Itโs that time of year, when once again, we start thinking about how we can improve our lives. Without question, one of the things that always tops our list of New Yearโs resolutions is getting back into shape.
The good news is you donโt have to do anything drastic to start down the path to better physical fitness and health in 2021, but you do have to make some changes.
โThe first thing is itโs got to be a lifestyle change, it canโt be a temporary change,โ says Wes Dudgeon, chair of the Department of Health and Human Performance. โYou canโt say โIโm going to go hard core and run every day of the week.โ Itโs not going to happen. We know from the literature if you make realistic, holistic lifestyle changes, youโre going to have more success.โ
That means you never again need to go on a diet.
Students can get their cardio in at the George Street Fitness Center.
โWeโre trying not to use the word diet anymore because it means temporary changes rather than making more holistic changes in what you eat,โ says Dudgeon. โSo, for example, one change might be to say โIโm going to avoid processed sugar or avoid white flour.โ Those are easy steps you can make. People tend to fail when they say something like โIโm not eating carbohydrates at all,โ but when you go to a party and all there is is pizza, you canโt avoid that. Making those simple lifestyle changes โ and making it a full lifestyle change โ is a good start.โ
In terms of exercise and fitness, if you havenโt worked out in a while, the first thing to do is to avoid sitting.
โThereโs been a lot of research recently about how bad sitting is,โ says the exercise science professor. โIf youโre in the office, get a stand-up desk. If youโre on the phone, stand up and walk around. If youโre reading, pick up your book and read. Have walking meetings. Start by making small changes in your lifestyle that donโt involve going to the gym.โ
The next step is to set an exercise routine. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends we accumulate 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. Dudgeon says that means exercising at a pace where you can barely carry on a conversation.
And donโt work out alone. ย
โItโs always better to seek out the experts first, so whether youโre working out on campus or whether youโre going outside of campus, rely on folks who have credentials to tell you what to do,โ says Dudgeon. โThereโs a lot of accountability when you either pay money to someone or there is someone checking up on you.โ
Strength training can help build muscle and burn more calories.
The Department of Health and Human Performance offers fitness classes for credit, such as a bridge run class that prepares students to run the annual 10K Cooper River Bridge Run or the Couch to 5K running class, a beginner class that trains students to continuously run a 5K race. Campus Recreation Services also offers a host of exercise classes for students, faculty and staff, including yoga, running classes, spinning classes and high-intensity interval training classes.
Dudgeon says regardless of whether itโs your first time exercising in years or if youโre wanting to step-up your exercise routine, set a goal, which could include improving cardiovascular endurance, building muscle or losing weight.
One myth that needs to be debunked, Dudgeon says โ particularly for women โ is that building muscle will make you bulky.
โIโm a big proponent of strength training because the more muscle mass you build, the more calories you burn, the more fat you keep off,โ he says. โWeโve kind of been taught the wrong thing for the last 30 years: That you go run to lose weight. Running is great for you, but lifting weights is actually a better way to burn calories than running.”
Dudgeon adds, โHigh intensity interval training will help you lift weights the right way to capitalize on calorie burning and building muscle mass.”
Again, start slow. If you start by walking more throughout the day and adding sets of push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups or squats, youโll be on your way to better physical fitness.
โIt doesnโt have to be about going to the gym,โ says Dudgeon. โStart by setting a goal, holding yourself accountable and making realistic, permanent changes.โ
Hereโs to getting fit in the New Year!
