For me, fitness has been a part of my life since I was teenager. I can recall watching my father work out around the house and I would try to imitate him by using the most random things such as chairs, stools, etc. Little did I know that this would set me a path to pursue to my own personal fitness goals, as well as learn to adapt to my environment when I lack a gym or gym equipment.
Throughout high school I also worked out due to sports I played. I had a desire to get bigger, stronger…bigger, stronger… and even bigger and even stronger. Part of the reason was simply due to the desire to obtain the perfect physique. Or rather the perfect physique based off the opinion of others. Although I continued to workout after high school, throughout college, and even throughout graduate school, it was not until a few years after that I decided to study to become a trainer and specialist in exercise therapy and sports nutrition; it was then I realized that I had become a part of the fitness matrix.
The fitness matrix is the environment of fitness aficionados and gurus whom pound away aimlessly at the gym, try extreme diets and gimmicks to reach goals quickly, and continue to do the same things expecting different results. That is not what you want to do…the same routine and expect different results. I realized that I needed to learn and understand the ideals of fitness, body shaping, the various principles and theories on reaching figure and physique goals, and understanding where “I” fit into it all. What I realized after extensive studying and trial and error is that… It all starts with me understanding my body. Once I begin to understand my body, I knew exactly how to use the tools given to me to shape and mold my body into my own personal idea of perfection.
Understanding your body: Creating Art
Understanding your body is important. It is important to know if you are an ectomorph (naturally lean), endomorph (naturally stores higher amounts of fat) or mesomorph (muscular with higher metabolism). Once you understand this, you have to understand how to find the right exercises that are suitable for you. Obviously this depends on your main goals. Maybe you are preparing for a physique competition, strong man competition. Perhaps you want to get into bodybuilding or try a particular sport. Maybe you want to have a beach body, or simply be overall healthier. When I say “overall healthier”, it is finding that balance of physically being healthy, but also mentally, spiritually and even emotionally.
I must be honest…as long as I have been into fitness and exercise, my physique has never been the most important thing to me, but rather my mind; being at peace with what I am doing; constantly learning (new information and even learning from mine and others’ mistakes), focusing on my goals and allowing exercise to help me find clarity oftentimes, etc. I even began to participate in meditation, and that in turn allowed me to learn to be patient with any physique results I was seeking, but also showed me how to practice better breathing techniques while exercising. Although I never consistently did yoga, I was always intrigued by it and the benefits my colleagues spoke of.
I also realized that exercising and finding that good balance in health helped me to be more emotionally stable. Often times when I was overwhelmed I would go for a run or box, or even hit the weights hard. Although these outlets did not resolve whatever issue I may have been going through, it did give me a way to channel my energy in a positive way (instead of ordering a whole pizza and tub of ice cream to comfort me as I have also done before). Life is always throwing curve balls at us and finding different outlets of exercise truly does wonders for your emotional, mental, and spiritual state of being. Everyone is different and everyone must find a way to be balanced; yet there is something that links us all and that is we all have the opportunity and possibility to find that balance.
Exercising
Here is a thought. You have a masterpiece in mind and your body is a canvas. The gym or anywhere you can do exercises is your studio full of paintbrushes and other needed materials. It is true that your nutrition and diet is considered to be the actual paint. No masterpiece can be created without proper paint. However, learning how to use your materials to perfection will take you a long way in accomplishing your goals.
So what kind of exercises should one do? What if one does not have access to the gym? What if someone is short on time? Well, let’s explore these more below.
Adaptation
I spent a year backpacking through South and Central America and I did not always have a gym available, so I had to adapt. Often times I simply went for jogs. Other times I found parks to do body weight training, and other times I did find a gym. Either way, I knew that I did not want to sacrifice my goals simply for the inconvenience of not having a gym… So I adapted.
You may not necessarily be backpacking to lack access to a gym; life can simply be busy and it is our jobs to adjust to whatever life throws at us. Here are some ideas that can help:
1. Body weight exercises
These can range from pull ups, push ups, ab workouts at home, leg workouts, glute workouts, and many more. There are a myriad of options for working out without weights. There are also so many people willing to give free information online, and their best practices. However, if you begin to feel limited and as if things are not working out then keep a few things in mind when you do body-weight exercises.
