How to approach your fitness

My approach to fitness has been always holistic. My exercise routine should give me a pain free life, look good in and out of clothes,keep me energetic.Usually we have hardcore bodybuilders in one side & hardcore yoga lovers in the other. The approach should be health first. In the long run this hard core approach will give u pain, injury and a broken body. Both needs to be integrated with cardio thrown in. Strength training , cardio, flexibility and mobility will make u strong, functional, healthy – all the good stuff exercise is supposed to do for u. 

• Steady State Cardio – Bring in some form of steady state cardio in your routine – twice a week. Steady state cardio (60-70% of MHR) burns more fat calories as compared to carbohydrate calories. Don’t get in to HIIT regimen until u are very strong and can maintain correct posture through out.I have come across very few people who can do 10 burpees at a stretch in correct form. U will kill ur back doing things wrong. Ya u will sweat more doing HIIT. Focus on quality of your workout. U r sweating because you are hot and it’s bodies mechanism to cool you down .

• Hire a Personal Trainer – Another thing I strongly never recommend going to group classes until and unless u r master of the subject. It’s impossible for a trainer to monitor form of 10-15 people. U r bound to do wrong forms. Hire a personal trainer. This will be best investment u will do for urself.
• Strength training at least 4 days a week should be part of your regimen. Strength training goes a long way in terms of supporting bone health, making aerobic exercise more productive, preventing injury, and facilitating healthy aging.ST is not just about bodybuilders lifting weights in gym. It is an important part of your fitness and benefits people of all ages,particularly those with health issues such as obesity, arthritis, or a heart condition. It is now even recommended for kids 6+ to do strength training
• Measure metrics that matter – consistency, heart rate, weights u lift during strength training, body composition – weight/ % body fat. ‘Bahut pasina baha ke aaya’is no matrix. Some things u should always monitor are
• Resting heart rate– the lower ur RHR the better ur health. Mine is 48 though some odd day it has gone to 40 also. As u remain consistent with your workout routine this will keep improving

• Heart Rate Recovery – Another important parameter to check is your heart rate recovery. A recovery HR of 25 to 30 beats in one minute is a good score, and 50 to 60 beats in one minute is considered excellent. You should monitor recovery HR weekly to gauge whether your fitness level is improving.

• Measure Fat – Don’t bother about weight. It’s the easiest to lose. All u need to do is be calorie deficit. Focus on fat loss and nutrition of ur food. Fat loss can be measured on machines or there are callipers available to measure at home. In fact they r more accurate. You get them on amazon.

• Sleep well. 7-8 hours a day. At least 80% plus quality sleep. The easiest trick to get this is sleep at a fixed time. Instead of putting an alarm to wake up , set up an alarm to go to bed. I had posted a complete thread on sleep few days back.