The 10 golden rules for making a difference to your health and wellbeing

The purpose of this article is to provide readers with what is certainly common knowledge in the world of fitness and sports psychology, but would maybe not be so common in the public domain; which is where it is most urgently required. Rather than assess and discuss why this is the case and delay any further, it is time to make that knowledge public and continue the job of educating as many people as possible about physical exercise and optimising their endeavours for health and wellbeing. We have a body and that body needs maintenance in the form of exercise. It is our own personal responsibility to maintain that body whether we like it or not. Not the job of the surgeon as an extreme measure, or your horoscope or even the friend that occasionally manages to get you out of the house for a Sunday jog at the local park. And so we begin with what is possibly the most important aspect of not just fitness, but all areas of life………

1. Take ownership and responsibility

If you have ever read The Road Less Travelled by M. Scott Peck, you will undoubtedly know that an extremely important part of becoming an adult is acceptance of responsibility. When you are a child invariably most things are done for you. When you become an adult many of us either still expect people to do things for us or leave them in the hope that some else will. These can be simple things like walking past rubbish that can easily be placed in the bin that is 5 steps from it. Dealing with an urgent letter rather than leaving it as there are more pressing issues or as already mentioned- leaving things for someone else. By accepting responsibility we realise that it is our own efforts that count in achieving the things we want from life. No-one will go to work and give you the money. No-one can eat and relieve your hunger and no-one can train for you and then give you the benefits. Many of these are extremely simple concepts and ideas but it this usually the case as Descartes recognised – “you would expect the truth to be known by the few rather than the many”.

The key to this point is in taking ownership of a very simple statement-

Your fitness is your personal responsibility!

Yes you can get a personal trainer to oversee your training or attend classes or the gym so some of the work is offloaded, but you still have to make a conscious decision and effort in order to do these things as well! Don’t sit as a passive commuter on your own train looking out of the window wondering where you are going and missing all the good stops. Take control, take the driving seat and act today!

2. Set realistic, manageable and measurable goals

Ensure that your goals are specific rather than general. Statements like I would to lose weight have a specific meaning but are usually ambiguous as no other information is given. Being general, the mind does not have any specific way of quantifying them and there can also be no realistic timeline for there achievement. The result from this is usually that you state what you want but the words rarely lead to the action as it isn’t concrete. By concrete consider the 2 following examples:

a: I want to lose weight
b: I want to lose 12 kg over the next 3 months and if I can maintain my program goal of 1kg per week I can certainly manage this. I will also have a monthly review and adapt my routine and diet as required

Hopefully you have spotted the difference. The first is like going to the North Pole with no map and a blindfold. The second is doing the same journey with a map, compass, camping gear, GPS, a support team and all the right paraphernalia.

In the first instance we have a general statement that really is so general it loses any definitive meaning; one of those floating statements that disappears like smoke. It has no timeline, is not quantifiable and regardless of the intentions it is unrealistic because of the aforementioned. Like the bus driver who everyday wishes to be a millionaire and continues to drive a bus for another 40 years. In the second instance we have exactly the same scenario – someone wants to lose weight. By taking their very specific statement we can generalise or categorise it to a single outcome – weight loss. However, within this statement is also the means to achieve it. There is a quantifiable progression for achieving the goal, there is a timeline that can be checked against for progress and there is also the ability to review this program as comprising of several smaller programs that can each impact on future programs dependent on the current situation. When goals are specific we can act upon them with clarity and confidence. When they are ambiguous statements they are rarely followed up with implementation as we simply do not know where to start. We are blindfolded and have neither map, compass nor guide. Not only don’t we have a clear idea of the destination, we also have no idea how to get there.