These can range from pull ups, push ups, ab workouts at home, leg workouts, glute workouts, and many more. There are a myriad of options for working out without weights. There are also so many people willing to give free information online, and their best practices. However, if you begin to feel limited and as if things are not working out then keep a few things in mind when you do body-weight exercises.
First, manipulate velocity; by this I mean sometimes move fluidly, while other times move slow and even pause a certain positions. This is a way for you to work on toning, strength, and growth. Second, consider altering your range of motions; at times do a full range of motion while at other times try shorter pulsating movements to place emphasis on the area you are working on. Example: full range of motion body-weight squats and/or pulsating short range of motion body-weight squats. The third and final jewel is positioning. I cannot emphasize how many ways of I have done push ups simply by widening my hands, or bringing them closer, or simply inclining or declining my body with something. When I combine velocity, range of motion, and position, I can achieve the same goals with my body weight as if I had access to gym equipment.
2. New activities
At times in the past I felt like my body needed a break from my routine and even the difficulty of finding a gym pushed me to alter things. I begin to swim laps at times in a local pool. Other times I would go for long walks, hikes or jogs along a beach. I participated in yoga a few times, and even other activities such as boxing and Muay Thai. I can even recall while I was living abroad I found Insanity and P90 X on YouTube and I did those exercises along with the video. Whatever I decided to do at any given time without a gym was simply adaption to my environment, but also a desire to learn new ways to push my limits.
It is important to find some things that you enjoy doing, but also explore new options. For instance, in college I liked jogging but after jogging the same distance and the same amount of time consistently, I become bored. So I decided to start jogging on different cross country (hiking) trails and that in turn made jogging more fun. Finding random trails to jog opened up different areas to explore and even the idea of hiking at times with my camera for photography. Now, here is an example of how this physical exercise made way for me to find something else I was passionate about. Spending time with nature and my camera gave me emotional and mental pleasure. As I mentioned early, it is very possible to find a good healthy balance and let those different aspects of your life support each other.
Yet, do not limit yourself. Try new things, new activities, explore new ideas and explore your own creativity. You know yourself better than anyone else and you know the things that you love and things you may love if you just give yourself a little nudge.
3. Time
If it is important, then make time for it. Now, the most common thing I hear is “I don’t have time to go to the gym” or “I don’t have time to exercise at home.” Yes you do. It is just that you do not value the importance of it as you do other things at the moment. And that is ok. However, when you do learn to value the importance of your health as other things then you make time for it.
Example, I know a single mother of 3 that works full time. The eldest son is a teenager and does help out at times. However, she had to learn how to adapt a little bit and shift her time around as she was going to school to be a nurse. While doing her clinicals she would do random squats at work to work her legs or take the stairs instead of elevators. At home sometimes she would do different “exercises” with her kids. Now, her kids thought she was just playing but she knew when she was in the backyard with them she could also get exercise out of many of their activities.
During dinner times, she even had to prepare separate meals often to try and eat a little healthier to work towards her fitness goals. At night before bed and in the morning when she first woke up she spent 5-10 minutes meditating or just some sort of breathing activity. In her car often times she would listen to meditative music on her way to the hospital or on her way home. She even did yoga with her middle aged child once as her teenage son was not home to babysit.
While many may see her busy life as impossible to fit in the time to incorporate more healthy activities, she embraced the challenge and found success in it. Now this is not going to be everyone’s situation. However, everyone has 24 hours in a day and the ability to make a choice, and in reality that is all you need. Learn to adapt and use your time and your space to the best of your abilities.
Fitness is about finding out how you want to look, how you want to feel, and the best ways for you to accomplish your goals. It is important to truly understand your body and the best ways for you to meet your goals that is right for you. Yes, you may have to push your limits, but remember they are your limits. And if you do not always have access to a gym or lack the time, then adapt. Do not become frustrated or overwhelmed. It is simply a choice to adapt and learn how to continue to become a better healthier person on a daily basis.
Anton, Tigosworld
And as always, don’t forget to make it happen!