Strength, Mobility and Flexibility, and Body Composition
In my previous post about finding joy in fitness, I mentioned six categories of fitness that many fitness and exercise regimens can fit into strength, flexibility and mobility, speed, kinesthetic intelligence, and endurance. While these categories are helpful, there is considerable overlap among them.
STRENGTH
Bodybuilders and people competing in World's Strongest Man competitions are not the only people who want to be stronger; in fact, many don't want the bulky muscles of those athletes. Some of us just want to just be stronger. Some people have a more simple (but still important) goal of getting up from a chair without using their hands; that's still a strength goal.
Increasing your strength starts with bodyweight exercises like squats, push-ups, and various floor exercises that don't require equipment. (If you read "push-ups" and immediately got anxiety, understand that there are easy versions of push-ups you can start with — wall push-ups for example.)
For those ready to add tools to their fitness regimen, the next level would be resistance bands which will give you a challenge without breaking you. Gym machines, dumbbells, and barbells are the tools of choice for those that want to dig deep and build even more strength.
FLEXIBILITY AND MOBILITY
Preserving and improving the range of motion in your joints allows you to enjoy movement with less stiffness and pain: this is mobility. And related to this, flexibility is the ability to elongate your connective tissue. Improving this can prevent injury. People who want to thrive in this category do activities like Yoga and Animal Flow. (Note: we are blessed to have on our staff a certified Animal Flow and Stick Mobility instructor, Sensei Nick Rosalez, who has educated many of us in mobility and flexibility. Talk to him if this is your category.)
This category is a category I ignored for a while in pursuit of more mass. I find when I am the sorest or when I get injured, it is often because I have neglected this category. So, I regularly add this into my warm-ups (mobility) and cool-downs (flexibility).
BODY COMPOSITION
Whenever someone tells me they are trying to lose weight, I find this is rarely the goal. What they mean is they want to reduce their waistline, fit into a certain size, or they want to look a certain way that think is healthier (thinner or more toned, usually). Remember: the scale is one health measure, but it doesn't have the final word. If you gain some muscle you may find that you INCREASE your weight! Yet muscle improvement may be what you are after if you want a more toned muscle appearance.
To lose weight or to lower your body fat composition, you need to get a sustained caloric burn during your fitness. Our Max Fitness program utilizes a timing system called High-Intensity Interval Training which moves us back and forth between moderate and intense work. Such a timing protocol allows us to sustain our workout for longer while alternating between improving cardiovascular work, which burns a lot of calories, and a fat-burning heart rate. Pairing this with eating healthy foods can generally help you achieve the goal of losing weight and toning muscle.
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Can you see how these categories overlap? My fitness activity hangs out in all of these categories. I wanted to be stronger, but to do that I had to improve my mobility and flexibility (otherwise, I would subject myself to injury and soreness that would not allow me to progress further). As I pursued being stronger, I started becoming a fairly bulky person with less definition in my muscles; this wasn't exactly the look I wanted. I modified my regimen to include interval training, helping me achieve the appearance I also want. Each aspect of my fitness regimen helps the others.
In the next post I will discuss the last three categories of fitness:
Speed, Kinesthetic Intelligence, and Endurance
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