the lazy one
Stereotype: Exercise? Say again?
“What a lazy person most needs is a friend to workout with, as generally they have no desire to push themselves into working out,” explains Dalton Wong, weight loss expert at Bodyism Clinic.
“The best is for them to join a class with a dynamic vibe and common goal — that adds pressure and they are more likely to participate.”
A lazy person should plan ahead. Set aside one afternoon to prepare meals for the next few days,” says Wong. “At the supermarket, pick up everything at once, and go for the easy options such as pre-cut vegetables and fruit.
“With someone who’s lazy it can go one of two ways,” says nutritionist Carrie Wiatt, who has designed meal plans for Jennifer Aniston and Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie. “They can either over or under eat. Their laziness could cause them to reach out for ready made processed foods, often full of additives, salt and sugar.”
The Athlete
Stereotype: You wake up in the morning and hit the pool or go for a 5 km run.
“What an athlete needs most is rest,” says Wong.
When someone is always ‘go, go, go!’ in the long run, they will end up injured and unable to exercise.
“Exercise addicts need self imposed ‘time out’ from their routine where they should do little more than stretch to allow their body to recover,” suggests Wong.
“For every intense week of training in three or four weeks they should be taking one week off.” For diet, Wong suggests that they should eat plenty of ‘living’ foods, especially green vegetables and lean proteins.
The workaholic
Stereotype: You have your local takeaway on speed dial and sleep with your Blackberry under your pillow.
“Our bodies are designed to move, even if this is a two minute walk to the water cooler every hour or talking the stairs instead of the lift,” says Wong.
“We need an absolute minimum of 15 to 20 minutes a day where we keep moving if we want to keep the weight off.
He suggests regular meals as most of the time workaholics forget to eat during the day and then binge eat at night. “If your body functions well then you will have more energy and focus and be more productive at work.”
The stay at home parents
Stereotype: You have a screaming baby to deal with and no time for a two-hour gym session.
“Parents focus on their children 100 per cent,” says Wiatt. “They spend so much time cooking meals for others that they don’t eat properly themselves and lack the energy to get through a hectic day,” she adds.
Wong says parents need to be conscious of what they eat.
“The key is to avoid picking and have set meals, as parents tend to erratically graze at food throughout the day, which in the long term, leads to an excess in calories and weight gain.”
He also advises parents to exercise with their kids, whether it’s running or rolling around
“Learn to work out in short bursts whenever you can,” he says. “Doing house work and running errands burns calories and do some squats or lunges when the baby is having a nap, or put on an exercise DVD. Anything is better than nothing.”
The singleton
Stereotype: TV dinners on the couch vs. weekends spent clubbing.
“The one thing about working out when you’re single is to do something that you love and don’t consider a chore. As no one is imposing anything on you, do what you want, just make sure you’re passionate for what you do whether its rock climbing, running or yoga,” says Wong. The same thing applies to a single person’s diet — eat what you enjoy!
