The authors of this article, Marti Soosaar and Krete Junson, both studied physical education at the University of Tartu. Marti Soosaar founded Stebby, Estonia’s largest health services marketplace, and FitQ, software designed for personal trainers. Krete Junson is the head of fitness at the University of Tartu Academic Sports Club.
How can you finally get that toned, fit body? This is undoubtedly a recurring question for many, and the computational power required to solve it lies somewhere between that needed for the Bitcoin system and the energy required to calculate the limit of pi.
This topic is approached from various angles quite often, and so it’s possible that you, too, have already read a dozen or so such articles just to pass the time, but in the worst-case scenario, your progress has actually regressed between readings rather than moving forward. Were those articles uninformed and poorly written? We’re certainly not revealing any X-Files to you now when we say that, for the most part, your lack of progress isn’t the fault of those stories, but rather the fact that you haven’t actually done much yourself.
With this story, you now have two options as well. You can read it and do something, or you can read it and do nothing. The results will follow accordingly. If you finally decide to say goodbye to the “quitter’s mentality,” then there’s no longer any chance that you won’t read this story to the end.
Do you have time to work out?
Before we get to the actual content, we need to get this question out of the way. Think about it: do you have time to work out? A survey conducted among Stebby users a few years ago revealed that more than 90% of people value an active lifestyle and working out, but the reason why nearly half of them don’t manage to do it enough is a lack of time.
So what’s the reality when it comes to time? We all have 24 hours in a day, yet some manage to work out while others simply can’t find the time. Interestingly, when you take a closer look, it seems that, as a rule, the people who find time to exercise are those who are more energetic and more successful in life. How does it make sense that people who are more successful in their endeavors have more time for exercise than others? Maybe the time they’ve invested in exercise and the energy they’ve gained from it are precisely what have made them more successful?
We need to be honest and call a lack of time what it is—one big, fat excuse. Anyone can get a good workout in just 30 minutes. For example, on the FitQ website, you can start a video workout no matter where you are. Put on your workout clothes and start breaking a sweat—even right in the office. You’ll also save the time it would take to drive to the gym.
Boosting your motivation is key
To turn a lifestyle change into a lasting habit, you actually need motivation and a goal. Your goal doesn’t necessarily have to be setting an Olympic record; it can be something much closer to home—like using exercise to beat that nagging back pain or feeling like your body is a 10/10 every day. If that goal motivates you more than a glass of beer or a slice of cake, then there’s hope that things will start moving in the right direction. But still, if you do enjoy beer or cake, you’re bound to slip up at some point anyway.
So—the first practical tip to make your life more active is this: never give up on your entire journey just because you overindulged one day. Giving up is a surefire way to end up back at square one—or even lower.
In reality, we’re looking for balance in our lives, and mentally beating ourselves up won’t ultimately lead to good results. So try to find a balance between working out and “enjoying life.” Believe that it’s possible.
In the long run, you need to develop a habit that becomes part of your life and is more important than your initial motivation or goal. Goals come and go, but habits stay. Do you remember how hard it was at first to learn to read or ride a bike, but how easy it is today? It’s the same with a workout routine—until you have it, it’s incredibly hard to get yourself out the door. But once the ball has started rolling downhill, it’s hard to stop it.
Getting Started with Exercise
First, let’s distinguish between daily physical activity and exercise. Ideally, you need both in your life. You’ve probably heard here and there that you should take 10,000 steps a day. There isn’t actually a very precise or scientific answer as to why exactly 10,000. Someone once threw out that number, and a lot of people and media outlets picked it up and spread the idea. But there is some truth to that number. Anyone who works in an office, commutes by car, and has ever tracked their daily activity knows full well that on a typical workday, they tend to take more like 2,000–3,000 steps, which is why you need to actively work on staying active both at work and at home. This is definitely one of the keys to a much healthier life than before.