3. assess your personal locus of control

Fully understanding the locus of control can be a very powerful tool for you and extremely beneficial. By way of a brief overview, events are either perceived as being in our control, or out of our control. We either have the ability to change them or nothing could have been other than it is. This is not just restricted to fitness but permeates every aspect of our daily lives. If the weather dictates how you feel then you have an external locus of control – things and events outside dictate how you feel and act. If you do what you do regardless of the weather and do not let it influence you then you would have an internally motivated locus of control. As you have probably worked out, the idea is to work towards strengthening the latter and removing instances of the former. If you are not in control, you are out of control. This is a very important phenomenon and in psychology leads to learned helplessness. We actually learn and convince ourselves that nothing we do can change the situation we are in – we accept it and give up. Now put this into a fitness scenario. We want to lose weight so we go to the gym. We are not exactly sure what to do so we try a new diet, do what other people do by running on the treadmill and lifting weights and 3 months later we are exactly the same as when we joined. The result is that we blame the gym for having the wrong machines and bad trainers and we quit. As well as coming back to our acceptance of personal responsibility this actually goes slightly deeper. By blaming externals you not only empower them, you relinquish yourself of any blame. You actually convince yourself that the gym let you down notwithstanding your best efforts to lose weight. Now if you knew how to lose weight and approached it from an internal locus of control you will understand that the only thing that can truly let you down is yourself. Here the problem is simply motivation and using your time wisely. The only way that you will not achieve your goals is by not doing what is required to achieve them. Namely, sitting at home rather than exercising for weight loss as defined by a specific and quantifiable routine.

The idea with the locus of control is to view the areas of your life that are heavily influenced by external factors and bring about change here. The more areas that are directly influenced by your actions and motives, the better and more in control you will feel.

4. realise that motivation is an inside job

Following from the locus of control your motivation is best driven by internal factors rather than external sources. Here you really need to assess why you want the things you want and be very honest with yourself. A huge amount of people go through life with one hand continually reaching into tomorrow chasing things that they usually don’t know why they want and don’t particularly need. When we do something for ourselves that we genuinely want we have a strong motivation for achieving it and will work towards it with effort and diligence. There is a necessity to break the general down to the specific and then commit to it with every effort we can muster. Things are not achieved with half-hearted attempts or part time effort and all we do by these methods is set and strengthen future patterns of disappointment. Furthermore, the motivation must be yours and not someone else’s. Do the things that you want to do because you want to do them and you set a pattern for greater happiness and fulfilment.

There are many techniques to help motivation. However, understanding how the mind works, you are probably not best suited to seeking help on motivation as by definition the act of seeking it clearly tells you that you already admit you lack it! As you have no problems at all with motivation consider this helpful information that you can pass on to people you meet on your journey……….. wink wink.

Being an inside job, motivation can be greatly enhanced by certain techniques and here we will cover one of the most powerful ones currently in the field of NLP. Don’t think of a pink elephant……………
Chances are your mind flashed up a picture of a pink elephant and that’s fine as the brain has great trouble processing a negative command. Kind of makes you wonder why the “don’t drink and drive” campaigns are not a glowing success, or why “don’t touch that” usually has the completely opposite effect. Now the pink elephant scenario indicates something more than just our information processing ability. We can conjure up all sorts of images and situations at will having the brains we do. This is both good and bad and we are going to focus on the bad side. The mind does not distinguish between reality and reality as it is vividly imagined. Now that is a very powerful statement and extremely educational for all areas of life. Rather than rattle on about mental processing it is probably best explained by a classic quote-

“There have been many bad things in my life, and some of them actually happened!”

As you can see, it is all too easy for the mind to convince us that what is thought is actually what is or what will be. Unfortunately far too many people are either running from yesterday or running towards tomorrow with no regard for today. What they fail to realise is that there is only ever here and now and only ever will be. Ask yourself a question: “what is wrong with this moment”. For a majority of people the shocking reality is that the answer is nothing at all. However, this tranquil realisation is soon besmote by the minds endless chattering of bills, mortgages, recession and now a credit crunch of all things- so its time to take control!

