We know you can often find us preaching about the importance of being motivated to get up and do some exercise, but we also recognise it’s impossible to achieve a good workout if you’re not giving your mind and body the right tools to do it!
What you eat, what you drink and especially how you sleep affects the extent your exercise is working towards helping you achieve your fitness goals. Something that we focus a lot on with our 6 Week In Shape Program. That’s why we’ve come up with 5 easy tips to help you look after your body and your mind in between (and during!) workouts.
Tip 1: Have rest days
Nobody can keep up with intense exercise every single day. Your body needs time to recover. It might sound counterproductive, but that’s why resting is an essential part of your training.
Rest is known to boost your performance because, contrary to popular belief, the building of muscle occurs during periods of rest, not whilst training. The general rule of thumb is to take a rest day or change your focus of training/muscle group after each day of intense training, but it depends on the person. So, if you’re feeling worn out, take a day off!
Tip 2: Get enough sleep
A major part of growth and recovery happens when you’re sleeping. Whilst you are asleep, studies have found the growth hormone to spike, which is essential for athletic recovery.
More importantly, the better rested you are, the abler your mind and body are to function properly, including at the gym. Those who are better rested often feel more motivated and ready for their workouts.
Tip 3: Eat well
Everyone should aim to eat a balanced but varied diet to remain happy and healthy, but this is even more true when engaging in an active lifestyle so you can match your energy needs.
Addressing your body’s nutritional requirements can have many benefits including bettering your sporting performance, reducing the risk of illness or injury and it can also help to ensure the best recovery after exercise, or a training programme, which is useful for us here at TT!
A healthy diet for someone engaging in an active lifestyle involves lots of starchy foods, fruit and vegetables, with some protein and dairy, all whilst keeping hydrated. On rest days, we recommend you cut down on the carbohydrates and focus on lean proteins to give you sustained energy between meals. But remember, your dietary requirements will vary depending on your fitness goals. For example, if you’re trying to gain muscle, we recommend you eat more protein!
Tip 4: Stay Hydrated
When you’re exercising, you lose a lot of water and salt through sweating. To replace the fluid lost and to be able to recover properly from the exercise, it’s important to drink enough water and stay hydrated.
However, it’s not just after exercise you need to hydrate. Dehydration can hinder sporting performance by making you feel tired and reducing your strength and aerobic capacity. So, keep a water bottle handy before, during and after your workouts.
Tip 5: Listen to your body
Your body knows what’s good for you and it sends you signals to help you look after it, so it’s important to listen to what it’s telling you!
We have a sneaky suspicion following these tips will help you to feel good, so keep at it. We know it’s not always easy to find the time to look after your mind and body, but it’s so worth it to feel the benefits of a good workout.
Put this into practice on our In Shape Program
Here at TT, our 6 Week In Shape Program encourages you to consider all of these aspects for living a healthy and happy lifestyle, whilst working towards your fitness goals.
Interested? The next programme starts 30th April! Find out more and apply here.
UA Media