You've got to keep your body moving in order to stay healthy. And no one can judge that — no matter what you look like. So keep kicking asses, ladies.
Watch the video below to get inspired:
Tuesday, 6 January 2015
7 Exercises Fitness Experts Wish You Would Stop Doing
The gym can be an intimidating place for the inexperienced. But in some cases, it's the overly confident gym-goer to be wary of. Fitness fanatics don't always take the time to reevaluate their routine, learn new techniques or prioritize health and safety.
Try as they might to set the record straight, fitness experts can't be everywhere at all times, dispelling efficacy myths or correcting form. That's why we decided to ask them to share the fitness pet peeves they're tired of seeing. Here, seven exercises they wish you'd stop doing:
1 CrunchesAntonio_Diaz via Getty Images
"Here's why crunches don't really work that well and are actually dangerous: Imagine your spine is a credit card. In the same way that repeatedly flexing and extending a credit card will eventually lead to wearing out of the card, repeatedly performing the crunching motion can put a lifetime of damaging strain on your back.
You've probably been taught that if you're going to pick a heavy object off the ground and you don't want to hurt your spine, you should bend at the knees and not at the back. But anytime you do a crunch or a sit-up, you're bending at the back -- over and over and over again!"
--Ben Greenfield, certified strength and conditioning coach and sports nutritionist, and HuffPost blogger2 The Seated Hip Abductor/Adductor MachineGetty Images
"It's not super-effective to just target those smaller muscle groups and, quite frankly, most people I see on that machine are talking with a friend or reading a book... not really paying attention.
A better option: Get more bang for your buck and do lunges -- walking lunges, cross-behind lunges, step-ups -- you will engage and use your inner and outer thighs, while also training your whole leg and functional movement."
--Chris Freytag, national fitness expert, author and HuffPost blogger3 Behind-The-Head Lat PulldownKarl Weatherly via Getty Images
"The move I think is not beneficial and possibly harmful is the behind-the-neck lat pulldown done on gym equipment.
It requires you to have very flexible shoulders, and if you don't, you can impinge your shoulder and suffer great pain in your rotator cuff. Most trainers now recommend pulling the bar down in front of the shoulders, which still has you using your lats but in a safer way."
--Ramona Braganza, celebrity trainer and founder of 321 Fitness4 American Kettlebell Swings (If You're Not Ready For Them)Brian Steele via Getty Images
"I am always hesitant of the American kettlebell swing. This can be a great move, but only if done properly. The traditional kettlebell swing is the Russian kettlebell swing, where the athlete moves a kettlebell from just below the groin up to around a 90-degree angle to the torso. This movement is a power-producing, dynamic movement that is beneficial to the stay-at-home mom or the elite athlete. All of the power is generated from the hips and this exercise utilizes almost every muscle in the entire body.
The American kettlebell swing has the same start point as the Russian kettlebell swing, but it ends with the kettlebell overhead. When a kettlebell is in the overhead position, I see lots of people who overextend their backs to compensate for the weight. This is also seen when someone is fatiguing. This can be fixed by mobilizing the shoulder girdle and the thoracic spine, as well as by scaling the movement to a lighter weight or less repetitions.
You should only complete American kettlebell swings if you have proper core stabilization at the top of the lift, as well as solid shoulder mobility. If done improperly, this can lead to back and shoulder injuries."
--Collette Stohler, author of The Intuitive Athlete, and HuffPost blogger5 Curls In The Squat RackPredrag Vuckovic via Getty Images
"People need to understand that it is not alright to curl in the squat rack. This is the greatest gym etiquette offense of all and a recurring joke/point of rage amongst experienced gym-goers. You can literally curl anywhere. The weight for curls is relatively light. You could put the weight on the ground and easily pick it up. If you're squatting, you need the rack. You have to put the weight up high so you can comfortably take it out to start your set. The weight compared to most other exercises is much higher, and you need to have the safety/spot bars available in case something goes wrong during the exercise.
If you're curling in the squat rack, you should probably stop because you just might be aggravating the exact person you don't want to get upset, which just might make the squat rack curl the most unsafe exercise to perform of all."