If we are continually drawn in to the mental noise then why not change the station so it works in our favour? We can sit there and worry about things and really cheer ourselves up, or we can focus on the things that are important in our life through visualisation and repetition. For example, you want to lose weight by going to the gym for 6 months. Visualise yourself training in the gym and thoroughly enjoying the workout. See yourself fitting into the clothes you want to wear. Hear the compliments from your friends and colleagues as you achieve the results you have been telling them about. Now take it one stage further; actually view it first person through your own eyes- the gym, the shopping, and the compliments. You will be surprised that you will get the same feeling by vividly imagining it to be real as if you were there doing it- it just takes practise like anything else.

5. why do people exercise but not lose weight

If we could convey one thing about physical training and weight loss it would be this and no more. If you attend a gym on a regular basis write this upon your wall and refer to it before and after every training session.

You will never burn fat unless you exercise for more than 20-30 minutes continuously

When we begin exercising, the dominant fuel source is carbohydrate. In fact, the body is so abundant with fuel that we could in theory run 2000 miles until we would deplete our reserves and die as a remnant of our former self. Not advisable but you get the point. The system burns whatever is required. If you were a marathon runner with extremely low body fat and body mass and ran on an empty stomach you would actually burn muscle as a fuel source once other options were depleted. Most training sessions that follow the normal protocol consist of the following

Warm up / stretch / cardio / weights circuit / cool down / cool down stretch

If you are after general fitness and maintaining a decent level of cardio, strength, flexibility and mobility this is ideal. Everything is getting worked and you will be all the better for it. However, with a majority of people going to the gym to lose weight this is simply the wrong approach. Like going to buy a new suit from your local chemist. Your goals dictate the way you train and should always guide your workouts. With fat loss you are looking at continuous exercise in order to begin burning fat as a fuel source. And further to this it is recommended that interval training is far superior to just plodding along as our body has a lovely tendency to adapt to the demands we place on it – good old evolution! Interval training will really get you out of your comfort zone and shock the system as your body does not know what is coming next and so cannot predictably adapt to an expected routine.

6. water – the essential ingredient

The importance of water to life cannot be overemphasised. The importance of water in exercise is fundamental to many aspects of training as we will see. Here are just a few points on how essential water is for proper daily function-

• Between 60% and 70% of an adult body is made up of water
• Without sufficient water intake you can impair every aspect of your physiology leading to excess body fat, poor muscle tone, digestive problems, increased blood toxicity, joint and muscle soreness and water retention.
• Sufficient water intake can also help weight loss as water is required to metabolise fat
• Some people are so dehydrated that the thirst mechanism is mistaken for hunger it is so weak!
• Mild dehydration can slow your metabolism by up to 3%
• Midnight hunger pangs can be eradicated by a glass of water for almost everyone
• Lack of water is the prime trigger for daytime fatigue
• Sufficient water intake can ease back and joint pain for 80% of sufferers
• A 2% drop in body water can lead to memory problems, math problems and difficulty using a computer
• Drinking 5 glasses of water a day can decrease the risk of colon cancer by 45%, it can slash breast cancer risks by 79% and you are 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer

So it might be a good idea to starting drinking some water! And how much? About half of your bodyweight in pounds into fluid ounces. If you weigh 200lbs drink 100 fluid ounces or around 3 pints. More if you exercise regularly. And don’t worry; your bladder does adjust over the thirst few weeks!

7. don’t get confused by what, when, how, why, where and who

Just do it! Good old Nike. Actually Nike is the Greek goddess of victory and personifies triumph. The key here is to understand a simple concept when you are brainstorming the above onslaught of pronouns and adverbs - any form of exercise, if done with good form and if not posing any risk is better than getting caught up with the numerous questions that invade the good intention to exercise. Going for a run, swimming, cycling, doing a gym class, training at home to a DVD or just doing bodyweight exercises in the kitchen are all great ways of keeping fit. There is no “best” way just as there are no “best” classes. Like martial arts, the tools are neutral and brought to life by the practitioner. As with your pursuit in physical exercise, you could achieve amazing results if you only performed 5 bodyweight exercises for the next year as a set circuit. Obviously the numbers would have to increase as you improve but you get the idea. Never get bogged down with the latest fad on the shopping channel or what celebrities are doing. Use your knowledge and initiative and go out there and train! It really does not matter what you do if it is done well, challenges you and you enjoy it. There are many paths to the summit!

