HYPERTROPHY: A KEY TO BETTER LIFE
Before I start, I want to ask you all that when was the last time you did the workout? Are you in your best shape and happy with your physique?
Well !!! Let me share with you some facts and statistics on the eve of this World Heath Day 2023.
In today's world where a country like India, where obesity has reached 6.4 % of women and 4.0% of men aged 15-49 of the total population and ranks 3rd after the USA and China ( as per the fifth round of National Family Health Survey) which is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetics. No wonder nowadays insulin production and price is rising due to there being almost a person in a family is a diabetic patient. Every day renowned people are dying from a heart attacks, we read in the newspaper, a common thing to all of us.
Recently world health day has been observed on 7th April worldwide as the foundation day of WHO and creating awareness on the priority area of public health. Not just this year, we are celebrating this Day since 1948. Well, are we that much of aware even after 75 years? Statistics show the reality. As per the article of TOI by 2035 if the same trend of obesity and overweight continue half of the population will be coming under such categories.
I and my friend Jitendra Naik (Jitu), one of my colleagues at my articleship Firm, started our fitness journey last year and we both are in the best shape of body and mind now. I often discuss fitness-related matters with him.
- How can we overcome this?
- Is this a real problem we need to emphasise?
- Well! We are CA's and CA students where we have 12 hours of work and Study, managing Office and family, when should I get time for fitness?
I guess you are also in the same dilemma now thinking about these why and wondering if this article is only just for world health day and nothing relating the finance and accounting or taxation.
Let me tell you that the power and strength of India is its Youth Power. Can we imagine a nation developing and becoming a superpower with a weak mind set and unfit physique? In my dream India, the answer is a big NO. I do not want to see my India in such a condition where we are empty from the inside and proud of the 15 trillion economies. This pandemic of 2019 created a lot of chaos and tension for the last 3 years and this is the time we need a perfect blueprint for our youth. You are a part of this future imagination also.
Well !!! What is the solution?
I think the best way to escape this problem is to understand the law of thermodynamics. The process of HYPERTROPHY, METABOLISMS and CALORIES DEFICIT.
Don't worry; I know many of you are new to these scientific words. Let's know one by one.
HYPERTROPHY: It is a process of increase in lean muscle mass and resulting in muscle gain when a particular person continuously challenges the muscles to deal with a higher level of resistance or weight. It results from resistance or weight training that bodybuilders do in a gym. After a workout your body repair and replace damaged muscle fibre through a cellular process where it fuses muscle fibre to form new muscle protein stand. When we work out, micro-tears of muscle get damaged. It's repaired by a nearby cell called a satellite cell. It utilizes amino acids for muscle building and maintenance. An important part is it will all happen when we rest after a workout.
Lingaraj! We don't want to be bodybuilders? Girls can be in thinking of they don't want to look muscular. What should we do?
Well, my answer is looking muscular just like a professional bodybuilder is not the only option and output of hypertrophy. Professional bodybuilder people take drugs, highly intense calories and bulk to the next level with a proper team and prepare for a championship like Mr Olympia.
Hypertrophy in a natural way is for everyone. Remember our ancestors who are powerful enough and equipped with the confidence of winning battles decay after decay. Just 100 years passed since all these stopped and I want to make you remember that we all are born from the same genetics and blood and we can also get the same strength and power by muscle building. There are other benefits of this process:
- You became mentally stronger
- Even putting 10 kg of lean muscle mass can increase your net worth in cr.
- Reduce stress and maintain Hormones balance
- It improves life quality and adds years to your life
- It builds confidence and character in you.
This process in men is faster and better due to testosterone hormones which are lacking in females. That is the reason men build more muscle and more strength than female. Another point to add here is your protein intake; every person needs 2gm of protein for each kg of weight. That's the main factor and nutrition needs your body for better HYPERTROPHY.
