Body Balance
Having a well-balanced physique is increasingly recognised as one of the corner stones of what is considered attractive in a modern man. Gone are the days of over-inflated chests and biceps, flabby abdominals and legs that are continually hidden in Levi’s or tracksuit pants (even in the middle of summer). Today, men should strive for a body that’s strong, toned and, above all, balanced.
To achieve a balanced and attractive physique a new age approach to your fitness regime is required. Scrap the five nights a week lifting weights in the gym, or a split program training a different body part a day (like the body builders do) and replace this with three days of strength training per week, including one night of circuit training. Each of these three days should incorporate exercises that target the major muscle groups of the body.
The content of these workouts should also include some ‘functional’ and all-body exercises that require you to use your body to achieve the equivalent to an every-day task such as climbing a ladder or getting up off the floor and and then lifting an object above your head.
These activities and their use of the body in a balanced and challenging way, have seen the rise of the “Spartan" obstacle style challenges which are popular at the moment such as “Tough Mudder” and Australian Ninja Warrior.
In addition to strengthening exercises, cardiovascular exercise is needed for health but also for burning calories to maintain a healthy and desirable body fat level. Twenty minutes 2 to 3 times per week is sufficient if done at varying intensities that push your limits. Progressively incremented loads and levels will achieve ongoing improvements in the number of calories burnt each session and ensure increases in your aerobic fitness.
Finally select one mind body style class a week to engage your core, stretch and mobilise your joints and relax your mind. Its no use having an awesome physique if you are too tight, sore and stressed to enjoy it!