10 steps to fitness

Fitness is not just physical. Getting physically fit requires motivation and it generates emotional and spiritual renewal. Your path to physical, emotional, mental and spiritual fitness will be uniquely your own but the steps you can follow are broadly outlined below. Step 1, and probably step 2, are essential but the rest will depend on your wants and needs.

Step 1: Remind yourself why

You need to be convinced in your own mind that you need to exercise before you will begin to do it. So, to get started, you need to remind yourself why you must, not could or should, be fit. To start, with regular exercise your body adapts by becoming stronger, functioning more efficiently and developing greater endurance. Exercise enhances transport of nutrients and oxygen into cells as well as improving waste removal. Exercise is also an efficient way to burn fat and build muscle. Muscle mass, in turn, keeps your body stable and holds obesity at bay. Improvements in blood flow from exercise also reduce the incidence of many ailments associated with ageing. Lung function also benefits from exercise and the maximisation of oxygen-carrying capacity that exercise brings to your blood means all organs and tissues benefit. Being fit also slows your ageing process, builds new brain cells and boosts your mood. Knowing all this is the first step to getting fit. The next step, if you are beginning, is to get moving and the best way to start is by walking.

Step 2: Walk

Walking makes your fitness goals simple and achievable. There are no expenses involved (except investing in walking shoes) and it can be done anywhere, any time. Walking can be as varied as you like — choose a different route each day, adjust your pace according to your needs, make it a more meditative experience or start a walking group with some friends as a way to exercise together. Over the years, there have been countless studies that have revealed walking can be beneficial in reducing the incidence of a range of health problems, including heart disease, hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, obesity and even some types of cancer. Once you have taken the step of getting your body moving with walking, a range of next steps open up for you.

Step 3: Run

Running burns kilojoules, boosts mood, relieves stress and is a great cardiovascular workout. If you are not already a runner, start slowly with a routine of 60 seconds walking, then 30 seconds running, and repeat that 10 times. Then you can gradually start to increase your running time. Over several sessions, you might build up to two or three minutes running with one minute walking, then five minutes running with 30 seconds walking and so on. If you get really serious about running, you might want to become a long-distance runner and this can be a kind of meditation. The focus on breath and rhythmic movement in a long run is undeniably meditative and studies have shown that distance running and meditation both lift mood through the same chemical mechanisms in your body.

Step 4: Swim

The health benefits of swimming are myriad. People who swim at least once a week are less likely to succumb to heart disease and heart attacks than those who do little high-intensity exercise. Swimming may also protect the brain from “silent strokes”, small brain lesions that can lead to mental decline and increase the chances of a future stroke. Perhaps more than, or at least as much as, any other exercise, swimming can help you breathe easier. Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise for people with asthma, especially children. It’s less likely to cause asthma symptoms because swimmers breathe in air near the surface of the water that is warmer and more humid than normal air. Swimming training can increase the volume of the lungs as well as help develop good breathing techniques. Like long-distance running, swimming can become a meditation in itself.

Step 5: Dance

Research shows that dance improves cardiovascular health, increases muscle strength and endurance, boosts self-esteem, confidence and body awareness, promotes weight loss and reduces the risk of osteoporosis. Dance has also been credited with relieving stress, anxiety and depression and improving social skills. Dance can even help prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, one study found that the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent ballroom dancing. Whether it be jazz, ballroom, or contemporary, all dance styles have something positive to offer your fitness routine. These days, dance styles specifically aimed at being exercise-like are available, such as Zumba and pole-dancing. If you want something more steeped in tradition, bellydancing is also an excellent workout.

Step 6: Cycle

Competitive road cyclists are recognisable by their lean physiques, muscular bodies and amazing stamina. Yet you don’t have to be a champion or ride a road bike to enjoy all the health benefits of cycling. Three 30-minute rides a week can see you reap the following rewards. Cycling promotes aerobic fitness, muscle strength and endurance, and it can be a social event as well. If you are a beginner, start riding short distances of 5–10km three times a week and work up to longer rides. This will also help reduce bottom soreness. As your fitness improves, increase the kilometres. Remember, tired muscles are fine, although sore joints probably mean the bike is not set up correctly. Get your helmet, get your gloves and whatever other cycling paraphernalia you require and get on your bike.

Step 7: Lift weights

Strength training may once have been viewed only as a training method for male bodybuilders but, these days, average male and female exercisers are realising its importance for healthy bones, muscles and healthy ageing. Strength training always uses resistance of some form and so can also be called “resistance training”. The resistance may be a weight you are trying to lift or it might be your own bodyweight, as in a push-up or squat. Weight training offers so much to a person wanting to get fit. It increases strength and power and it helps with weight loss by firing up the metabolism and boosting lean muscle mass. In addition, it will build bone density and that all adds up to improved sports performance.

Step 8: Try Pilates

What makes Pilates different from most other exercise forms is that it promises anatomically correct exercise. It seeks to develop controlled and thus safe movement from your core, or “powerhouse”. Your powerhouse is the centre of your body, the area between your bottom ribs and the top of your pubic bone. It includes the abdominals, the pelvic floor, the muscles around the hip joint and the muscles of the lower back. The Pilates movements can be difficult if you have back or knee problems, so a class situation with a qualified instructor (some physiotherapists are Pilates instructors) is really the best forum in which to begin. When practised correctly, Pilates will improve your flexibility, strength, muscle tone, body shape, circulation, energy levels and concentration.

Step 9: Learn a martial art

In learning martial arts you’ll improve your cardio fitness, core strength and flexibility. Yet there is far more to martial arts than combat and a way of learning self-defence or engaging in exercise. Martial arts embody spiritual development as well as physical training. Within the very essence of martial arts training are core values such as courage, tolerance and respect for all living things. Through martial arts you’ll also develop perseverance, discipline, loyalty and serenity, qualities that can benefit you in your daily life. Martial arts will enhance your understanding of the natural world you live in and help you to develop deeper, more meaningful relationships with others. If the competitive aspect of martial arts is not for you, that doesn’t mean you cannot engage in the discipline of learning the art itself. Tai chi is an excellent example of this, wherein no combat takes place but the controlled forms are a kind of moving meditation that promote physical, mental and spiritual health.

Step 10: Try yoga

Yoga is a very personal practice and is suitable for almost anyone regardless of age, gender, weight or fitness level. It offers a unique range of benefits that make it a valuable addition to any fitness routine. Those unfamiliar with it may consider yoga to be a series of stretches that tone, strengthen and improve flexibility. That is a part of yoga but the yoga postures or asanas make up just one aspect of yoga practice. On a physical level, yoga asanas are classified as isometric, meaning muscle length is constant and poses are static (the asana itself is steady although movement is required to transition in and out of it). This is particularly beneficial for building muscular endurance and toning the body, including the internal organs. Yogic asanas, when combined with breath control and meditation, help still the mind and remove these blockages to bring your physical body back into alignment. This paves the way to allow you to connect with your divine or spiritual self. Remember not to discount yoga because you fear you won’t be good enough. Yoga is a learning process that will see you grow and improve.

Connecting the dots

As a final thought, whichever of the 10 steps you decide are right for you, see your fitness routine as an act of connection. It is an act of connecting with your body and giving it what it needs to be strong and healthy. The pursuit of your fitness allows you, as you focus on the rhythms of your exercise, to connect with your mind and soul. If you choose to exercise with others in a gym class or a yoga session, it will offer you the chance for real connection with other people as you share the highs and challenges of physical activity.

Terry Robson is co-editor of WellBeing magazine, a broadcaster, journalist and author. His latest book is Failure IS an Option published by ABC Books.