The CoActive Health Journey Part 1 – Robust Good Health – The foundation to great results

The clue is in the name – everything we do here at CoActive Health is underpinned by us striving for and maintaining robust good health.

Key Take aways:

• Health is the foundation to fitness results
• Hard training is what get results but we can only tolerate hard training if we have robust good health
• Optimising Hydration, food, sleep and daily movement is where to start

Regardless of your fitness goals you need to have good health as a foundation if you are going to have sustainable results.

Training hard and consistently is what ultimately yields results but if you are not healthy enough to handle this added stress then ultimately you will break down in the form of injury or illness.

All too often I see over ambitious people who have been neglecting their health and fitness for years suddenly jump right into extreme ‘transformational’ routines that they are simply are not ready for.

More than likely the individuals stress reserves are already being taxed due to:

• In adequate sleep duration and quality
• Poor nutrition
• Excess body fat
• Poor hydration

All of these factors sap low energy reserves leaving your health vulnerable. So when you throw on top a generic high intensity training regime along with an extreme calorie deficit then it is only a matter of time before the wheels come off and the body breaks down in the form of injury or illness.

So before we get you squatting twice your body weight and training 6 days a week we must first establish your current health status and establish exactly how much ‘added stress’ in the form of training you are ready to take on.

This is why, when you first start at CoActive we will assess your current health and fitness status before starting your training. Depending on your situation, initially you may need to put more energy into factors outside the gym such as cleaning up your diet and improving your sleep habits. Then as your health improves and you have more energy we will be able to up your gym training accordingly.

In order to get you started on your journey towards good health and ultimately great results, first we need to get the basics right.

We have covered these ad nauseum in past articles but its always good to be reminded:

1: Hydration

• Water is the single most important nutrient for health, growth and development.
• Good hydration is required for maintaining healthy blood flow, proper kidney function, correct sodium/potassium balance and proper digestive functions.
• Dehydration leads to chronic inflammation draining energy reserves and putting the brakes on fat loss progress drink 39ml per KG body weight of clean water every day.

2: Food

• Move towards a simpler cleaner diet made up primarily of single ingredient foods.
• Cut out inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy, soy and alcohol. This will take stress off the body.
• Increase fresh vegetable intake for their fibre and bioavailable minerals and vitamins.
• Eat adequate lean protein and fat to balance blood sugars, support detoxification and boost brain and joint health.

3: Sleep

• Get adequate sleep – usually 7-9 hours a night.
• It will optimise your hormone levels during the day allowing you to get the most out of your body.
• Poor sleep is like trying to function with the hand brake on – prioritise it!

4: Movement – Training

• We are built to move – however you pitch it, sitting for 8 hours + a day in front of a computer screen is not natural. If you don’t move enough your joints will stiffen, your muscles will atrophy and your brain function will be impeded.
• As an absolute minimum we should strive for an hour of structured physical activity a day – this can include everything from brisk walking through to intense metabolic conditioning. The key is sticking to a routine that you enjoy and that keeps yielding positive results like improved energy levels, leaner body comp and higher performance levels.
• Working alongside a qualified coach will help you formulate a training plan that matches your wants and needs in this area.

Once you have started to lay the foundations of robust good health in the form of healthy habits that encompass the above, you will have the resilience to start training your body in a more intense and consistent manner which ultimately is going to get you results.

So regardless of where you want to end up with your training be it winning the ‘Nation Fitness Games’ or just losing a few pounds of excess body fat – it all starts with laying the foundations for robust good health.

Additional Support

If you have have any questions or would like to book in for a complimentary discovery call, get in touch using the form below.