5 questions to ask your gym trainer

Getting to the gym can be hard enough with all the time constraints in your everyday lives like traffic, work and spending time with our families getting in the way. When you finally get to the gym it feels like a victory, however the one hour spent in the gym is hardly enough in order to be healthy for the 8 hours that you sit every day. It is important to change your lifestyle, especially when you are not at the gym to see the benefits of training. Here are some questions that you need to ask your trainer so that you get the most out of your exercise sessions.

What to eat before and after training?

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This will greatly depend on the type of exercise programme you follow, the intensity of the exercises and your goals. For example, if you want to lose weight and your instructor has included cardiovascular exercise as your programme of the day, it is best to exercise in a fasting state, early in the morning. This is because when the body is fasting it starts using fat stores as fuel for the exercise. Another example is when your goal is building muscle. Here you need to consume a proper meal which includes protein and carbohydrates, two hours before you go to the gym. Right before the workout, have a couple of sips of protein shake, if you don’t take protein supplements, having some nuts or beans before a workout will do the job too. After your workout be sure to drink the rest of the protein shake or consume a meal rich in protein.

What quantity of water should you consume and the duration you should sleep for?

These will also depend on the type of exercise, the intensity of the programme the location – whether outdoors or indoors – as well as the duration of the workout session. Programmes that are of longer duration and higher intensity might require you to drink more fluids. On an average, anyone who trains regularly should drink about 4-5 litres of water. While training outdoors in a hot and humid climate, more care has to be taken. Make sure you consume lots of fluids before rather than on the day of training, so that the water has time to be stored in your body. Finally, sleep impacts training because muscles grow when you are sleeping. The average adult needs to sleep 6-8 hours per night.

What to do when you’re not training?

Many people think that if they train three days a week they will lose excess weight or gain muscle. However, research suggests that engaging in exercise for one hour a day becomes useless if you sit for more than six hours a day. This means that if you are not active during the most part of the day all the benefits from training for that one hour is lost. In order to reach your goal quicker you have to stay active throughout the day hence, the most important question to ask your fitness professional is what to do when you are not training. Here a standing desk can come in handy to burn those extra calories. Another tip is to walk to colleagues who sit in the same office, instead of sending emails, taking the stairs to different offices and getting up every hour for five minutes and walking around. Since most jobs require you to sit for most of time, make sure that your sitting posture is proper. Sitting for so long with the wrong posture can cause a lot of back pain. Always make sure that you have a good chair, that your forearms are in line with the table and arm handles and that your neck is straight. In order to prevent back pain make sure you do regular core exercises while training.

What should be your ideal heart rate for a session?

Heart rate is a very important measure of intensity during training, therefore ask your gym trainer what your ideal heart rate for the session has to be. Heart rate can vary with age, gender, fitness level and exercise. Children tend to have a higher heart rate while training whereas adults have a slower heart rate. However, in unfit adults, the heart rate can spike abnormally while working out. It is crucial to monitor it throughout the programme because it can indicate intensity as well as irregularities and diseases. Make sure you breathe enough and at the right stages of the exercise can help slow down the heart rate. Adults with a history of heart disease and high blood pressure as well as individuals that are older also need to be monitored carefully. A simple calculation can be made to know what your maximum heart rate is – 220 minus your age. This will make sure you don’t overdo it.

What are the variations to my programme?

Ask your trainer to vary your programme. Gym programmes can sometimes get very repetitive and mundane and this usually makes people lose interest in training. Adding variations or completely changing them can light up the spark to train again. The body loves change so keep challenging yourself and ask your trainer to challenge you. Ask him/her to design programmes such as strength with power, strength training in a circuit training format or HIIT instead of cardiovascular training.

Exercising is a crucial part of staying healthy, and exercising regularly with a trainer can be hugely beneficial to your health. However, many people don't fully utilise their trainers by asking them relevant questions. Asking the above basic questions will help your trainer design a more customised programme for you. You will see more benefits from your time at the gym, as well as see and feel better when your body changes.

From the May 2017 issue of FHM India.