A daily exercise routine keeps your body active and prevents aches and pains caused by various forced postures; it also burns calories, which in today’s world we consume from all sides—more than we intended. If a coworker is celebrating their birthday and offers you a slice of cake, wouldn’t you rather accept it politely and enjoy it? At the same time, that calorie bomb probably wasn’t part of your daily plan to begin with. But you probably have colleagues and their birthdays much more frequently than just once a year. Thirty unplanned pieces of kringle a year ultimately add up to about 1 kg of unplanned fat on your hips. Skipping 30 pieces of kringle while the rest of the team enjoys them like Erik Orgu, in turn, equals 30 frustrating moments a year. Neither of these choices is good. Moderate physical activity gives you good muscle tone, which adds energy to every day. Plus, with a moderate 30-minute daily workout, you’ll burn 200–300 kcal, which allows you—if you wish—to accept that slice of kringle offered by your coworker and sincerely congratulate them on gaining a new life experience.
Don’t forget about your workouts, either
Beginners often ask: Should I focus more on my diet or on working out? Which should I prioritize? It’s as tricky a question as the age-old “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” Without the egg, there would be no chicken—and vice versa. It’s the same with being in good shape. If you hit the gas at the dinner table like Ott Tänak, you’ll end up with abs like Barutol’s. He’s a very athletic guy, isn’t he? If sumo isn’t your sport, though, you’ll unfortunately have to set certain limits on how much you eat—unless you’re burning as many calories a day as Rein Taaramäe does on a mountain stage of the Vuelta.
But is it possible to get slim without working out? If your goal is simply to get slim, then the answer is yes, you can. But do you want to look good or starved? Unfortunately, looking good without exercise just isn’t an option. So, we can safely say that both are equally important. Nutrition experts say that about two-thirds of the focus should be on diet and one-third on exercise, but luckily we’re not dealing with an 8th-grade math problem here, where there’s only one absolutely correct answer. “Life isn’t just black and white,” as Best B4 once sang, and so we, too, recommend consciously focusing on both aspects.
Beginner Spotlight
Imagine a dream. You’re at the gym for the first time, and it feels like everyone is staring at you and smirking at your outfit and those extra few kilos—and the laughter gets especially wild and deafening when you pick up a piece of gym equipment and try to do something with it. Not even the receptionist sitting at the front desk can hold back a smirk, despite the fact that she has her back to the gym and can’t even see you.
Unfortunately, for many people, this isn’t just a nightmare. We’ve heard from several people who seem to have fears like this in real life—and the feeling that everyone else has come to the gym and paid their admission fee just to stare at them with judgmental eyes.
The reality is that everyone at the gym is focused on themselves and their own workout, and no one has time to stare at you. If you’re unsure how to use a particular machine, just ask a fellow gym-goer who looks friendly. They’ll definitely be happy to help you. At larger gyms, you’ll naturally be given a tour of the facility before or after you join, and shown everything you need to know. You can find free weight workout routines with explanations online on your phone—even while you’re working out. This virtually eliminates the chance that you’ll become the star of some ridiculous dumbbell-swinging video with a billion views on YouTube.
If you stick with your workouts long enough to become an old hand yourself, you’ll realize that everyone is there to do their own thing, that every new face is expected and welcome, and that people aren’t at the gym to watch you work out.
The Workout Gear Dilemma
Does good workout gear make you a good athlete, or do you have to be a good athlete first to own good workout gear? There’s no single right answer to this question. Both approaches are possible.
If money isn’t an issue for you—and your bank account got so full yesterday that the bank called and asked you to withdraw some money to free up space—then there’s certainly no harm in to buy yourself the very latest and most expensive gear and then go show your friends how your bling-bling carbon-ultra-extra-max bike’s derailleur is so cutting-edge that it shifts gears just by your thinking about it. Expensive gear isn’t a sin. The main thing is that it motivates you to get moving.
The main thing you shouldn’t think is that if you don’t have the money to buy any gear at all, then being active isn’t for you. With excuses like that, you’ll definitely never get any further than watching the “Home and Away” series (and after watching episode 212 of season 33, you’ll come up with yet another excuse: that you don’t really have the time).
You don’t need any special gear for walking or jogging, especially during the summer. Even in the winter, you can go for a brisk walk—one that doesn’t make you break a sweat—in your everyday clothes. At home, you can do push-ups and general full-body workouts even in your underwear.
If you skip your physical activities because you claim to be short on money, you’ll end up in a situation where you lack the energy and strength to be more active in managing your work affairs and, as a result, get out of your difficult financial situation. Exercise can help you with that, too.
How hard should you push yourself?
