If you spend an hour a day at the gym and 23 hours dedicated to undoing all that good, you haven’t really made any leeway in the general direction of health. Consider this, the more you indulge your body in the little healthy maneuvers, the easier it will be at the gym. Check out The Perfect Fit Day and try your hand at a little clock work.
8am: Get 8 hours of sleep! Seriously. No I am not kidding. Sleep is one of the most under-utilized methods in training, mostly because you think you are some kind of robot that doesn’t need it. But guess what? Sleep is integral to reducing stress, losing weight and recuperating from the beating you gave your bod the day before.
8:30am: Have breakfast! A big one. Your diet should actually flow the opposite way you are probably used to; biggest meal is brekkie, lunch is second, dinner should be an afterthought. It preps your body for optimal calorie expenditure. Along with breakfast have a cup of coffee–the caffeine jolt amps up your metabolism.
9am: Don’t hang out by the coffee maker chatting, head over to the H20. Ideally you should be drinking half your body weight in ounces of water. Water flushes your system of toxins and hydrates you so you have more energy and as a bonus, you’ll feel more full.
11am: Get up and stretch for a minute. Stretching increases circulation in your body, allowing it to repair itself. Also, drink more H20!
12pm: Lunch! Make sure it’s healthy–something full of good fats (grilled salmon) and antioxidants (spinach). Your midday meal is when you should be taking in lots of leafy greens and bright colored veggies. And don’t wash it down with an alcoholic drink–opt for more H20.
3pm: More stretching and physical activity. Most people are the most productive during the stretch from lunch to 3pm, but this is prime time for your body to digest and utilize those cals. If you are on a roll with whatever you are doing, be a good example to those around you and make sure to get up every 30 minutes or so and stretch/move around a bit.
6pm: If you haven’t already worked out in the morning, this is your last opportunity to get a good 30-60min of physical activity in. I suggest working out in the morning is probably the best time to burn some energy, but anytime you can find the time to be physically active is the right way to judge what’s best for you. Try sprinting on the treadmill, pushups, crunches, planks, lunges, step ups, presses, and squats. These are all exercises that will keep your whole body injury-free.
The CoreFit healthy diet… Eating real food. Balancing out your vices with your good choices. Not pretending you need to eat perfectly every second of the day. Giving yourself a break, mentally and physically. Reiterating that food is nourishment for this icy cold day.
