What You Can Work On Before You Hit The Gym

There are many steps you can take before you go to a gym that will significantly improve your health and wellbeing.

I like to use a pyramid to explain this to my clients.

Imagine a pyramid that consists of three levels.

The bottom foundational level determines the strength for the rest of the pyramid. It has the most impact on your training progress.

This level consists of the big four: Nourishment (nutrition and hydration), Mental Health (mindset, etc.), Sleep and Movement. 

Quantity and quality of nourishment and movement sit on the second level.

At the top of the pyramid, there are customised nutrition and exercise programming, plus supplementation.

I’ve trained 100’s of people, and the biggest mistake they make is wanting to start at the top of the pyramid.

They’ll be sleeping 5 hours a night, eating one serving of vegetables per day, running on coffee instead of water and sitting for 8+ hours a day.

Eating right and exercising is very beneficial for your health. But starting at the bottom of the pyramid is even more so. Attack this first, and the results will follow.

Here’s some simple advice that will help you get started.

1. Nourishment

Eat five servings of fruit/ vegetables per day and drink 2-3L of water.

By simply adding more vegetables, fruit and water to your diet, you will be nourishing your body with the necessary vitamins and minerals it needs. When you do this, your cravings for high calorie and low nutrient foods will lessen.

If you’re not a fan of water, start by drinking when your body needs it most.

After eight or so hours of sleep, you will be in your most dehydrated state. So naturally, this is the easiest time to knock back a glass or two of water.

To make this a habit, keep a glass by your bedside for a reminder in the morning. 

In general, the more water you can drink earlier in the day, the better. A litre by midday is a good starting goal. Getting that H20 in early will also save you a few trips to the toilet in the middle of the night.

Skip the fad diets and meal plans. They might give you some short-term success, but they almost always lead to long-term failure.

Instead, consult a nutritionist that can give you tailored advice to suit you and your goals.

Suppose that’s out of your budget. Start with your protein intake.

Protein helps your muscles recover and grow. It also leaves you feeling satiated after meals and again helps reduce cravings.

1.7 grams for every kilo of body weight daily is the recommended target.

For example, if you weigh 70kg (70 x 1.7 = 119), you should be consuming around 120g of protein per day. That’s 30-40g of protein per meal @ four meals per day.

Lean meat is your best friend here. An average chicken breast has about 55g of protein vs a cup of rolled oats with about 11 grams.

If you're training 5+ times per week at high intensities or with heavy resistance, you can increase your multiple to 2 grams per kilo of bodyweight.

2. Self

Build a healthy relationship with yourself. Easier said than done and often overlooked on the health and wellness journey, but always the most critical piece of the puzzle.

The mind is malleable and trainable and will be a big part of your success moving forward.

We live in a very materialistic ‘body centric’ society that teaches us if we have the ‘body’, everything else will fall into place. This could not be further from the truth. Spend time working on the mind, and the rest (including lengthening that) will follow.

Start by getting to know yourself. You can’t motivate someone you don’t know.

A great way to do this is with a daily practice that lets you be alone with your thoughts, whether sitting in silence, meditation, breathing or walking in nature.

During the day, take a mental note of how you communicate with yourself. Are you your own hype man or constantly doubting/ shaming yourself?

Your mind is always listening… This brings me to a crucial point if you say you’re going to do something, do it. Not honouring your word = lack of trust in yourself. You don’t respect someone you don’t trust, right?

You might not even be aware of how often this is happening.

A trick I suggest to clients to help to be present is to switch up the route they take to work/ school. Creating variety forces the mind to be more present, intrigued and tuned in to what you're doing.

Last but not least, be kind to yourself. I know that’s an overused term now, but showing yourself and others a little love doesn’t hurt. A simple hug can open pathways for the 'feel good’ hormones (oxytocin) and reduce cortisol (stress hormone).

3. Sleep

We’ve all experienced a time in our lives where sleep falls to the bottom of the priority list. I’m here to remind you that the quality of your sleep is a strong determinant of the quality of your life. 

Sleep directly affects our hormone levels. Bad sleep will alter your hormones, affecting energy, motivation, hunger cravings, focus, performance, and more.

Eight hours is the recommended amount, but this can differ. If you’re someone who struggles to get to sleep, I would advise no screens or work within an hour of bedtime, avoid brightly lit spaces and try a magnesium supplement.

Are you already doing that?

Try Valerian root. IMO nature's best kept sleep potion secret.

People use valerian to relieve poor sleep, anxiety and depression, and for the ladies, it also helps ease menstrual and stomach cramps.

To drink as tea. Soak 2 to 3 grams of dried herbal valerian root in 1 cup of hot water for 10 to 15 minutes. Otherwise, you can buy valerian root tea. Consume 1-2 hours before going to bed. 

4. Movement

Several studies now show a sedentary lifestyle can be as bad for you as smoking.

Remaining sedentary, i.e. sitting for long periods each day, has been linked to a range of chronic health issues, especially diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Research has found roughly 50% of the world's population that dies from these diseases hasn’t completed the minimum weekly recommendation of 150 minutes of moderate physical activity.

Sitting also affects our posture by tightening the hip flexors, weakening our glutes, core and upper back and causes our shoulders and necks to creep forward.

Weakened posture can lead to injuries and is linked to mental health problems.

So what can you do?

Set the alarm on your desktop or phone, which prompts you to get up and walk around for a few minutes every hour.

It’s recommended we get 10,000 steps in per day (if you’re not doing gym workouts). For most of us, that's a tough ask, especially when working a desk job.

I think ‘more than you were doing is a good starting point. If that’s 1,000 steps, try to get to 2,000. If that’s 4,000, try to get to 5,000 and so on.

Get into the habit of purposely parking further away and choosing the stairs over the escalator or elevator.

Need to take a call? Head outside and walk the block while making your weekly call to mum and dad, boss or clients.
It’s surprising how much these small changes can add up to big differences.

If you find yourself stuck at your desk, you can always work on your posture. Here are some exercises you can do even while sitting in your chair. 

• 5x neck tucks. Gently push your chin into your neck, lengthening the back of your neck and activating the front. Each hold should be for about 3 seconds. 

• 5x neck circles in each direction. This is a gentle action encouraging a light stretch around the entire neck. 

• 5x chest opening T’s. Hold your arms out straight, parallel to the ground in a capital T position. Move your arms backwards by squeezing your shoulder blades together. Hold each squeeze for 3 seconds. 

• 5x pelvic floor/ lower core activation. Do this by pulling your belly button toward your spine and ‘hold your pee in’ is what I say to my clients to emulate the pelvic floor to switch on. Each hold should last for around 3 seconds. Time this with your breath; when you breathe in, relax the core; when you breathe out, activate the pelvic floor and core. 

And there it is! The big four! None of which involve stepping a foot in a gym. These can dramatically improve your health and wellbeing and speed up your progress.

Written by Georgia Brown - Ex NZ Footballer & Nominated NZ’s best up and coming trainer, 2019.