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"The best exercise is the one you can do consistently."
Strength or resistance exercises are building stronger muscles.
Balance exercises help to prevent falls while flexibility exercises help freedom of movement.
Because aerobic and strength exercises provide more significant benefits than balance and flexibility, my focus should be aerobic and strength. Because aerobic and strength exercises provide different benefits, I should include both in my fitness program.
In additional to heart healthy, aerobic exercises are more effective for reducing visceral fat - the abdominal fat that surrounds your organs 3.
However, if fat oxidation doesn't provide energy fast enough, muscle will be broken down as fuel, which is not a side effect I want.
Because sprinting has similar positive effects with much lower risk of loosing muscles according to one study 2, I will pick sprinting over running to save time and muscles.
Sprinting: 5-minute warm up, 20-minute sprints, and 5-minute cool down. Sprints are 30-second all-out sprints and 60-second recovery walks.
Muscle Growth
Muscle Growth = Stimulate + Energy Surplus + Recovery
The primarily mechanisms to stimulate muscle growth is progressive overload, metabolic stress, and mechanical damage 4. For practicality and simplicity, I focus on progressive overload and mechanical damage. Progressive overload means gradually adding more weight to each exercise or increasing reps. Mechanical damage means focusing on the eccentric portion of the exercise such as lowering slower for the pull up exercise.
Because building more muscle or any body tissue requires energy, I need to feed my body slightly more than my daily maintenance intake. So knowing my TDEE is important.
Finally, recovery is very important. I break muscles while working out and build muscles when I am sleeping. Ensure sleeping at lease 8 hours for muscle recovery and better mood.
Performing Specific Exercises
Proper form is critical to activate the right muscles and prevent injuries