The ideal body

Social media and the entertainment industry have continuously fed us with images of women with bodies that are almost impossible to achieve by natural means. We have to keep in mind that the lighting and angle plays a huge role in creating illusions that make these bodies seem ideal for an attractive instagram post.

Young girls push themselves beyond limits to achieve the stereotypical body in very short periods of time, which is unrealistic and most importantly, unhealthy.

The common misconception is that a high calorie-deficit diet with cardio workouts everyday would do the trick. However without proper customised diet and exercise regime, mindless dieting and extreme workout regimens serves to only wreak havoc to the body system. So, let’s plunge into a discussion about how we can achieve a healthy body in a healthy way.

DETOXIFICATION

We all have a cloudy idea as to what detoxification means and this word has been overused, abused and misinterpreted by the health enthusiasts and the public in general.

Some believe that it includes drinking a litre of water in an empty stomach in the morning or having sugar-free concentrated lemon water with mint lives thrown in. Some believe that a heavy-metal detox drink with celery, spinach and lime will flush the harmful toxins out.

Source: https://www.azivmedics.com/how-iv-therapy-can-help-with-detoxification

A one-day detox or crash diets is never a practical solution. Positive outcomes rely on consistency in a clean diet with determination to stay healthy. Although there are therapeutic ways to detoxify the body system, the most practical and useful is through the practice of fasting (not starving), through intermittent fasting and a consistently clean diet filled with necessary vitamins, minerals, fibers and polyphenols that protect the body from oxidative stress.

Dysbiosis (This is a huge topic on its own to be discussed about) plays a major role in the development of many chronic illnesses (though this is not the only reason for all diseases) and this an enigma that physicians (especially gastroenterologists) and researchers are still trying to understand.

WORK-OUTS

Before getting a gym-membership and jumping from one machine to another, we need to have an understanding of what kind of body type we have. Modern science has classified the body types into Ectomorphs, Mesomorphs and Endomorphs.

Ectomorphs are generally lanky, with their shoulders being narrower than their hips, they generally do not gain weight easily no matter how much they eat.

Their goal is to,

• Gain some healthy weight and hence they can follow resistance training to build overall strength, there isn't a need to go too hard on cardio workouts.

• Diet should consist of high amounts of carbohydrates (to accomodate to the high metabolism).

• Protein in moderation and fat can be consumed in a slightly higher percentage

Mesomorphs are known to have the “lucky genes” as they have an athletic body with efficient metabolism, they can easily put on weight but they can easily lose the extra pounds and maintain their weight.

Their goal is to,

• Tone their body by reducing fat percentage and increasing muscle muscle mass

• Diet consisting of equal amounts of carbohydrates, protein and fat.

• Work-out sessions should include strength and endurance training for the most part with cardio workouts at least twice a week 

Endomorphs have a softer and rounder body with larger hip width. They gain weight easily and find it difficult to lose it as well. They have a slow metabolism but have comparatively strong muscles than the other body types.

Their goal is to,

• Lose the excess weight to begin with

• Training: At least 3 to 4 days of strength training and 1 HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) per week with shorter rest intervals in workout circuits and cardio workouts at least thrice a week.

• On days that cardio workouts are being done, increasing the portion of carbohydrate intake is pertinent so that you don't faint on the sidewalk during your run.

• The general rule of thumb is to go high on protein intake, have a moderate amount of healthy fat intake, and go low on carbohydrates.

• Once the fat percentage has dropped and you've shed some pounds to look rather toned, that's when you can alter your diet to go easy on your carbs.

Remember that not everyone will fit in cozy into these three categories. You may see yourself overlap in 2 out of these 3 categories as well.

All this however, is just a general guidance. Every body, each person's metabolism, their past and current relationship with food and body image, their past history of injuries (which may stifle their progress in exercise regimes) and many other factors have to be taken into consideration when designing a dietary plan and an exercise regime. This has to be carefully crafted through thorough history taking and discussion with a physician appropriately.

DIET 

Diet does 80% of the work in shaping our body and the remaining 20% is through your work-outs. Portion control is the first thing we need to understand; which is basically determining how much carbohydrates, proteins and fat should be on our plate. This is purely based on your body type and the kind of physical training you engage yourself in on that day.

Healthy fats

There is a general misconception that “fat” in diet has to be excluded in a weight loss regime. Healthy fats aid in providing satiety and controlling one’s portion size and keeping full for longer.

Discussing with your physician as to how this should be done appropriately is extremely important.

COPE WITH YOUR STRESS

The mind and body are not independent of each other; they function as a single entity. An excess of the stress hormone, “cortisol” causes your body to store fat as a response to your "flight or fight" mode and holds onto the fat stubbornly (so no matter how much of sit-ups you do, it's just not going to budge). The extra fat deposition occurs especially around the belly (known as central obesity).

Find ways to calm yourself down and approach challenges one-step at a time. Being grateful for all that we have in itself brings great joy and satisfaction which automatically sweeps away undue stress. We need to detach ourselves from the vicious cycle of rambling about the past and worrying about the future; instead learning to live in the present is of paramount importance. 

PERSISTENCE

Many lack the patience and mental strength to push on and continue a regime that they have committed themselves to. Crash diets do not work and reducing 10kgs in 1 month is absolutely impractical and highly dangerous. Keep the progress in a slow pace and break down your long-term goal into smaller checkpoints of achievements.

Keep it slow and steady because it takes months to reduce your body fat percentage and increase your muscle mass in order to tone up!

BOTTOM LINE

Nothing comes easy. You need to commit yourself to a exercise regime, remain motivated, have patience to see the results over a long period of time, change your lifestyle all-together and above all, enjoy the process!

References:

Michael Roussell, Ph.D. 7 Ways to Curb Hunger and Shrink Your Waistline, Available at: https://www.active.com/nutrition/articles/7-ways-to-curb-hunger-and-shrink-your-waistline (Accessed: 26th May 2020).

Lucy Jones (15 Dec 2019) Weight loss: Knowing your body type could help you shed pounds – so what shape are you?, Available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/10544853/weight-loss-body-type-shed-pounds-shape/ (Accessed: 26th May 2020).

Joanna Soh Official. “How to exercise & Diet Correctly for your Body Type.” YouTube, 25 May. 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5z7c7NdcH7I

Dr. Lisa Young (April 23, 2019) These 8 portion-control hacks really work!, Available at: https://drlisayoung.com/8-portion-control-hacks-that-really-work/ (Accessed: 26th May 2020).

Julia Mullaney (September 8, 2018) Here’s What Happens to Your Body During and After a HIIT Workout, Available at: https://www.cheatsheet.com/health-fitness/what-happens-to-body-during-and-after-hiit-workout.html/ (Accessed: 26th May 2020).

Z Living Staff (June 16, 2018) Yogendra Pranayama | Breathing Techniques for Overall Well-Being, Available at: https://www.zliving.com/fitness/yoga/yoga-poses/yogendra-pranayama-1-97515/ (Accessed: 27th May 2020).