To get in good shape, you need to get both your daily diet and your exercise and training routines in order. You’ve surely read that it’s not worth overdoing it. You’ve probably learned the hard way that not trying hard enough won’t get you results. So how much is enough? The rule of thumb is that a training regimen that builds strength starts with three workouts a week. Essentially, this means working out at least every other day.
A practical tip for beginners is this: don’t wear yourself out. Or do it very rarely, on some special occasion. For example, if you’re going on a long day of canoeing with friends, it’s okay if you’re pretty tired by evening, but don’t do that every week.
With marathons and other crazy challenges, you end up doing it one day and then doing nothing for a week. All in all, you’ll find that, on balance, you’ve actually exercised less during that time than you would have if you’d just put in that one big effort on a single day.
A good workout is one where, by the end, you feel a moderate sense of accomplishment and mild fatigue. You’ll recover from that nicely by the next day. Eventually, your fitness will improve so much that your distances will increase and the weights will get heavier without you even noticing over time.
By exercising in moderation, you won’t put your health at risk. If you’re training with a specific goal in mind, then, unfortunately, you won’t be able to get by with just light exercise. In that case, you should definitely get a health checkup before you start, to get an honest assessment of your condition from a sports doctor—and unless you happen to have the same expertise as Mati Alaver, be sure to enlist the help of a trainer.
What do you mean, a trainer? I’m just an amateur!
As mentioned, it makes sense to do this if you want to achieve a specific goal, not just enjoy being active. After all, a good trainer wants to be compensated for their work. So it’s up to you to decide how important achieving your higher goal is to you and whether you’re willing to invest not only your time but also your money to make it happen.
Working with a personal trainer as a recreational athlete doesn’t mean you’re back in the youth class at your sports school, where a potbellied uncle with a stopwatch would aggressively blow his whistle whenever he felt you weren’t trying hard enough. And that seemed to happen about once a minute. You can forget those childhood nightmares, because today you get to choose your own trainer—and largely on your own terms.
What expectations should you have for training with a coach? Obviously, if you’re not Katrina Lehis, there’s no point in going to Nikolai Novosjolov and telling him you want to become an Olympic champion, and then expecting the coach to carry you all the way to the Olympic podium, where you’ll listen to the national anthem with a tear in the corner of your eye. That definitely won’t happen.
A smart coach, however, can help you understand what your current abilities are and how to move forward from there to reach your maximum potential. By involving a good coach in your preparation, you’ll definitely make the most effective use of the time you spend training and you’ll certainly achieve better results than if you were making a plan on your own or training without a plan. Plus, they’ll serve as an extra motivator for you—because if the trainer has put together a plan and you end up not following through, how are you going to look them in the eye?
You’re sure to find good personal trainers at any major recreational sports or fitness club, and you can definitely check out the selection of personal trainers on FitQ—there’s bound to be a trainer there who’s a good fit for you. Working with a personal trainer or joining an adult recreational workout group is becoming increasingly popular around the world and in Estonia.
If you still think you don’t need a trainer and that, for the sake of your health, you can now (after reading this article) manage to exercise and stay motivated on your own, then your path is to expand your own knowledge. You don’t necessarily have to do this with the help of a trainer.
Your friends Google and YouTube are, of course, always ready to lend a helping hand, but unfortunately, their algorithms are optimized not to provide you with the most relevant content possible, but rather to generate as many clicks and views as possible—which can sometimes amount to nothing more than the wild fantasies of some self-assured layman. Many clubs, including, for example, the fitness club at the University of Tartu Academic Sports Club, offer members lectures and useful content on how exercise, nutrition, sleep, and other activities affect your body and its condition—and you can be much more confident in the quality of this information than in the advice from Dr. Google or a YouTube trainer. Always be critical of your sources when educating yourself.
Final Thoughts
Did you read this relatively long blog post all the way to the end? Now we have some good news and some bad news for you. Let’s start with the good news. You can give yourself a pat on the back, because you’ve probably read more text today than 99.9% of the average Instagram scrollers. On top of that, you’ve gained more new knowledge than 99.7% of them—and at least as much entertainment as you’d get from Instagram—because we slipped a joke into this post.
The bad news is that while you were reading, you probably weren’t moving, and now it’s time to fix that mistake. If you read this post and started dreaming of a beach body but still aren’t taking any action, then you’ll just remain a dreamer. So, here we go: 5-4-3-2-1—go!