--Pat Davidson, Ph.D., director of training methodology at Peak Performance in New York City6 The Leg Extension MachineWavebreakmedia Ltd via Getty Images
"I'm a firm believer in challenging the body with free weight and bodyweight-based exercises, as opposed to using standardized machines. Machines are not as 'one size fits all' as they seem, so more often than not, you aren't able to perform the given exercise from a natural position. When it comes to the leg extension machine specifically, it relies on a non-functional movement (we don't replicate that motion in our daily lives). It also places more stress than necessary on the back of the kneecap, which can cause problems not only for those with existing knee pain, but also others who are predisposed to such issues. There are so many more dynamic ways to work the quads (the only muscle the leg extension machine works) that activate other muscles in the legs and core, as well as create a better sense of body awareness when learning proper form!"
--Alena Hall, HuffPost Third Metric Fellow and certified personal trainer7 The Smith Machine"The Smith machine does all of the balancing and stabilizing for you. Due to the single plane, unnatural and fixed motion, using the Smith machine does not allow you to recruit the smaller, surrounding, stabilizing muscles. This takes away the functionality of the exercises and you isolate large muscle groups. Go from squatting with a Smith machine to the motion in a real-life situation -- like lifting a heavy object off of the floor -- and you have the potential to seriously injure yourself.
[The] smooth balance and fixed motion can also make you believe you can lift more weight than you should be. Continue to use the Smith machine and you will get very strong in exactly one plane of motion, which would be great if there was only one plane of motion. Over time you can develop over-use injuries depending on which exercises you are doing with the Smith machine.
The takeaway: Learn proper form with free weights. Strive to be as symmetrical as possible to avoid injuries and build up to heavier weights safely and with the appropriate amount of time."
--Alison Peters, NYU Langone Medical Center exercise physiologist
Monday, 10 November 2014
MC10 takes the guesswork out of fitness with wearable sensors
by Billy Steele
There's no denying that the wearable craze is upon us, whether we like it or not. MC10 is quite familiar with employing sensors to deliver info on training and athlete performance, and it's looking to do even more. If you'll recall, the outfit was behind the Checklight -- developed alongside Reebok -- for monitoring blows to the head and the potential for concussions. Now the company is working on a sticker that collects data, and more importantly, isn't confined to a specific location -- like your wrist. So, just what's the advantage to compiling the loads of info that your body generates? Well, there are quite a few really.
First, there's the unobtrusiveness of wearing a Biostamp sticker rather than a bulkier gadget on your wrist or clipped elsewhere. This sensor can be worn 24 hours a day, collecting all of data that your body gives off, from how well you slept to hydration levels and more. There's also the potential for dialing in the perfect amount of training. Athletes, and us regular folks too, struggle with knowing when things have gone too far on a run or at the gym, and wearable tech is poised to help get that part of the equation just right. Until now, recovering from an injury was mostly determined by how you felt, but there's potential to know when you're 100 percent based on numbers from pre-injury performance. Hitting the court again when fully recovered will certainly cut down on the potential for re-injury, too.
"The consumer is going to expect that if you say a device can do something, that it does it accurately," says MC10's Isaiah Kacyvenski. He hits on a key stumbling block for a lot of existing devices: the ability to provide accurate measurement. Once that hurdle has been conquered and durability is put to the test, taking the guesswork out of all aspects of training is the goal across the board for MC10. What's more, think about the potential uses for all of the data. Scenarios like contract negotiations and boosting real-time viewing for fans or fantasy football addicts with detailed metrics posted instantly alongside the regular in-game numbers. It may sound a bit far fetched, but the NFL is already using RFIDs to track speed and other quite specific metrics.
Tons of super high-tech equipment exists to measure aspects of performance, but it's about bringing the ability to learn from the data to everyone, not just athletes with access to a facility full of expensive machines. "What we want to do is democratize the lab," Kacyvenski explains. And he's getting insight from the likes of Grant Hill and Andrew Luck to gauge what's useful. In the end, that likely means we'll all be able to fine-tune our fitness regimens with a lot fewer injuries thanks to a lot more insight.
