Fitness

A 41-year-old transformed his body with 2 diet changes and 1 simple workout technique

Published

3 months ago

September 20, 2024

A 41-year-old transformed his body with 2 diet changes and 1 simple workout technique

An office worker got ripped and transformed his fitness in seven months with a few simple changes to his diet and exercise routine.

London-based Alec Knebeg, 41, works for a bank and said he had spent years hitting the gym with little to show for it.

“I’ve always been somebody who went to the gym, but I didn’t really know how to achieve what I wanted to do,” he told Business Insider. “I had been plodding along doing the same thing for a few years not seeing a lot of results.”

Earlier this year, Knebeg began working with personal trainer Adam Enaz, who specializes in men’s fitness transformations. Enaz helped him streamline his workouts and clean up his diet to break through the frustrating fitness plateau.

Knebeg said he was able to build muscle, burn fat, and look visibly fitter thanks to three major habits: he started lifting heavier weights with a basic exercise technique, and added a protein goal and calorie deficit to his diet.

More challenging exercise led to better results

Knebeg said he started seeing major progress in the gym after picking up a technique called progressive overload.

In his 20s and 30s, “if something was too heavy, I wouldn’t push myself,” Kneberg said.

Enaz pushed him to gradually increasing the challenge of exercises over time in order to force the muscles to adapt.

To do so safely, he encouraged Kneberg to keep track of what he was lifting and aim for lifting heavier weights with more reps. The goal was getting within a few reps of failure, the point of being physically unable to continue with good form. Some recent research suggests working near muscle failure can lead to more muscle growth.

But without the help of a personal trainer, most people underestimate how hard they can (and should) train for best results, according to Enaz.

“In a normal, day-to-day person, what they consider failure is 20% short of what real failure is,” he said. “Most people only really get to failure when they’re working with a PT.”

Knebeg said his current workout schedule involves three to four session per week for about an hour each. The sessions include a quick cardio warmup followed by six to eight exercises, using supersets (or back-to-back movements without rest) to save time. Knebeg also switched from a workout split to doing a full body workout every day. He said the change gave him more energy to push himself.

“I’ve been able to lift things i’ve never been able to do before. I’m kind of impressing myself because it’s things I didn’t think i could do,” he said.

Diet tweaks helped, too

Knebeg didn’t make all his gains in the gym. He also made a few basic adjustments to his eating habits.

Previously, he didn’t pay much attention to calories, and would often eat multiple servings of food at a time without thinking much of it.

But becoming more mindful of portion sizes, and sticking to a daily calorie and protein goal, helped him burn fat and build muscle.

How to know if your workout is effective

Some simple signs can you help tell if you’re challenging yourself enough to build muscle and strength, according to Enaz.

Your workouts are more likely to be effective if:

The weight starts slowing down as the reps going on, indicating your muscles are under enough tension to prompt growth
You’re struggling to complete the final rep of a set, but still have good form — if you stop when it starts to feel hard, you could be leaving gains on the table
A workout log shows that you’ve been steadily increasing the amount of weight, number of reps, or numbers of sets you can complete over time, a clear signal of progress

The last point is key, since one of the most common mistakes is failing to keep track of your workouts, since that makes it difficult to tell if you’re improving and to keep pushing yourself.

“A majority of people go wrong because they don’t record anything,” Enaz said.

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Fitness

Does exercise sharpen your memory? How long do the benefits last? New research

Published

2 hours ago

December 20, 2024

Press Room

Does exercise sharpen your memory? How long do the benefits last? New research

Most of us have forgotten where we put our phones or car keys or what we ate for dinner last night. We’ve walked into a room and wondered why we even walked in there in the first place. A sharper memory helps us retain the information we’ve learned and remember what’s important. We’re always hearing about this superfood or this special drink or supplement that can boost memory, and we wonder if there’s any merit to many of these claims.

With all the benefits of exercise, from lowering blood pressure to perking up your mood, researchers wanted to explore if exercise could boost memory and how long these benefits last. If working out is effective, how many hours or days do those short-term cognitive benefits last? Does working out the day before improve your memory the following day? Let’s look at the new research.

The study

Airam Dato-on / Pexels

In a small study published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, researchers analyzed data from 76 adults. Participants were aged 50 to 83. Over eight days, participants took daily cognitive tests and wore activity trackers.

