Healthy Lifestyle Tips From Ngo Okafor
Now that spring has sprung and summer is rapidly approaching, its officially time to kick your gym goals into high gear! We spoke to Ngo Okafor, personal trainer and owner of ICONOCLAST Gym in New York City, about the best ways to jump start your fitness journey in 2019! Keep reading for some tips and tricks, as well as a fun exercise routine created by Ngo himself at the end of the article!
There's nothing like the post-holiday season to get you motivated to head back to the gym! With the massive influx of new fitness enthusiasts every spring comes a new crop of people with varying skill and experience levels. What's the biggest mistake newcomers make when it comes to fitness?
The biggest mistake that newcomers make when it comes to fitness is underestimating the time it takes to get fit. They want to get fit immediately. They try to cram the process of getting fit into a short window of time. They end up overtraining, burning out, and then quit.
On the flipside, there are many people out there who are interested in starting their fitness journey but are unsure about where to start.
It is important to understand that physical fitness can only be achieved by moving the body. In my opinion, the best way for a person to start their fitness journey would be to figure out a fun and enjoyable way to move their bodies. For some people, it could be walking, running, dancing, boxing, or lifting weights. Create a schedule where you engage in one or more body moving activities that you enjoy, regularly, a few times each week.
What's one word of advice you'd give them for entering into the world of fitness and health?
Fitness is a journey. Rome was not built in a day. You have to be willing to take baby steps in order to achieve your fitness goal. It is not an overnight thing and patience is the key to success. Its a process that cannot be rushed.
How do you suggest gym goers stay motivated once the shine of their New Year's resolutions has faded away?
I suggest joining or creating a network of fitness minded people! There are some great apps that make it easy to join or create a fitness community. One of the best ones is FitMatch, a social app that connects workout buddies and new fitness friends anywhere in the world. We all know that working out with a friend or a group of friends makes working out a lot more fun! Studies show that people who work out with a partner exercise 200% longer than those doing it alone.
What's one way to get a quick workout in when you can't make it to the gym?
Try these two quick workouts that I created for Mens Health Magazine. These workouts dont require any equipment and can done in 10 minutes or less!
Workout #1:
Cardio/conditioning (3 rounds of this circuit)
- In-and-out Jump squats (30 seconds)
- Cherry pickers (30 seconds)
- Mountain climbers (30 seconds)
- Skaters (30 seconds)
- Burpees (30 seconds)
- Plank (30 seconds)
- Squat (20 repetitions)
- Jumping jacks (30 seconds)
- Single leg bridge (20 repetitions)
- High knees (30 seconds)
- Crunches (20 repetitions)
- Mountain climbers (30 seconds)
