Mark Tibats (44 years old) Men’s health After years of sporadic training and dieting, how did he change his body and improve his overall health?
I can say that the midlife crisis was mild. My children are growing rapidly and I want to be a healthy and active parent. As you move into your mid-40s, you become more and more aware of your health and need to find a better balance with your work and family efforts so that you can spend more time on your health. I have. Before COVID, I traveled a lot for work, but it was difficult to get into my daily life. At least that was my main excuse. Last summer I realized that one of the silvery linings of this pandemic was that I wasn’t traveling. I’ve been trying to get better for a while, but I’ve had a hard time maintaining discipline and consistency in my diet and exercise. My wife knew a few people training in Ultimate Performance in Hong Kong and kept showing results. The last straw that motivated me to stay in touch was that she showed me one of these changes, especially after a few unhealthy days.
Above all, I want to be a role model for my son and daughter and promote an active lifestyle. We are an active family and both are involved in many sports. My son Harry is particularly passionate about sports in general. He’s only eight years old and I’ve been quite involved so far, but in the future I’m willing to stay healthy and healthy, set his great example as he grows up, and participate as much as possible. is. I also have two brothers, one of whom lives in Hong Kong. We are so competitive that I set up a little side challenge to encourage him to sign up for UP. After seeing my results, he was driven to make me better, so I think he signed up and made some really impressive changes in UP in the last few months.
I’ve done weight training before, but it’s never been this kind of focused focus and detailed coaching. When I started the transformation challenge, I was physically fit to the sensation of aerobic exercise, but I was pretty sick. I had 27 percent body fat and subnormal upper body muscle condition. My core was also pretty weak.
The first thing we did was to reduce my daily calories to 1,500, most of which was dominated by protein. We also increased water consumption. I fasted intermittently and ate fairly thin from Monday to Friday, but on weekends I rarely controlled myself, so I ate too much carbs. During the transformation, I was very trained. I weighed every part and put everything into the app (I was always tapping the phone, which was a great help to my family’s frustration). There were few cheat days. I found it difficult to eat enough protein, so I ate whey protein shakes and occasionally protein bars every day. I also ate a lot of vegetables!
The biggest and most striking lesson for me was the effect of carbohydrates, especially on glycogen storage and water retention. I used to really struggle with weight fluctuations, but now I know a lot about how my body works and how I control it. From a workout perspective, I know more about how to organize workouts and target specific muscle groups. I’m still a beginner, but my confidence and productivity in the gym have improved significantly.
I was in the gym only three days a week, but I also did some light aerobic exercise on intermittent days, such as running 5 km, trail running, and cycling. Most of the week I took a break without exercising, but at some point I attended a 7-day weekly routine, which made me feel good. Squats and deadlifts, especially split squats and pendulum squats, were tough, but I enjoyed a lot of exercise. However, I noticed that these exercises had a big impact on my core strength and my historic lower back weakness was much better. no pain no gain!
As a parent with a busy career, it’s hard to find time before and after work every day, and the demand for sessions before 9am, lunch, and after 5pm is very high, and I’m fortunate to be a family member and employer. Supported me. I was able to reschedul my work so that I could go to the gym a couple of times a week during less busy hours during the day of work, and that day I was able to regain my time at home as a parent. Of course, I still had to get up a few days late and train on the weekends, but my flexibility at work gave me the balance to maintain it and establish healthy habits. ..
In three and a half months, I lost about 26 pounds, became 27% to 13% body fat, and gained about 3 pounds of muscle mass. Apart from the obvious physical consequences, the greatest benefit associated was cognitive function. I found that at work I was faster, sharper, more productive, and definitely had more energy. We have completely stopped snoring, which is also popular at home!
I initially had some limiting beliefs about whether I could stay below 80 kg (176 pounds) and stay there. I finally reached 72.5 kg (160 lbs), so I completely changed those beliefs, and I’m really sure I can keep it. It gives me more control over my health and is also useful when I want to relax, enjoy extravagant food and drinks, or rest for a few days. It doesn’t get me off track like it used to.
I’m sure I’ve done the difficult part, but I think I’ll go a little further. However, we still have some goals left and we know we can achieve more.
My advice for anyone who wants to work in their fitness is to hire a trainer to support you both outside and in the gym. The time I spend in the gym is important, but the biggest thing for me was that there were people out there who could make healthy choices when I was having a hard time motivating myself. At 10 pm, spending an additional 3,000 steps to reach your daily goals, choosing the right food to order at a restaurant, running at 10 pm after a long day at work, and many other turning points. I’ve achieved my goal. .. The reason I achieved this was because trainer Dan put me straight and tight outside the gym.
Also, look beyond the cost and don’t think about it “every gym session”! One of the big concerns I almost stopped was the cost of personal training. In retrospect, the time Dan literally set aside for me every day inside and outside the gym is far more palatable. I couldn’t do it myself, and I realized at my age that health was worth every dollar to invest.
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