A condensed version of this story ran in the June issue of In Business magazine.
Get off your seat, but take your time. That basically sums up the advice area fitness trainers have for busy business professionals whose priorities no longer include regular exercise or watching their diet. In conjunction with our Get Fit Challenge, we asked for advice from area fitness trainers regarding busy professionals, especially those engaged in too much sitting, too much staring into computer screens, and too little exercise.
For people in this situation, there are no more excuses, considering that many of their counterparts already find time to make fitness part of their daily routine. The proper mindset is to think of rediscovering good health as your personal “Battle of the Bulge,” one in which failure is not an option.
Offsite workouts
Because of the risk of injury, fitness trainers recommend starting slowly. That way, in your gradual transition from inactive sloth to fitness freak, you’re more likely to avoid injury setbacks that might derail your new commitment to fitness before it begins.
Others cite variety of routine as a way to stick to a fitness regimen. Unless you prefer to be a creature of habit, tedium can be avoided if you don’t do the same workout over and over.
| “If you make fitness and a healthy lifestyle a priority, you’ll find that you have more energy for other aspects of your busy life.” — Jamie Zietlow, Harbor Athletic Club |
The main thing, according to Grant Brooks, a personal trainer with Hybrid Athletic Club, is to develop some form of consistency. He recommends early-morning workouts because that’s when an individual is more likely to have energy to burn, not after putting in a full day’s work. “Our busiest time is from 5 to 7 in the morning because they come in before work,” Brooks noted. “Generally, energy levels are highest in the morning.
“Based on their comments as they go through Hybrid, regarding how much energy they have during the day, they are not hitting that midday slump.”
Jon Hinds, founder, owner, and head trainer of the Monkey Bar Gym, recommends finding something fun yet challenging, or you’re unlikely to stick with it. “If something is not challenging you in a way that you’d like, if it’s not fun to do, then it becomes a chore,” he stated. “Chores don’t last.”
Matt Fish, a certified trainer and massage therapist with Capitol Fitness, agreed that any sedentary individual can achieve better health and fitness, but he or she must start slowly because such individuals will begin with a much lower tolerance to stress, so lower intensity and lower volume are appropriate. “Exercise is a stress,” Fish noted. “If you apply an appropriate amount of stress to the body and allow time for recovery, then you will get healthier. If you apply too much stress, an inappropriate type of stress, or do not allow for recovery, then exercise can cause injury.”
According to Fish, it’s impossible to provide more specific recommendations because every person is unique and will have different levels of potential. The exercises chosen, and their respective range of motion, intensity, and progression, should be tailored to meet individual needs. In general, he advises that everyone do some sort of strength training; when used appropriately, strength training not only improves strength, it also helps change body composition, improves range and quality of motion, and helps prevent and rehabilitate many injuries.
Cardiovascular work encourages weight loss and provides many other health benefits. Any form of lower-intensity cardio will work as long as it is enjoyable and appropriate for the individual, Fish said. For example, walking is typically a very low-stress activity, but someone may have an ankle condition that walking could exacerbate.
“This could lead to pain in the foot, knee, hips, or even the spine due to excessive stress on the tissues,” Fish explained. “Any muscle or joint issue needs to be addressed with specific exercises to help them recover and ensure that they do not get worse. Slow but consistent progressive work will get people to their goals.”
Trying too much too soon will often appear to yield faster results initially, but you inevitably will end up with an injury and perhaps stop exercising altogether. In Fish’s view, the best time of day to exercise is simply the time that best fits into your schedule. “One could start three days per week for one hour each session, or five days per week for 20 minutes per session,” he noted.
Kane Sivesind, owner of CORE Health & Fitness, also recommends starting slower, with sustainable changes. In other words, walk before you run — literally.
“We see a lot of people who try to change too many things all at once, and they might do really well for a month or two, but they always wind up getting hurt or hitting a speed bump, and they kind of throw everything out the window,” Sivesind remarked. “We see this a lot with New Year’s resolutions. Most New Year’s resolutions are fitness goals, and 80% of them are abandoned by mid-February. It shows you that when they suddenly try to make a radical shift, it’s hard to sustain long term.”
(Continued)
Another bit of advice is to pick one bad habit that you want to change, and make sure you can be 80% compliant with the change for two weeks. The change can be dietary, such as eating more fruits and vegetables throughout the day, or exercise related, like walking for at least 20 to 30 minutes every other day. “If you can, then move on to another habit, create a kind of a snowball effect, and keep the momentum going,” Sivesind counseled. “Then, if you end up hitting a speed bump, it’s easier to get back on track and not be totally derailed.”
Trying to go from couch potato to workout warrior is a gradual process, and accountability is a huge advantage for people who are just starting. Having a coach or a workout partner to hold you accountable, especially with social media apps that take the “lone wolf” approach out of the equation, can make a big difference.
Chris Schvetz, a personal trainer with the American College of Sports Medicine and Premier Fitness Development, lamented the lack of awareness about another aspect of fitness — the diet. “I would say there is a good lack of knowledge about what goes into people’s mouths and nutrition, as far as hormonal and other biological reactions it has on your body,” he stated. “Is the food you put into your body fighting disease or aiding disease? There are no gray areas on that. It’s either good for you or bad for you.”
Work out while you work
Whether professional people get up and walk every hour or so, or employees are assigned to bring a healthy dish to share at lunch, office workers are taking proactive approaches to winning the Battle of the Bulge.
Sharon Baldwin, senior director of mission advancement for the YMCA of Dane County, says fitness actually begins before you get to the office. Some simple ideas like biking or even walking to work can help burn calories, and while bosses might frown over time inefficiency, one can also burn calories by skipping instant messages and emails and walking to a colleague’s desk for a face-to-face chat.
Baldwin also recommends trading your desk chair for a firmly inflated fitness or stability ball, as long as you’re able to safely balance on the ball. Use the fitness ball for wall squats or other exercises during the day. She also advises professionals to organize a lunchtime walking group, or to kill two birds with one stone whenever practical by scheduling walking meetings or walking brainstorming sessions. (Just bring something to record with.)
Jamie Zietlow, a certified strength and conditioning specialist with Harbor Athletic Club, reminds sedentary professionals that everyone is busy. Smart professionals schedule exercise into their daily routine, just as they would an important appointment with a key client. It might sound counterintuitive, she noted, but vigorous exercise is likely to give you more energy, not sap you of it.
“If you make fitness and a healthy lifestyle a priority,” she said, “you’ll find that you have more energy for other aspects of your busy life.”
Click here to sign up for the free IB ezine — your twice-weekly resource for local business news, analysis, voices, and the names you need to know. If you are not already a subscriber to In Business magazine, be sure to sign up for our monthly print edition here.