Friday, 22 August 2014
7 Keys To A Peak Performance Life
by Bob Choat
About 20 years ago I met John Wooden, former coach of the UCLA basketball team that won 10 national titles. He explained to me of always giving your best in life. To me, that is one of major keys to peak performance. When we can do that, then success in any endeavor will truly come to us.
There are many benefits towards reaching a level of peak performance. Not only will you become more successful in whatever you do, you will also become happier, fitter and healthier.
Being able to stay at peak won’t happen all the time. At the beginning it will take some effort. Most people will find it quite difficult. This is especially true of those that having being living their life at a mediocre level. When I say mediocre, I mean from where you started to where you’re at now. I know that many people started at a baseline that is lower than the average and then rose higher due to the efforts they made. Others started higher and then went down, despite being given all the advantages early in life.
Peak performance in any area of life can happen. It can also happen across the board, though much more difficult. That’s the reason the highest performers tend to stay in one arena and not in every arena. Still, bringing in a little to each area is doable. And when you enlist the keys I’ll be explaining to you, then it’s really doable.
The 7 keys to having a peak performance life are….
Having a vision or imagination.
When we can imagine something, like a dream, then we are able to strive to make it happen. Whether it’s in business, relationships, sports competition, fitness and so forth….the ability to see the possibilities give rise to purpose. Today, I see a lack of vision in many people. It could be that the stressors of today’s world has gotten to them. Many of my fellow Baby Boomers have long let go of their dreams. They more than likely “got stuck in the rut of life.” Only those who have kept true have kept going in realizing their dreams and goals, just as they did when they were younger. One thing that I am happy about are many Millennials. While some of my generation may believe they are the “ME” generation, I see how many of them actually have the visions that others have lost.
Being mindful and aware.
When we get lost in the anxiety of the future, then we’ve lost on being able to perform at a peak level. Peak only happens in the present moment. And part of this being in the present occurs in a FLOW state. Flow is when we are purely focused and enjoying the moment of the activity we are engaged in. It can happen in any area, whether one is an elite athlete, an amateur or an entreprenuer (Jackson, et. al., 2001). We are being challenged enough so it’s not boring and not too much where it creates anxiety. We are simply being and not really thinking (except inside of the activity). This same concept is also known as “being in the zone” (Young and Pain, 1999).
Be a person of consistent action.
Action makes things happen. Being consistent in whatever action you take is important. Here’s one thing about action, don’t just do it for its own sake. It’s about taking the right action consistently. The fly that is trying to get outside by flying into a window is taking consistent action, but to no avail. Only if it knew that the door next to it was open would it be able to take the right action. If something doesn’t happen due to the action you take, then make an adjustment. Life is about a continuous amount of adjustments in order to reach our goals and dreams.
Having grit and determination.
Angela Lee Duckworth did studies on success and grit (Perkins-Gough, 2013). She discovered that the more determined someone was towards reaching a goal, the more likely they were able to overcome any obstacle that lay before them.
Having a powerful will.
Much has been written regarding will power. While most people are unable to resist temptation due to a lack of will power, this goes along with grit and determination. Not having will power tends to lead people to get sidetracked from their goals. They opt for the short term versus the long term (that leads to true success). I’ve never seen anyone become successful overnight. The so-called overnight success most likely came from years of struggle.
Be your absolute best in health and fitness.
In an earlier post, 5 Keys to Peak Performance Living, I described the process of the physical nature of peak performance. Being physically fit allows you to perform at your best most of the time. This includes consistency in physical movement and nutrition. You’re not going to put low octane fuel into Ferrari, right? It’s the same with your body. If you want to treat it like a broken down 1972 Chevy Vega, then do it. Keeping one’s body tuned up to its absolute best is what peak performers do.
Having a good team and coach.