The results

Man happy smiling at desk stretching arms positive — Vitaly Gariev / Unsplash

Researchers revealed that participants who engaged in more moderate to vigorous physical activity performed better in memory tests the following day. The adults who had better scores on the memory tests:

Moderate activity can include brisk walking, cycling, or jogging. Participants who spent more time being sedentary performed worse on the tests.

Previous research

man smiling drinking tea working at desk — Olly / Pexels

This isn’t the first study to associate exercise with a better memory, and it certainly won’t be the last. Research has shown that moving your muscles enhances your neuronal activity, which refers to the chemical and electrical signals generated and transmitted by neurons in your brain. Previous studies found that people had better results on memory tests in the hours following exercise, but researchers weren’t sure how long these positive effects stick around.

Interestingly, researchers in one study determined that high-intensity interval training or HIIT and cycling were the types of exercise most likely to enhance memory, executive function, attention, and information processing.

Why does exercise improve recollection and cognition?

man exercising at night working out running outdoors high intensity dark nighttime — Drerun / Pexels

Researchers and experts believe exercise can improve memory and cognition by increasing blood flow and stimulation of neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters help transmit messages between nerve cells to assist memory and thinking. Exercise can also prompt the hippocampus to form new neurons. The hippocampus in your brain plays a big role in your learning and recollection.

Neuroplasticity of the brain

man headphones thinking smart reading book writing — Diimejii / Pexels

Research highlights that exercise promotes neuroplasticity in the brain. Neuroplasticity refers to your brain’s ability to adapt and form synaptic connections, particularly in response to learning, experience, or after an injury.

The takeaway

Man holding green kettleball doing pilates workout exercise gym wearing shorts no shirt — Alonso Reyes / Unsplash

Spending less time sitting and getting a minimum of 6 hours of sleep every night is beneficial for your mental faculties and overall health. If you get a good workout in the day before, your mind and memory could be sharper the following day. It turns out that working out really could enhance your memory, at least for the next 24 hours, which is worth keeping in mind if you have a big presentation or test coming up. The research is mounting.

Fitness

Lift in gym to lift your mood: Study shows getting ripped reduces depression risk

Published

10 hours ago

December 20, 2024

Press Room

Lift in gym to lift your mood: Study shows getting ripped reduces depression risk

Dec 20, 2024 06:22 PM IST

Building muscle may as well be building a mental fortitude as a study reveals that muscle mass strength lowers depression risk.

Hit the gym, and lift to uplift your mood. Getting shredded not only makes you physically stronger but also mentally stronger as well. It significantly reduces the risk of depression. A study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders revealed that stronger grip strength and higher muscle mass help to reduce the risk of depression. It indicates how physical strength is related to mental resilience.

The study indicates that with specialised exercise which builds muscles, one can reduce depression risk.(Shutterstock)

ALSO READ: Want to lose fat and build muscle? Woman who lost 4 kg in a month shares best ‘fat loss’ exercise routine

Connection between getting muscular and lowered depression

There’s an inverse correlation between muscle strength and depression. Muscle mass and grip strength can essentially predict depression risk as per the study. Led by Linjie Qiu of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Science, the researchers examined over 4,800 adults, assessing their muscle mass and depressive symptoms.

The findings showed how muscle mass and grip strength could predict the risk of depression. The depression risk dropped with higher muscular strength. Those participants who had higher muscle mass and grip strength were significantly less likely to experience depression. For every 5 kg increase in grip strength, the likelihood of depression dropped by 5.7% Similarly, a 1 kg increase in muscle mass reduced the risk by 5.5%.

ALSO READ: 10 exercises to build muscle without weights or any gym equipment

Who benefits the most

Muscles are not just for the show, they have several benefits.(Shutterstock)

So, working out and getting muscle is mentally healthy as it keeps the mood brightened, lowering depression risk. This effect of building muscles and seeing improvements in mood is even more pronounced for people aged 40 to 59 as ageing after 30 sees a natural decline in muscle mass. Additionally, the connection between higher muscle mass and lowered depression was notably stronger among men and individuals with a healthy body mass index.

It’s a misconception to assume building muscle is solely for physical attraction or flexing in the mirror. This study shed light on one of the many benefits of gaining muscle. It safeguards mental wellbeing by reducing depression risk.

ALSO READ: Do you love processed foods? Shocking study reveals what it does to our muscles

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.

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Fitness

Jane Fonda, 86, is back as fitness guru in new virtual workouts from Meta

Published

17 hours ago

December 20, 2024

Press Room

Jane Fonda, 86, is back as fitness guru in new virtual workouts from Meta

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