Anyone can be an athlete

There seems to be an exciting movement towards health and fitness in T&T and it is happening quickly. It reminds me of the 1990s when the gym craze was in full swing. In the last ten years, however, our inclination to unhealthy eating and more sedentary lifestyles took over—demands at work, starting families… the distractions are endless. As is the natural way, though, life is a cycle and it would appear that our society has thankfully made full circle to this health-conscious hype once again. My own training for the Hardcore obstacle course that took place recently, landed me on a much needed, though dreaded, Lady Chancellor Hill run. While mentally focusing on the benefits of this physically stressful and painfully boring training exercise (do not be fooled! Not all aspects of fitness training is a good time), I noticed the movement mechanics of some of my colleagues on the same route.

It dawned on me that some of the same drills that are given in youth sport development will benefit many adults who are trying to return to or begin more active regimes. During the last year, in my professional setting, I have met numerous individuals who have admitted to having been grossly overweight previously. Of course they have come to my clinic having sustained an injury, hence the reason for our encounter. In most of these cases, in their quest for a healthier lifestyle, they developed tendonitis, muscle strains, muscle imbalances, over-compensations and other relatively minor injuries that could develop into chronic conditions or life-sentences of nagging irritations that limit functional ability. Inspired by these admirably ambitious and determined individuals, the following are some very basic guidelines in a gradual and safe return to a calorie-burning, physically vigorous, stream-lined and sexy, energetic lifestyle.

Balance your personal and professional commitments: Understand how much time you have to commit to exercise every week which will vary depending on the goal. As far as possible, find a way to do what it takes to make that happen. If it means, hiring a babysitter or getting support from a friend or family member for the time, do it! Look at it as an investment.

Muscle condition: As humans we do a ridiculous amount of sitting. We sit to work, drive, watch television, eat, etc. The length of time humans sit daily is being linked to shortened life-spans. That said, it must be recognised that a certain measure of muscle reorientation must take place before transitioning to intermediate and advanced levels of rigorous activity despite your enthusiasm. Activities that encourage gradual muscle contraction, using just your body weight such as yoga and TRX training, starting at the beginner level are safe and effective ways to get your cardiac and skeletal muscles adjusted to new and challenging movements. Isolating individual muscles as well as full body movements can all be done with minimal impact on the joints using these mediums.

Joints: Having reduced activity levels for many years, the joints in the skeleton, where tendons run and other important structural elements are located to facilitate movement and mechanical forces would have become affected. Our bodies are sculpted based on the tensions that are placed on them by our posture and movement patterns. Therefore, a person who slouches at his computer may find their chest muscles are tight and their back muscles are weak. A person who sits on their bed with their feet on the outside of their thigh versus Indian style, forcing their thigh bone (femur) into internal rotation, may find that their knees are easily affected by heavy activity. This is because their knee caps (patella) positioning and tracking ability have become affected.

Flexibility: In both the joints and the muscles flexibility is important. The easiest form of exercise is to walk or run, so very often this is one of the first forms of exercise started. It is very important to make sure that 20 minutes is spent after every exercise session stretching the calves with the knee straight and then with the knee bent, quad muscles (at the front of the thigh), the hamstrings (at the back of the thigh), the butt muscles and hip rotators (do a google image search for “hip rotator stretches” to find examples), groin muscles and finally but not limited to, stretch the lower back.

Happy and healthy exercising Trinidad and Tobago. Anyone can be an athlete.