Gazette Dec. 2008: Ditch Those Same Old Resolutions

Posted on Monday, September 26, 2011 under In The News with No Comments

By Adrianna Scott

Ditch those same old resolutions

Raise your hand if you are resolving to lose weight this new year… again.

It baffles me just a little, seeing people every January with the same good resolution, but going about it the same way they did last year and the year before and the year before that! Time to ditch it! And think in a new way. Think about getting stronger this year, getting fit, and get that focus off the scale. Think about strength training. This is difficult for many, as they view lost pounds as the ultimate result and shy away from anything that might actually add weight to the scale. But strength training is so essential. Our modern bodies aren’t getting the same physical attention they were in past generations, and for many of us, it shows.

It’s so important to improve our functionality for everyday living, increase our bone density, lower our body fat percentage, and make ourselves stronger. Your body will adapt to the demands you place upon it. Therefore, strength training should be designed for the results you need and want as an individual.

Strength training no longer equates to how much weight an individual can bench press. There are many methods, each designed to yield a specific result. Training one way will increase the size of your muscle fibers, another way will increase your strength, other ways will improve your stability and alter your body composition. There is no “one size fits all” approach. It should be designed for you as an individual, the ways in which your body has been affected by your lifestyle, and the results you seek. Strength training is for everyone, it just has to be tailored to your abilities and goals.

As for losing weight? Well, muscle weighs more than fat. As you increase your muscle mass, and decrease your body fat, the number on the scale could increase, or may just stay the same. This is not failure by a long stretch! If you are increasing your muscle mass, your body composition will become leaner and more defined. Your measurements will change. Translated, this is what getting fit, having a lower body fat percentage for better overall health is all about.

So I challenge these people who want to “lose weight” to step away from the scale and look to a more positive focus. Take notice of how your clothes fit, how you feel when you look in the mirror, maybe even how many pushups you can do in a minute? Yes, cardiovascular exercise is an integral part of losing body fat, as well as working the heart and expanding the lung capacity. Its benefits are undeniable. But the proper strength training routine with the right intensity, performed as a circuit can burn just as many calories as traditional cardiovascular exercise if not more. The more intense, the more calories burned.

The deep dark secret to weight loss is to burn more calories than we consume in a day. That’s it. The answer doesn’t come in a pill or a “24 hour miracle diet”, it comes from the right combination of a healthy diet and exercise.

Take the challenge this new year to ditch that same old resolution and focus on a leaner, stronger and more healthy you!

Adrianna Scott is a Personal Trainer and Group Fitness instructor at Cornerstone Health and Fitness. She is also a Figure and Fitness Competitor.