8. see the bigger picture

Realise where your efforts will take you in the few years ahead / view your efforts as building a wall. This simple yet powerful analogy can really help to put what you are doing in perspective. You place one brick down and it means nothing to most people. Against the full picture it is hardly noticeable and so you don’t bother to place any more bricks down. Even training for a few weeks you have a few bricks in a nice line and again – so what, what’s the point as I’m really getting nowhere, and again you stop. Realise the stepping stones and the continuous actions and the rewards they bring forth. You didn’t get from 10 years old to 20 years old – you had to live out all the days in between them. The same is true for exercise and every other task that carries with it a timeline greater than a few days or week. Placing those bricks day after day you will eventually see the bigger picture emerge. It may take weeks, it may even take months, but get your head accepting this before you even begin and then you will not only not be expecting miracles but you will not be put off when you expect a temple and have a few scattered pieces of rubble to show for your efforts. All journeys start with a physical action.

9. basic foundations of fitness in a nutshell or 2

This could well be an article all by itself but we just have too much love to share so tuck in before we change our minds!

Here is an overview of basic training areas in physical exercise and tables to accompany them.

Endurance Hypertrophy Strength Power
Reps 12 – 25 8 - 12 1 – 5 1 – 2
Sets 1 – 3 3 – 4 5 - 6 3 – 6
Weight
% max 40 – 70% 70-85% 85–100% 30-45%
Rest
0 – 90 secs 45 – 90 secs 3 – 5 min 3 – 5 min

One key point to note here is that with power training we are referring more to your ability to perform a power based exercise as opposed to traditional powerlifting that would more be related to maximal strength and a very high percentage of maximal weight. In this instance power training is related to performance enhancement and the NASM OPT model of progressive training with a specific emphasis on medicine ball work and dynamic bodyweight training, combined with barbells, dumbbells and kettlebells.

When beginning an exercise routine, first ask yourself why you are doing it based on your goals and values. If you simply want to stay fit and keep in shape then a circuit of cardio followed by a weights session will do the job. Perform your warm up and stretch and then your 20 minutes of cardio and finish up with a weight circuit from the above table based on your goals, level and requirements. Endurance training can be done daily; hypertrophy can be done daily as long as you work different body parts so they get time off; strength training is similar to hypertrophy with a slight adjustment in weight and numbers and power training can also be performed daily at the lower percentage of maximum. For power in terms of lifting near your maximum weight there are several options but it is generally agreed that several days off after maximum exertion does wonders for recovery.

With a basic weight circuit consider the body as an integrated unit and focus on the larger muscle groups. For example, the following groups would constitute a full body session-

• legs
• back
• chest
• arms
• shoulders
• core

This is a very crude overview as each joint has varying planes of movement and each general muscle has numerous constituents that can be isolated. However, you do not need to get bogged down with details. With weight training the following routine is ideal-

• squat / leg press
• pull up / pull down
• bench press
• bicep curl / triceps press
• shoulder press / dumbbell raises
• any crunch action or core work

Most of the body is covered in this routine and the major push and pull joint actions are also used. As you progress you can isolate and adapt, but as a beginner not much more than this will be required for the job. Simply increase any part of the reps/sets/weight as you improve over time. You can then also expand upon the routine as required.

10. creative freedom

Last but not least: thoroughly enjoy what you do! Be creative with your workouts through the education we have provided. You know how to motivate yourself because you know the mental pitfalls that potentially interrupt and negate your training sessions. You understand how to train for the goals you want to achieve and you know that exercise done properly is always better than no exercise because you couldn’t persuade your head to let your body have a great workout! Now this is where the fun starts. By demonstrating again and again to yourself that you are fully in control of your training you begin a very powerful reward cycle – the ultimate win/win situation! You decide what you are going to do and after a certain timeframe you see the results of your efforts. The motivation here is that there is a strengthened association between action and reaction or cause and effect. The greatest part is you know that you are the integral part of this. Your efforts are rewarded with results and that motivates you to continue with higher goals and more effort in order to achieve further results all the while strengthening the association between what you do, why you do it, and the results you will eventually achieve.

