Feel Amazing For Summer: Part 2

Follow health, fitness and wellbeing expert Faith Shorney as she explains how to train healthily and stay motivated in Feel Amazing For Summer: Part 2.

Training for a better body, or training for a better life?

There’s a big difference between the two and it really is down to your mindset. Are you motivated to get in the gym and do the work, or does it feel like a chore? Something I’ve discovered over the years is that, when I lose motivation and exercise starts to feel like “work”, be it running, going to the gym or doing yoga, sometimes its hard to get out of bed and make it happen. The motivation for a “better body” often isn’t enough, and we end up fighting an internal battle with ourselves, which leads us to feelings of guilt and shame at our lack of motivation, the work we didn’t do or the weight we just can’t seem to shift. .

Over the past 3 weeks I’ve gotten back into the gym, and gone hard; the last time I trained consistently was 18 months ago, before I was diagnosed with ME (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). If ever there was a “wake up call” to live a better life, and look after myself, that was definitely it. During that period I began to focus what little energy I had, on doing things that made me happy, and that benefited my health. My weight went up and down for a long time, despite my best efforts with my nutrition, and eventually I ended up being heavier than I’ve ever been. Over the last 4 months I have significantly recovered, allowing me the energy to walk more, do yoga, and finally begin to pursue my exercise and fitness goals.

Shifting the goal posts

The biggest change in my life has been my mindset and view of myself; when you are faced with a debilitating illness that robs you of your physical strength, energy and motivation, your focus shifts. I was terrified of losing the energetic, fit and healthy person I once was, and there were times when I questioned whether I would ever be able to do these things again. Since beginning my recovery nearly 4 months ago, my mindset has completely shifted; where in the past I had been concerned with my body image and weight (the superficial things), since having ME my focus is now solely on feeling my best, having the energy and focus I need to get through the day, and looking after my body in the best way possible.

The issue I see with most women today is that we are conditioned to focus on the outward physical appearance of our bodies, and not pay any real attention to what’s going on inside. This often results in poor health, malnutrition, unhealthy weight fluctuation, and even worse, mental side effects such as eating disorders, depression and anxiety.

The positive side effects of looking after your OVERALL health and wellbeing are endless;. In the past few months I have naturally lost quite a lot of the weight I had gained, and every day I wake up happier, with more energy. It’s a been slow start, and my fitness levels are nowhere near where they used to be, and I am still frustrated at my lack of strength and energy, but at this point I am focussing on monitoring my health during the 12 weeks of my new training regime, and I am already seeing huge improvements, both mentally and physically.

I’ve started training 3-4 times per week at W10 performance in West London – this consists of crossfit style workouts in semi-private training setting. There are a maximum of 3 people per trainer in these sessions, which allows for a personalised workout and attention, with the added motivation and support of a small group. Personally, this has completely changed my view on gyms and training with a Personal Trainer, the workouts are intense but thoroughly enjoyable, and I feel like I’m well looked after by a professional team of excellent trainers.

I’ve only trained 2 out of the last 3 weeks as I was off training during week 2 with a nasty cold and chest infection, frustrating, but these things happen. As I’ve mentioned before, my health and happiness comes first, and although I like the idea of being hard-as-nails and pushing through it, I’ve learnt that being gentle with myself is often far more rewarding in the long run – training can also make an illness a lot worse and slow recovery considerably.

What does it all mean?

The improvements in my strength have been remarkable, and although my cardiovascular fitness is taking longer to catch up, I’m already seeing the improvements in my heart rate and rate of recovery. I feel happier, I’m sleeping better, my skin and hair are improving and I feel lighter (even if the scales say otherwise). There’s a lot to be said for the number of benefits a good diet and basic training can have on a person.

If you’d asked me 4 months ago, I don’t think I would have believed that I could be where I am today. My own view of health and wellbeing has shifted dramatically, and I am confident in the way I look because I LOVE my body. It’s by no means perfect, I have area’s I’d love to improve, but I am not obsessing over them. I just wish we could create a culture that promotes genuine body-love and healthy eating, physical activity and fun. Maybe one day.