It’s been more than 2 weeks now since the gyms have closed now and I think most of the exercising population are just about to lose their minds. I myself as a trainer am losing my mind, not only because I can’t train in a gym, but also my clients can’t train either. Now you ask yourself, does this mean I have to put my health goals on pause? Your plans may have been cancelled for the next coming months, but that does not mean you shouldn’t look or feel better for the future.

Resistance Training

It’s coming to a point where people are coming to the realisation that exercising not only affects their physical health, but also mental health. There has been such a high demand lately in gym equipment and people are starting to really stock up on home gym equipment. I saw this go both ways. Seeing that there is a certain amount of people that still get to exercise at home and still manage or maintain their body composition or strength. But what about the others who missed the chance of getting gym equipment or simply can not afford it?

For those who do not have access to any gym equipment such as dumbbells, barbells, machines etc. It is not the end of the line here. It is still very possible to lose weight even with so many limitations such as lack of equipment.

Now you have to ask yourself, what can I control in this situation?

The first thing to do is think of the amount of exercises you can do while you are at home that require NO EQUIPMENT whatsoever. The list goes from walking, squatting, pushups, lunges, etc. You’d be surprised with how many exercises you can find, if you struggle; Google is your best friend OR you can contact a fitness professional. Secondly, ask yourself how can you make these exercises harder or progress them? This becomes an opportunity for you to get creative and find any item in your house that you consider heavy or good to carry for exercising. The list can go from filled up milk cartons, backpacks, sacks of rice, broom sticks and so much more.

Activity

Once you have your resistance training taken care of. Start looking at how you’re going to increase your activity levels up besides lifting weights. With most of my clients I have prescribed them a daily step goal. Given in the situation that we are in, most people are now working from home. Now this takes away the hassle of having to commute or drive to work. You have this extra time to do something before that clock strikes 9:00 am. I would suggest waking up at the same time as you normally would as if you’d have to get ready and go to work. Instead, use that time to start your day and go for a brisk walk. This will start your activity early in the day. I have personally been doing this before the restrictions were in place and I must say that it has helped me start my day very well and ready for work. It doesn’t have to be very long. If this is new to you I would recommend:

• 1st week – 10 minute morning walks

• 2nd week – 15 minute morning walks

• 3rd week – 20 minute morning walks

• 4th week – 25 minute morning walks

• 5th week – 30 minute morning walks

And continue to progress as you wish. You may wish to go for longer, if not do it twice in one day. One in the morning, once at night.

I have noticed that since these restrictions have been put in place, there are a lot more people on the sidewalks going for walks in the mornings, afternoons, and evenings. Whether it is with their partners, kids, family, dog, or even themselves. There are a lot more people know and it is awesome to see.

Nutrition

When it comes to nutrition, there shouldn’t be many changes if you are already on a diet. If anything for you dieters out there, there should be more time for you to eat nutritious food. You have more time to prepare and you cook food at home while you work from home instead of going to the cafe downstairs or across the street. You can simply just go to your kitchen and make yourself a meal that has all 3 macronutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fats).

Now, for you dieters you out there. This is not a time for you to suddenly lose motivation to eat right. Eating right is a part of your routine. Do not lose routine during these times cause eventually everything will be back to normal again. Keep doing your meal prep, keep doing your grocery shopping.

Shopping for groceries is one thing that has been heavily affected by this crisis. With all major stock shortages and limits being put in place, I have been personally affected by it. Stock shortages on items like rice, pasta, lean meat, frozen vegetables. Now again, you have to think of what are the things you can control from this? Think of what you can substitute. One thing that doesn’t experience product shortages would be fresh vegetables. Great for carbohydrates and fibre. For protein, there are items like beans, legumes, tuna, that also don’t experience shortages. There is always something to substitute when it comes to food. Remember to shop with a list! This makes your shopping trip much more efficient and does not lead to buying things that are unnecessary. Also, it would be handy if you put in a list of substitutions if certain food items are unavailable.

Make sure your diet aligns with your activity and your training. If you are always sedentary at this time you might need to readjust your diet. Ask yourself, should I be eating this many carbohydrates? If you are normally on your feet on a normal working day, but now you’re always at home. You will have to adjust your diet if your activity does not match. Hence why encourage everyone to keep up with their activity. So adjustments would not be necessary. Just remember that the more you move, the more your body needs to eat for fuel.

Mindset

So you have your arsenal to lose weight. You have your resistance training, activity goals and your food preparation. One more thing is MINDSET. This is the most important element to reaching your health goals. It is very easy to lose routine at this time. Losing one thing could have a negative chain effect. You have to tell yourself that the show goes on OR the show starts NOW.

Have something to look forward to when everything goes back to normal! This is an opportunity to really strive and be consistent with and be healthy. You have all the time now to lose weight. Make sure you’re not losing anymore or any less than 0.5% of your body weight per week. If you put it into those figures, it is quite easy to lose weight. Most importantly do it in a sustainable way, a healthy way I might add. It has not been more urgent than now to really focus on living a healthy lifestyle. A healthy lifestyle means a good immune system.

Hang in there folks, let’s hang on tight to this and not wait for this to blow over to lose that fat!

Jose