Exercise and fitness

Sarah Kemp, physiologist and fitness expert AXA Health

Fitting change into your lifestyle

1 October 2020

If you’ve made a decision to start making healthier choices, moving more, loving your body and what it can do for you – it’s the best choice you could possibly make for your wellbeing! Your future self will thank you for it in ways you might not appreciate right now.

Getting more active can be a little intimidating, knowing what to do and when. With so much information at our finger tips, new fitness industry trends and buzz words, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and worried you’ll end up doing the wrong thing. If you don’t know your isometrics from your plyometrics, don’t panic, you’re with the majority of the public!

Just know this; the basics work. When all’s said and done – you’ll reap the benefits of being active if you move your body in a way that you enjoy and is right for you. Swimming, walking, cycling, or playing a team sport, whatever’s your thing!

So, where do you start? Here are a few handy hints to think about before getting active, as well as some tips to help you fit exercise into your busy life.

First of all….

Consider your reasons to exercise 

It’s important to understand your goals. For some it will be about reaching and maintaining a healthy weight. For others, it could be improving cardio fitness, increasing their range of motion, or purely for the mental health benefits.

Find what’s right for you

If you don’t enjoy running, don’t do it! If gyms aren’t your thing, don’t join one! Find something you will enjoy and remember that, depending on what your goals are, different activities will bring different health benefits. For example:

Aerobic exercise, such as running, swimming and cycling will help to increase cardiorespiratory fitness, as well as burn calories. Once the body is used to doing this type of exercise, it adapts and becomes more efficient (so starting with this if you’re keen to lose some weight is a great idea). 

Resistance exercise is not only effective for strengthening muscles, but also the connective tissues that surround the joints; your ligaments, tendons and cartilage. 

Pay attention to form

Becoming more active isn’t just about moving more, but moving better. There’s no point flaying your body around doing a new workout routine if you don’t nail the basics. Incorrect form (not moving correctly through a squat or push up for example), can lead to pain and injuries. 

Once you know what you want to achieve and what’s right for you, how’s best to fit it all in?

Finding time

There’s always time, if you really dig deep. It might mean getting up earlier, or using your lunch break, toddler nap time, or prepping your dinners at the weekend to free up more time in the evening for a post-work wiggle. That social media rabbit-hole we often find ourselves in – imagine less time hunched over our phones scrolling and more time moving!

Saving time

It’s possible to increase the efficiency of your workouts (if workouts are your thing) by doing a circuit using compound moves that target major muscle groups at once, giving you more of a full body experience. A compound move could be something like a weighted squat with an overhead press, or a simple burpee.

Home workouts

There are times when you’re just not feeling the gym and that’s fine! A home workout isn’t any less effective – and you save time because you haven’t had to go anywhere. Why not create a little home workout circuit, using stairs, chairs or sofas for your resistance exercises? Pick 5 or 6 moves to repeat, 10 times each – then complete 5 rounds, or however many you can fit into 20 minutes.

Habit stacking

One way of finding time for physical activity and maintaining consistency is to attach an activity onto something you already do. For example, can you do 20 squats while brushing your teeth every morning? How about 10 press ups while you wait for the kettle to boil? Repeating the same activity at the same time every day will help it become automatic.

Follow a programme

Consider following a fitness programme to keep focussed. There are many available, so it’s just a case of researching and picking one that’s right for you and your goals. It can save you ‘thinking time’ when you’re wondering which workout to do in the gym or at home. Pick your workout and follow it! Happy moving!