METABOLISMS: Metabolism is the process by which food converts into energy. During this process, calories in food and drinks mix with oxygen to make the energy the body need. A fun fact is even if you rest, your body needs energy, including breathing, sending blood to the body, and keeping hormones level even. The more your muscle mass the more energy it needs resulting in a higher metabolisms rate. Well, we must keep our body energetic from good foods like vegetables, fruits and more protein enriched food like meat, eggs etc. What we eat turns into calories. If we do not spend those calories it becomes fats. Your body is having more fat because these calories have never been utilized and these will be stored in your body. Just remember our ancestors, who live in the jungle, hunting. Some timed their foods sometimes not. Our body utilizes this energy at that time. Proper metabolism not only gives you energy but also increases your life longevity. Just for example, you can take a diet plan which is more popular nowadays for fat loss. These are designed in such a way body gets sufficient good calories rather than empty calories from cold drinks, junk foods or fast foods which are absent of any macro nutrition. 1 gram of protein and carb has 4 calories and 1 gram of fat has 9 calories. Accordingly, a diet plan is made for the meeting body metabolism process and helps in muscle building.
What should we do now Lingaraj? We have not either followed a good diet tracking calories or workout daily and now we have fat?
Well, don't worry at all. We CA students have every solution. Let’s discuss it.
CALORIES DEFICIT: Calories Deficits simply mean you are eating Fewer Calories than burning. It's the only and only way to fat loss. It's a very simple math. As discussed above what we eat became calories in the body and that energy we spend variously. We already understood in the above Para how to intake food for better metabolism. But for burning calories our daily activities special for CA and CA students and professionals are not sufficient, especially in comparison to when we eat and sit in the office and work mentally rather than any physical activity. All the unutilized calories become fat and the weakest part of the body. Our belly catches these resulting from belly fat, hiding our abdomen muscles, which is also standard for looking handsome nowadays. Let me tell you one thing these 6-pack or 8-pack abs are not rocket science. It's already there in everyone's body just celebrity people work on themselves and make themselves stronger and get likes on Instagram. You can also have that luxury with a proper diet and calorie deficits and regular exercise.
The best way to burn calories is through strength training and regular exercise and nowadays corporate cultures, I suggest and follow also. You can join into gym or workout at home also. Many influencers are helping me with this.
For example, let's say you intake 2000 calories, and burn 2500 calories, the extra 500 calories are utilized from body fat which was stored by the body resulting from the law of thermodynamics and the same process goes on. One day you will realize all those unnecessary fat which was making you look fat would be lost and you will be in your best shape. If you follow HYPERTROPHY your body would at that time gain some muscles also. It depends on how you spend your energy. It's all cyclical and interconnected. That's how you can be in your best shape and live life fullest in a natural way. One thing to carefully remember here is spot reduction is not possible. From which part your body will utilize deficit calories is your genetic decision. I remember when I was on my fat loss journey, (Yeah! I have also undergone a fat loss process and lost 15 kg in 7 months and also under resistance training daily ), fat loss started in my back and from my belly in the last. The key is patience and hard work. Baby step at a time, in the long run with you, your body will surely give you results.
But Lingaraj! We understood the law of thermodynamics now. But we don't know where to start.
Well, don't worry. As I said we are CA students. We have every solution.
"Early to bed, early to rise, make a man healthy and wise."
The very old saying of Benjamin Franklin is very true nowadays. Just design a timetable sticking to bedtime and wake-up time in the morning preferably before sunrise. Then follow just 5 steps suggested by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the greatest bodybuilder all the time and 8X Mr Olympia, he says:-
- Go for a 15-minute walk.
- Have a protein-filled breakfast.
- Complete 20 minutes workout. I don't care if you do pushups or squats or pumping with dumbbells or barbells. Let's build some strength.
- Do 5 minutes of stretching
- Call a friend and spread positivity, challenge them for doing something healthy.
Lastly, I would like to end with a saying,
"fitness ka dose, 1 ghanta har rose".
