I, reiterate, I am not a huge fan of new year resolutions, but am all for having an effective fitness program. If you are going to set fitness goals for 2019, what should you consider?
The most important consideration is “opportunity costs”. That is, we all have the same 24-hour day. Everything we do comes at the expense of something else. Thus, there is no excuse for not exercising, if that is your goal. There are always limitations to our time. We must use it wisely.
What we do for exercise will be based on our goals and personal preferences. For most of us, our fitness goals will necessitate some weightlifting—heavy weightlifting.“Heavy”, of course, is relative. By heavy, I mean intense overload for the purpose of adding strength and muscle mass. Contrary to this, many favor cardiorespiratory because they believe it is the most effecting path to fat loss.
According to the American College of Sports Medicine Guidelines, for cardiorespiratory fitness, one should accumulate moderate-intensity exercise (40-60% of heart rate reserve, HHR) for at least 30 minutes on 5 or more days a week, for a total of 150 minutes per week, or vigorous-intensity exercise (60-85% of HRR) for at least 20-25 minutes on 3 or more days a week for a total of 75 minutes per week. For weight loss, 50-60 minutes per day to a total of 300 minutes of moderate exercise is recommended. Unfortunately, these recommendations don’t emphasize the importance of weight training for weight management.
A recent Washington Post article* shared that 58% of U.S. adults do no type of muscle-strengthening exercise. With muscle-strengthening, though, the added muscle mass not only benefits work capacity but also body composition (increased lean muscle results in a reduction in fat percentage—even with no fat loss). In addition, more muscle means increased metabolism. A higher resting metabolism means a higher total daily energy expenditure. With consideration of caloric balance, this means that maintaining caloric balance (eucaloric diet) or being hypocaloric for (fat) weight loss is easier.
Cardiorespiratory exercise is great to one’s health, but, alone, it is insufficient for sustained fat loss. A recommendation of 300 minutes of weekly exercise is not unreasonable, but, again, opportunity costs. How one uses this time can make all the difference. Cardio should not be ignored, but more vigorous (according to one’s physical capabilities and health) cardio for less time leaves time for weight training. In as little as three sessions per week (e.g., a total of 90 minutes per week) can be enough to achieve one’s minimum effective volume for growth.
Everyone’s time availability is different—though not everyone capitalizes on the opportunity. Rather than making resolutions for 2019, consider a reprioritization of your day. Allocate an appropriate amount of time for exercise and use it wisely. Prioritize exercise and the results will come.
Be your best today; be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!