Summary and a glance at obesity

As you may well have noticed, many of these points relate more to the mental rather than physical. This is a valid point as obviously exercise is a physical activity? Wrong, before exercise there is the mental decision, or indecision, or no decision to exercise. Then the possible excuses that carpet bomb our route to greater health and wellbeing and the myriad of excuses that condemn us to being another “I tried”. Most things actually happen twice, once as idea and once as real world implementation. For many things the idea is rarely followed by the necessary action to realise is. Unfortunately, more people believe in fairies than in their own ability to take control of their life.

The trick with fitness as with anything in life is to get the head right. The car is only as good as its driver and your body is no different in this respect. You are in control of what you do, when you do it and how you do it and the liberation that comes from embracing this realisation is motivation enough for anyone. We can all sit there feeling pushed around by circumstance or we can take action to change what is. And when do we do that? NOW! As a great Zen master once quoted “if not now, when?” and this is a great motto to live by. Obviously we cannot do everything at once but we can prioritise based on our values and what is important to us. Next time you get the impulse to exercise ask yourself what is stopping you from doing it right there and then; or at least within the next 30 minutes if you are out or in the middle of something important. You may be watching television and be feeling sluggish – surely exercise is better than anything that could be on the television; and be brutally honest with yourself here! It is simply assessing the options and making a choice. Not choosing is also a choice so there’s no fire escape on this one – sorry.

How happy would you be watching your grandchildren play (or even worse, your own children) knowing that you were 15 stone overweight, had a heart condition and were on medication for high blood pressure – and none if it down to medical problems, just neglect. You want more than anything to run around and play with them, swing them, lift them, carry them. Just to do what every parent on this earth wants to do with their children. The sad thing is that any sudden shock to your heart could mean you no longer see those children any more. And I make no apologies here for being 100% realistic and in your face. You cannot hide from this, or sugar-coat it or pretend it cannot be other than it is. Then consider obesity in general (also material for another article). The trend (or myth) used to be that it was something genetic. Now I am no geneticist but I have studied evolution to quite a depth and even had a small beard once. Why on earth would something in our genetic makeup so detrimental to our propagation and survival become a dominant factor for the species? This really is just common sense. We have the option of neither flight nor fight with any decent effort or duration, are hardly the best representation of our glorious human form for procreation and become a burden to the society we pledge to contribute to. It is time to stop hiding and feeling sorry for ourselves. YES, there are instances of obesity being due to medical factors – but not 50% of the world’s population!!! For most it is complete laziness in the truest definition of the word and the inability to initiate any change in a positive direction. If your condition is due to medical complications you have my complete and utter sympathy and I hope that medical advances can restore you to full function so you can get from life those things that you are most motivated towards. I also hope that I do not come across at patronising in any way at all as this is never my aim. If you form part of the larger group that cannot hide behind the medical claims then you can be your own judge as I am tired of the excuses machine-gunned from all directions.

Accept today, now, that things can and will be different; that you owe it to yourself and your children to be a healthy and fit individual. Realise what our species had to endure to get to where we are today. Then remove all of our technology and time saving devices and gadgets and put us amongst the wilds of nature again. Could we survive and build up another democracy with everyone working towards the higher good? Have we even managed it in the past? We have let our lifestyles dictate that fitness is a luxury and one that for many of us time and money can no longer afford. We have let ourselves become entangled in the web of fads, trends, media hype, celebrity and living in virtual realities. Do something for yourself and the greater good today: take that step, start that journey, place that one lonely brick on the floor and say to yourself with passion and pride “tomorrow this will be my empire!”