Plenty of people worldwide work out to improve the appearance and health of their bodies. We can roughly define them as bodybuilders, although many might not choose that description themselves. What is amazing is how many haphazardly approach their workouts, perhaps working hard but not remotely maximizing their results. In this article we will look at maximizing your results to improve your health and your appearance.
First of all you must realize that exercise in only one part of improving your health and your body. Nutrition and rest are also critical.
Nutrition, what you eat and do not eat, is critical. Although everyone’s body and metabolism are different and you must find what works for you, some things are universal. First of all you have different nutritional needs than the sedentary and semi-sedentary. You will need more calories, even if striving for fat loss, and almost certainly higher protein intake. If fat loss is a goal, then slow and steady fat loss is best and healthiest. Rapid fat loss can rebound to rapid fat gain afterwards. Also rapid fat loss often involves muscle loss as well which will slow you metabolism and slow down future loss.
Rest is an often missed component yet critical. Even a professional bodybuilder does not work the same muscles more than perhaps twice a week, and once a week is better for most people. Muscles grow when they are resting and recuperating, not while you are in the gym! Often novices are so gung ho they over train which can lead to stagnation and even moving backwards. Don’t be surprised if your body wants more sleep when you are working out very hard.
Exercise comprises resistance (anaerobic) exercise, and aerobic exercise, also commonly called cardio. With resistance training, whether free weights, machines, rubber bands, or some combination, it is important to have a balanced workout plan and hit all the major muscle groups. We probably all know or see someone in the gym who is unbalanced; very often a massive upper body with “chicken legs.” There are plenty of places to get a balanced resistance workout, and best is probably to have a personal trainer or other experienced person help you.
Aerobics are also important for general health and keeping fat levels low. Although the treadmill, exercise bike, and other similar machines may get boring quickly, most people can find a form of cardio they enjoy. For example, I like to run by the seashore in the summer, bike whenever the roads are not covered by snow, and ski in the winter.
Pietro Manguilli