Every single successful professional athlete had an excellent coach and support. This happens whether they are playing a team sport or an individual one. With a good support system, you can rest assured that when you start to get down, they will help bring you back up. There is no such thing as someone being self-made. They always had some sort of help. This is true of being at your best… Being a peak performer…
Each of us has the capability to have peak performance life. We may have started at different baselines and yet, can rise above it. It does take some effort on your part. See where you are lacking and make a decision to take action. Then do it. Get help if you need to help kick-start yourself towards being your best. Believe me, I need it myself.
I wish you the best possible life. If you dare take on this challenge of being a peak performer, then live it!
http://www.curejoy.com/content/7-keys-peak-performance-life/
About 20 years ago I met John Wooden, former coach of the UCLA basketball team that won 10 national titles. He explained to me of always giving your best in life. To me, that is one of major keys to peak performance. When we can do that, then success in any endeavor will truly come to us.
There are many benefits towards reaching a level of peak performance. Not only will you become more successful in whatever you do, you will also become happier, fitter and healthier.
Being able to stay at peak won’t happen all the time. At the beginning it will take some effort. Most people will find it quite difficult. This is especially true of those that having being living their life at a mediocre level. When I say mediocre, I mean from where you started to where you’re at now. I know that many people started at a baseline that is lower than the average and then rose higher due to the efforts they made. Others started higher and then went down, despite being given all the advantages early in life.
Peak performance in any area of life can happen. It can also happen across the board, though much more difficult. That’s the reason the highest performers tend to stay in one arena and not in every arena. Still, bringing in a little to each area is doable. And when you enlist the keys I’ll be explaining to you, then it’s really doable.
The 7 keys to having a peak performance life are….
Having a vision or imagination.
When we can imagine something, like a dream, then we are able to strive to make it happen. Whether it’s in business, relationships, sports competition, fitness and so forth….the ability to see the possibilities give rise to purpose. Today, I see a lack of vision in many people. It could be that the stressors of today’s world has gotten to them. Many of my fellow Baby Boomers have long let go of their dreams. They more than likely “got stuck in the rut of life.” Only those who have kept true have kept going in realizing their dreams and goals, just as they did when they were younger. One thing that I am happy about are many Millennials. While some of my generation may believe they are the “ME” generation, I see how many of them actually have the visions that others have lost.
Being mindful and aware.
When we get lost in the anxiety of the future, then we’ve lost on being able to perform at a peak level. Peak only happens in the present moment. And part of this being in the present occurs in a FLOW state. Flow is when we are purely focused and enjoying the moment of the activity we are engaged in. It can happen in any area, whether one is an elite athlete, an amateur or an entreprenuer (Jackson, et. al., 2001). We are being challenged enough so it’s not boring and not too much where it creates anxiety. We are simply being and not really thinking (except inside of the activity). This same concept is also known as “being in the zone” (Young and Pain, 1999).
Be a person of consistent action.
Action makes things happen. Being consistent in whatever action you take is important. Here’s one thing about action, don’t just do it for its own sake. It’s about taking the right action consistently. The fly that is trying to get outside by flying into a window is taking consistent action, but to no avail. Only if it knew that the door next to it was open would it be able to take the right action. If something doesn’t happen due to the action you take, then make an adjustment. Life is about a continuous amount of adjustments in order to reach our goals and dreams.
Having grit and determination.
Angela Lee Duckworth did studies on success and grit (Perkins-Gough, 2013). She discovered that the more determined someone was towards reaching a goal, the more likely they were able to overcome any obstacle that lay before them.
Having a powerful will.
Much has been written regarding will power. While most people are unable to resist temptation due to a lack of will power, this goes along with grit and determination. Not having will power tends to lead people to get sidetracked from their goals. They opt for the short term versus the long term (that leads to true success). I’ve never seen anyone become successful overnight. The so-called overnight success most likely came from years of struggle.
Be your absolute best in health and fitness.
In an earlier post, 5 Keys to Peak Performance Living, I described the process of the physical nature of peak performance. Being physically fit allows you to perform at your best most of the time. This includes consistency in physical movement and nutrition. You’re not going to put low octane fuel into Ferrari, right? It’s the same with your body. If you want to treat it like a broken down 1972 Chevy Vega, then do it. Keeping one’s body tuned up to its absolute best is what peak performers do.
