Health and Fitness: Ask Ingrid
Hope everyone had a great New Year and festive season. Now is a good time to start or change your fitness routine. And as usual Talkabout readers have two great questions again for me to answer.
First question
Why do I feel tired and grumpy before a workout or run (and have to talk myself into doing it) and then afterwards I feel less tired?
The most likely answer is that you are not really tired. More likely, you’re simply suffering from boredom, a sugar low, or lack of motivation. Then, when you do some physical exercise, your metabolic rate goes up, and straight away you feel energized.
If you don’t feel less tired 10-15 minutes into your exercise session, then perhaps you really are tired or sick. At those times it might be best to give the training a miss and let your body recover.
You could be suffering from low blood sugar. If that’s the case, then a low glycemic snack like a honey sandwich, a banana, some boiled rice or a sports drink should get you ready for action.
If boredom is the cause, or you’re just going stale, then doing something active, but new, may be the answer. Perhaps it’s time for a new program. Change the activity, or alternate hard and easy sessions so your body has to respond to something new.
If motivation seems to be the problem, then book in for a session with a trainer, join a club, ask a friend to exercise with you, or make a plan with goals, and use that to motivate yourself.
Second question
Do exercises like crunches flatten your stomach or make it bigger? What can I do to get a flat stomach?
The answer to this one goes back to core stability. The most important core stabilizers are the three layers of abdominal muscles, which work together with your lower back to hold you upright.
Most ordinary crunches work the outer layer of the stomach and are good for getting tone and a six pack but not flattening it. It is the deep inner layer of abdominal muscles that flattens the stomach and gives you good posture. It acts like a corset and holds everything in by lifting and flattening your middle section.
Remember the core muscles switch off and stop working if you don’t use them for a week or two. They are unlike most other muscles that fade gradually, and will still respond when needed after much longer.
If you go to a trainer or the gym, make sure at least five minutes of each workout is spent on core stability exercises, as well as another five minutes on crunch type exercises. The same thing applies if you are training yourself. And again, if you are starting out, make sure you do core stability exercises right from the beginning.
Exercises that I have covered over the years in Talkabout which qualify as core stability exercises are
- Dead Bugs
- Ball Crunches
- Ab Holds
- Ball Balances
- Triple Crunches
I know several of these exercises are crunches, but it is the unstable surface of the ball that makes ball crunches a core stability exercise. It’s also the prolonged holding in the triple crunches that make it a stomach flattener.
Do you have any fitness questions for Ingrid? Email them to editor@positivelife.org.au [5] or write to “Ask Ingrid” PO Box 831 Darlinghurst 1300