Fabila's Fitness Club

G roup fitness classes are more popular than ever. There are various types of group fitness classes in the market, so much that making a choice on which class to attend is tougher. You will find low impact or high impact classes. Low impact classes means the intensity is lower while for high impact classes the intensity is higher (I would expand on this in another article). You may find some classes with a combination of both. What type of group fitness classes can you find today, there is yoga, Pilates, Zumba, kickboxing, step, Taebo, spin, sculpt, Dance aerobics, boot-camp and the list goes on. Whatever the case, I believe there are a few things to bear in mind when attending a group fitness class:

I  often hear people ask what fitness programme is best for them. You make recommendations and they come back again asking for another alternative. There are so many fitness programmes and the numbers would only increase. You could try all and still find yourself on level zero, with little or no progress. What then is the problem? I mean Sister Felicia who got introduced to fitness a few months ago, is already seeing tremendous results! Why are you struggling so much in shedding a pound? 

I t is common to see people giving up after a failed attempt. It could be a failed attempt at a dream job, business idea, relationship, etc. Similarly, people give up exercising when they see little or no result. Let’s take Sharon, my fictional character, for example. Sharon was told by cousin Jade that she could lose weight in three months. Sharon is excited, she joins cousin Jade to the gym and without a thought registers for six months gym membership. Sharon workouts on all the equipment, she joins all the group exercise programs offered at the gym, in fact, Sharon is now feeling quite sexy and slim. Three months later, Sharon anxiously gets on the scale and discovers she’s lost only 1KG! “What!” she screams, “but Jade lost 5kg”. 

U nderstanding your body type would help you in choosing the right fitness programme. In this article, I would briefly explain the different body types and the appropriate fitness programme for each. Generally, people fall into three body types: Ectomorph, Mesomorph, and Endomorph. Let’s take a closer look at these categories.  Ectomorph  Are you tall and slender and stay that way even after downloading a basin full of food! Ectomorphs tend to be tall and slender with little excess fat. An ectomorph would probably have the burden of being too skinny. (I’m sure some lady reading this wishes she had this problem). Ectos tend to lose weight more easily than they gain.  Fitness goal: An Ectos fitness goal should be to gain tone and build muscle mass. Your workout routine should therefore focus more on resistance and strength training and less of cardio. Ectos are advised to eat more regularly than other body types and also eat foods high in carbohydrates, fat...

M otor skills include the coordination, speed, power or agility required to complete an activity. There are six components of motor skills related to fitness. These are agility, balance, coordination, power, reaction time and speed. A motor skill is associated with muscle activity. You carry out motor skills when your brain, nervous system and muscles work in harmony to move parts of your body in large or small movements. Motor skills improve with practice. These six components of motor skills define your athletic abilities. A well-rounded athlete seeks to constantly improve all six components equally. Agility: is the ability to perform movements, quickly and in varied directions. Agility exercises are designed to enhance your speed and power. For example, changing directions to hit a tennis ball.

My all time show-off flexibility posture F lexibility has been defined as the range of motion about a joint and its surrounding muscles during movement. Flexibility training is probably the most undervalued component of fitness. The ability to move a joint through an adequate range of movement is important for daily activities in general as well as sports performance. Activities such as gymnastics, ballet, diving, karate, and yoga require improved flexibility. Although flexibility is variable between individuals (gender, age, and genetics) flexibility in some joints can be increased to a certain degree by exercise, with stretching.

R esistance training, also referred to as strength training is simply any fitness activity aimed at strengthening the muscles. It is any exercise that causes the muscles to contract against an external resistance with the expectation of increases in strength, tone, mass, and/or endurance. The external resistance can be equipment, e.g. dumbbells or your body weight. A complete body workout ideally should include some resistance training to improve bone, joint function, bone density, muscle, tendon and ligament strength, as well as cardio exercise, to improve your heart and lung fitness. Some examples of resistance exercises include:

Y ou’ve decided to lose weight, or maybe you are slim but you have decided you need some physical activity. You head to a gym to register but then you are confused about what fitness programme is right for you.  In this article and the next three, I would briefly highlight four components of fitness training to help you make an informed decision. These are: Cardiovascular training, Resistance training , Flexibility , and Motor skills. Cardiovascular training : the term “cardiovascular” relates to the circulatory system, which comprises the heart and blood vessels. The cardiovascular system is responsible for circulating blood throughout the body. A cardiovascular fitness programme would therefore aim at building the circulatory system. Cardiovascular fitness not only improves your ability to carry out activities more efficiently, but, also reduces the risk of diseases such as coronary heart disease, heart attack, stroke,  among  others. Some benefits of cardiovascul...