Having a good team and coach.
Every single successful professional athlete had an excellent coach and support. This happens whether they are playing a team sport or an individual one. With a good support system, you can rest assured that when you start to get down, they will help bring you back up. There is no such thing as someone being self-made. They always had some sort of help. This is true of being at your best… Being a peak performer…
Each of us has the capability to have peak performance life. We may have started at different baselines and yet, can rise above it. It does take some effort on your part. See where you are lacking and make a decision to take action. Then do it. Get help if you need to help kick-start yourself towards being your best. Believe me, I need it myself.
I wish you the best possible life. If you dare take on this challenge of being a peak performer, then live it!
http://www.curejoy.com/content/7-keys-peak-performance-life/
Friday, 18 July 2014
5 Things Naturally Fit People Do Differently
BY KRISTA STRYKER
We all know those people — the ones who never seem to have to even try to stay in shape.
The ones who get up early on a Saturday morning to work out with a smile on their face, then polish off a cookie (or two) later that day — without ever obsessing over calories or seeming to put on a single pound.
And while it may seem like they just have really good genes, whether they know it or not, naturally fit people have built up a set of habits over the years that have allowed them to stay in shape without putting in a lot of effort.
Here are 5 things naturally fit people do differently:
1. They actually enjoy staying active
If you’re one of those people who dreads every minute of your upcoming workout, it’s time to find a different approach to exercise.
Because most of the time, fit people find a way to actually enjoy — and even look forward to — their workouts.
And while that may not always mean they’re excited to do 100 burpees on any given day, it does mean that they like the feeling of being fit and value that more than their desire to sit on the couch.
If you really dread exercise, the problem may be with your workout, not you. Everyone enjoys doing different things — I used to hate working out when I thought running was the only way to stay in shape, but ever since I discovered HIIT training, I can hardly take a day off from my workouts (because I actually enjoy them!).
2. They don’t diet.
Have you ever known someone in really great shape who was constantly trying out every new fad diet?
Yeah, me either.
Because for the most part, fit people don’t diet — they make healthy eating a part of their lifestyle.
Ultimately, the key to staying fit and eating healthy is to learn to listen to your body. What makes you feel good and keeps you feeling full and energized throughout the day?
Learn to answer these questions for yourself, and you’ll soon be on the road to embracing healthy eating as a lifestyle — not following every new diet that comes along.
3. They spend time with other fit people.
You know that saying, “you are what you eat?” Well, you are who you eat with (and socialize with) as well.
Just think about it: if all your friends are constantly eating fast food and choosing sedentary activities instead of active ones, what do you think you’re going to do? Probably eat junk and sit around all day too.
On the other hand, if your friends are into healthy cooking, and enjoy doing active things like going for bike rides or playing tennis for fun, you’re probably going to join in and be more active as a result.
This may be tough at first if you have old friends with unhealthy habits, but you can try and encourage them to be healthy too with small changes to your usual activities — and you can always try and meet some new more active, health-minded friends as well.
4. They prioritize their sleep.
If you still think being fit is only about how often you work out, you need to think again. Because one of the top things fit people do to stay healthy and fit isn’t exercise-based at all — it’s getting enough sleep.
Not only does sleep give you the energy you need to work out consistently, it also helps regulate your metabolism, repair your muscles, boost your athletic performance and more. Try and get at least 7-8 hours a night.
5. They don’t try to be “perfect.”
Sure, there’s that rare person that refuses even a single bite of dessert in order to stay lean and actually seems to be OK with it. But most of us need to reward ourselves with a treat sometimes in order to keep our sanity.
Giving yourself permission to enjoy your favorite treat now and then — whether it's something as simple as a latte or even a chocolate chip cookie — will ensure you don’t feel bitter about your healthy diet (then go crazy and binge on all the things you feel like you're missing out on).
The same is true with your workouts — if you can tell your body is asking for a day off even when you hadn't planned on taking one, give yourself the rest your body needs, and refuse to feel guilty because of it.
Seek balance in both your eating habits and your workouts, and you'll be a healthier, happier and fitter person as a result.
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