Our Five Simple Pillars for Health, Longevity and believe it or not even Fat Loss

 

Our Five Simple Pillars 

for Health, Longevity and believe it or not even Fat Loss

By Nicholas Ingel - Emet Gyms

Now please bear in mind I said simple, not easy, but if the possibility of improving your health, living longer and even losing body fat interests you, then do read on.

We have been involved in coaching for nearly three decades and have done so full time for over the past 11 years. We have coached national and international champions; our athletes have broken national records and have brought home gold medals at both national and international level. We have coached professional sports teams and stay-at-home moms. Our corporate clients include some of the largest global companies in their industries from logistics to banking. 

I personally have won gold for South Africa at international level. I have been invited to speak at Wits University’s Summit on Peak Performance and have also been invited to run workshops on strength training for the biokineticists and physiotherapists at one of the top rehabilitation centres in Europe. 

I was one of the first 75 coaches in the world to receive the International Coaching License Level 2 through the International Powerlifting Federation. I share all of this with you, not to blow my own horn but rather to clarify that we know a thing or two about long-term optimal performance at the highest levels.

These are five pillars, in order of importance, but they are all interlinked.

1.   Sleep
2.   Hormone/Stress Management
3.   Hydration/Water Intake
4.   Nutrition/Fuel and Building Blocks
5.   Exercise

Sleep Good quality sleep is the single most valuable thing you can do for your well-being, your mental function and long-term health. We need to get sufficient quality sleep to allow the building of new tissues, loss of weight, recovery from stress and other processes enough time to take place each night. Try to get to sleep as early as possible, limit or eliminate screen time an hour before bedtime, make your sleeping place as dark as possible and remove all things that may wake you during the night, such as cellphone notifications. Prioritise your sleep above all else.

 

Hormone/Stress Management

We are hormonal machines, hormones run and regulate our bodies and thus pretty much our lives, however they are also affected by our lifestyles. Things like stress, lack of sleep, poor diet and lack of exercise can negatively affect our hormone levels, this in turn can negatively affect our sleep, weight, energy levels and so on.

When our stress hormone Cortisol is too high it can affect the balance of the system and thus our well-being. It can affect everything from weight to sleep to energy.

Try to find time to do things in the day that relax and calm you; go for a walk, exercise, spend quality time with loved ones. A short meditation session in the morning is a great way to start the day, to focus and clear the mind and put things into perspective.

The more you can manage stress the better for your hormonal balance and the better for you.

Hydration/Water Intake Our bodies get rid of toxins three ways: we poop them out, we pee them out and we sweat them out - all three of these processes require water. The less toxins in your body the better. Sometimes when we feel hungry, we are actually dehydrated, so avoid unnecessary calories and make sure you drink sufficient water through the day. Tea, coffee and cool drinks can have a diuretic affect and actually dehydrate you further, so they are not sufficient for staying adequately hydrated. Our brains are approximately 75% water, when we are dehydrated our brains can shrink, causing headaches and brain fog, so stay hydrated and stay focused.

Try get 350 to 500 ml of water in as soon as you wake up as, you have not had any water for several hours and drink sufficient water through the day, you will look younger and feel better.

Nutrition/Fuel and Building Blocks

Food is fuel and it is also the building blocks of our body. Bearing this in mind we should eat for our specific purpose and goals. Stressing over what we eat at every meal can be far more damaging to our well-being in terms of raising our stress levels and affecting our hormone balance, than what we are actually eating. Sharing delicious food with people we care about, over a few hours with relaxing conversation can lower stress and is a wonderful way to enhance our quality of life.

As a simple rule we look at consistency and regularity of meals as being important and the makeup of those meals being a balance of good quality protein and vegetables with lots of water.

Our bodies are different so experiment with different food groups and mealtimes and find what works for you. Intermittent fasting may be great for some but not so great for others, the carnivore diet may give some boundless energy and vitality and leave others sluggish and bloated. Experiment and find what works for you.

Remember like everything in life it is about quality. Quality of the food and quality of the time enjoying that food, so eat your meals at a table with loved ones as often as you can.

Exercise

It always makes me chuckle that what I do for a living is last on the list, but as mentioned previously all five pillars are interlinked and all affect the efficacy of the others. Exercise helps us improve and maintain mobility, increase strength, and de-stress, it is not punishment for what you ate.

Our food fuels our exercise and it provides the building blocks for the new tissues which the body needs to build as a result, so choose your food to support your exercise.

Strength is neural, it comes from our nervous system, and it is the “mother skill” meaning that when we increase our strength we increase the other elements of fitness, our speed, our power, our balance and coordination, our stamina and endurance. With this in mind, seek to make strength training the foundation of your training programme.

Squats, loaded carries, deadlift-type movements and presses are effective ways to increase and maintain strength. Loaded carries are the second biggest bang for your buck movement and often the least utilised and they are safe, simple and effective. Simply grab a weight in each hand; a water bottle, 2-litre milk bottle, dumbbell or kettlebell and go for a walk.

These are the simple five pillars to follow to improve and maintain optimal wellness.

They are not about doing each perfectly as that will just lead to increased stress. Work a little on all or some over time and see the benefits. Have fun and enjoy doing them.

These thoughts I have shared do not in any way constitute medical advice, please always consult your medical professional before starting any programme.

Stay safe, have fun, and fight every day to be young in body, mind and spirit.

Emet Gyms

Nicholas Ingel - CEO

Email: training@emetgyms.com

Website: - www.emetgyms.com