Whatever your goal, making fitness part of your weekly routine can help you get there
For Sandra Sykes, getting fit is much more than a matter of appearance – it’s a necessity for the kind of life she wants to lead. “My main motivation is that I like to travel a lot,” she says. “I want to make sure I’ve done everything I can to get myself into good health before I venture out.” Sykes, 57, visited Nicaragua last November and discovered a lack of fitness was holding her back: for instance, she wanted to take a tour that involved jumping into water from a shoreline and clambering out again later. But she wasn’t confident she’d be strong enough and didn’t want to slow down the group, or risk injury in a foreign country. Even prolonged walking on uneven terrain proved challenging. “I found I was holding back a lot,” she says. Well, no more: Sykes is one of 14 Albertans participating in a YMCA of Northern Alberta fitness challenge, part of a larger program that aims to tackle community health issues such as sedentary lifestyles, heart disease, diabetes, lack of proper nutrition and more. As part of the 12-week challenge, participants set personal goals for improving their fitness, eating habits and overall wellness. The YMCA is providing personal and group training, as well as nutritional coaching in partnership with Weight Watchers, to help them get there. The group began in January and is now about halfway through. Since starting the challenge, Sykes has been hitting the gym about five times a week. Her work with the trainer began slowly, with movements to improve her form and posture, and to strengthen an abductor muscle that had grown weak from lack of use. “We’re starting with the simplest things, trying to [establish] that muscle memory, so that the right muscles are kicking in at the right time,” she says. Sykes doesn’t much care for free weights or floor exercises when working out on her own, so she flipped through the YMCA program and decided to try Aquafit. She wound up falling in love with it, for its low impact, and for the camaraderie and motivation that comes with working out in a group. “At a gym like the Y, there are such a variety of programs. If you keep at it, you’ll find something you enjoy,” she says. This is key to the success of a fitness regime, notes Jenna Buckley, adult fitness and lifestyle co-ordinator for Edmonton’s Jamie Platz Family YMCA. Setbacks sometimes occur when life events crop up—vacations, stressful work projects, social functions—and healthy habits aren’t yet fully ingrained. So if your chosen activity is fun, it’s much easier to keep going. A lack of “scale victory” early on, despite hard work, can also cause some people to feel discouraged and drop off. “Maybe they’ve stepped on the scale expecting to see a drastic decrease and they only see four or five pounds. That can sometimes cause them to stop,” says Buckley. “That’s where this challenge, and the accountability and continued support through the 12 weeks, is very beneficial.” Accountability has been key for participant Gregg Reynolds, a 30-year-old local radio DJ who decided to apply for the challenge because he’s getting married this July and wants to trim down for his wedding photos. After a few weeks of working out and trying to eat right, he hasn’t dropped many pounds, but says he’s feeling stronger and more energetic. One of Reynolds’ biggest challenges thus far has been keeping a food journal and sticking to a healthy diet. “It’s the first time in my life I’ve tracked what I’m eating,” he says, adding he sometimes catches himself veering toward old habits, like getting a bag of chips after going to the gym (11 of his 40 allowable points for the day on the Weight Watchers program). But he dutifully writes it all down. “The toughest thing is to be honest with yourself,” he says. That applies to workouts, too. “At the gym when the trainer asks how your week is going and if you’re pushing yourself, you’re just hurting yourself if you’re lying,” he says. Reynolds’ workout program has included exercises to improve his balance, support his back and strengthen a nerve-damaged shoulder – as well as weight and circuit training with high-intensity cardio bursts. “You hate it at the time but when you’re done, you think to yourself, that was really good; it pushed me way out of my comfort zone,” he says.