Simplified Guide For Your Fitness Journey

The most important thing in your Fitness Journey/Career is to define a goal and follow it with consistency. Without a goal one can never efficiently reach the top of the ladder. I mention efficiently because if we do not ever give up, we will eventually climb higher but with a lot of difficulties in terms of injuries, inconsistency, lack of motivation and frustration. In order to get the most out of your journey, it is important for you to define a goal and then work towards it in an efficient way.

So your GOAL needs to be the most important factor when starting your journey. Your goal can either be a MICRO (1–4 weeks) and a MACRO/Long Term (12–24 Weeks) and it can be understood in the following S.M.A.R.T Framework:

a. S = Specific

b. M = Measurable

c. A = Achievable

d. R = Realistic

e. T = Timely

Once we have our goals defined in the above framework, it now gets easier to plan your nutrition and Exercise routine. The goals are generalised in two categories: Fat/Weight Loss and Muscle Gain. Of course there are 100’s of specialisation within these two goals and even outside, but the scope of the document would go beyond this.

We will be bifurcating these two goals and what are the most important factors whilst following either or rather any goal.

Before going in the details, let us first understand the most basic terms and analogy which will be seeing frequently in the article;

1. BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate): The amount of calories required by our body in order to survive is called BMR. Imagine yourself waking up in the morning and sitting on the bed again till bed time without consuming food/water or even moving, the bare amount of calories/energy required for your body would be called BMR.

2. TDEE (Total Daily Energy expenditure): The amount of calories you burn in the entire day. This is a sum of your BMR Calories along with all the movement (such as walking, bathing, washing dishes, cooking, exercise, climbing stairs et cetera) in a given day. It also includes energy spent in digesting your overall food in day which is known as Thermic Effect of Food (TEF).

Thus,
TDEE = BMR + PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES (Exercise + Non-Exercise) + TEF

3. Macro Nutrients: They are classified in 3 important Macros: Protein, Carbohydrates, Fats.

4. Resistance Training: Any kind of activity/exercise which causes our body to go through resistance against a motion without injuring or enduring discomfort in joints is called resistance training eg: Gym, lifting shopping bags, walking stairs with loaded bag pack.

FAT / WEIGHT LOSS: This entire goal is purely a scientific simplification of energy balance which means the amount of net calories consumed to net calories burned by an individual in a given day. It is as simple as that (there are certain important factors which will be addressed below). The basic structure of fat loss would look as;

Daily Calories Consumed 2000 & Daily Calories Burned > 2000,

Then Fat/Weight loss will occur.

The net daily caloric requirement depends on a lot of variable factors such as our age, weight, height, sex, body composition and also depends on how sedentary/active our lifestyle is.

However, the science of energy balance i.e. Calorie In vs Out is slightly more technical. Our aim should be to eat above our BMR energy/calorie requirement. How to calculate BMR is another scope which would require further technical details. Because simply eating lesser than TDEE would result in weight loss but that can be also due to loss of MUSCLE MASS and weight from water. Our aim should be to preserve muscle mass as much as possible and aim for FAT LOSS. This is possible by RESISTANCE TRAINING and adequate protein intake (1.6–2.2 g / kg of body weight). If muscle mass is lost, there are chances the original weight may relapse or even more than your original weight and your overall health and energy levels may drop as well.

Hence along with proper energy balance (not a very low calorie intake diet), a resistance training plan should always be followed for a healthier fat/weight loss.

MUSCLE GAIN: The gaining of muscles/weight is slightly a more complicated or trickier to understand. Along with the energy balance principle of calorie in VS calorie out, here a lot of other factors are to be considered. We will break down the factors in their order of priority as:

1. Net Caloric surplus i.e. Calories eaten should me more than calories burned.

2. Net Protein Intake: The recommended protein intake for building muscles is 1.6-2.2 g/ kg of your body weight. For instance, A 100 kg individual will require 160-220 g protein per day.

3. Resistance Training: For gaining muscle, certain form of resistance training is required. The amount of training depends largely on the experience of the lifter which will again require a very wider scope of information. Factors of progressive overload needs to be inculcated. Progressive simply means improving in your workouts periodically.

However for both Fat/Weight loss and Muscle gaining, a lot of other factors are to be considered which will ensure better results:

1. Consistency/Adherence: There is no perfect diet or workout plan. Even an average plan followed with proper consistency will achieve great results in any goal

2. Sustainability: If your diet/workout is sustainable, you are more likely to be consistent and adhere to it. Sustainability is basically anything you would be able to follow without a lot of effort. Everyday foods (with proper macro nutrients), home workouts, or workouts of worth 30 minutes in the gym.

3. Enjoyable: If you like what you are following or doing, again would be more likely to be adhered to.

4. Sleep: Irrespective of the goal, a minimum of 7–8 hours of quality sleep is required every day

5. Water Intake: A minimum of 4–6 litres of water is required for an adult. There are calculations as to how much water an individual should drink, but the majority of the average falls in this bracket.

6. Activeness: Keeping active throughout the day makes your body burn more calories and keep your overall metabolism better. This can be in any possible way, example, walking 10,000+ steps every day, cycling/walking to work, taking steps instead of lifts et cetera.

7. Low Stress: A better stress management and approach can aid your fitness journey.

The goal or aim is not to just drop fat or gain muscle. The aim is about inculcating a lifestyle which becomes your routine. Example, winning a gold medal or finishing first in a race is great. But staying the champion for the rest of of your life is Legendary.