Singapore is such a busy place. And as expected, one of the common situation that Genesis Gym personal trainers get from clients is:
“I don’t have time to do more session at the gym, but what else can I do to speed up my results?”
There is no way to get the results and testimonials for our fat burning clients without the systematic strength training programmes at Genesis Gym. These challenging workouts ensure that you maintain lean muscle as you lose weight. But there are things you can do in your daily life which can speed up your results.
This is because there is a limit to the number of challenging workouts you can do per week without over stressing your body.
Did you know that even the most muscle burning, lung busting workout only accounts for 20-30% of the energy you use during the day?
The remainder comes from your “Basal Metabolic Rate” (BMR). This is the energy used to power your brain, digestion, movement, heart, detoxification and other functions you need to stay alive.
If we can increase the energy used in other activities they can give us a boost in our results. Without adding to the stress burden on busy people in Singapore.
- Drink cold water as it takes energy to heat up. Do so in between meals to avoid diluting your digestive enzymes.
- Sleep in a cooler environment (about 24 C). It helps lower stress hormones.
- Eat a big breakfast of protein and fat, e.g. bacon and eggs. For the same daily nutrient and calorie intake, those who eat more at breakfast tend to burn more fat. The mechanism isn’t fully clear but it appears that eating more early in the day lowers the cravings many people experience later in the day.
- Increase water intake so that you have at least 5 clear urinations per day. This will make you go to the bathroom more, and also helps with hydration. Well hydrated bodies are more efficient. And water increases the percieved feeling of fullness. Sometimes hunger cravings are actually a response to thirst.
- Go to the bathroom on a different floor than yours via the stairs.
- Eat protein as often as you can, but choose healthy sources i.e. lean meat, NOT processed nuggets. Protein takes up to 20-30% of its own calories for digestion. It’s like a free diet! Protein also sends “fullness” signals to your brain.
- Choose unrefined carbohydrates. Those like fruit or natural starches take more energy to break down than a sugar drink because the fiber in them slows things down.
- Walk up to your flat on the way home
- Stand in the sun to eat during lunch. If you can stand and be in the sun at lunchtime that would be great as sunlight also helps you produce vitamin D which keeps your thyroid healthy for a good metabolism.
- Wash your car by yourself. Besides, with high car prices, a car is precious, and who could possibly care more about your car than you?!
- Set an alarm to remind you to get up and stretch once per hour at work (oops mine just went off)
- Sit on a stability ball while at your desk or home. It is less stable and will require more muscles to fire to keep you upright.
- Think on your feet. Especially if you need to form creative solutions or ideas, walk around to think. Not only does this increase energy expenditure, your brain functions better when there is more blood flow as there is during exercise. For more on this, read the excellent book “Brain Rules” by John Medina.
- Make your hobbies active ones. Even if its not a sport like tennis. Even billiards is better than 700-episode Korean dramas.
- If you are going to watch 700 episodes of anything, do it while standing, pacing or marching in place
- On your way home, stop one bus stop early and take a short walk
- Get a free pedometer app like this one and try to hit a target number of steps each day. 10,000 is a common goal but you can start from where you are now and work upwards.
- NOTE: tips 18-30 relate to stress because increased stress decreases energy expenditure and increases fat storage. Reduce stress by writing each night 3-5 things you are thankful for during the day. Life is not perfect and will never be, but we can always choose a thankful attitude.
- Reduce stress by sleeping earlier. Your facebook timeline will still be there in the morning
- Reduce stress by focusing on forming positive relationships with people around you. It has been said that the best way to get friends, is to be one. People with strong (not necessarily many) relationships tend to have lower stress hormone output.
Ok, 20 is a long list. You don’t need to do them all at once. It can take 2-3 months to build up a habit that sticks with you for life. So how about trying 2-3 of these things this week and start the process.
If you want guidance on how to implement a customized training and nutrition plan for yourself, we welcome you to join what is probably the best personal fitness training programme in Singapore by clicking the button below.
The Genesis Gym personal trainers (Singapore) will design the nutrition, lifestyle and fitness plan for you and guide you to your fitness goals.
To your continued strength, health and happiness,
Coach Jonathan Wong
Director,
Genesis Gym Singapore