Most of us dream of having a toned body. Why? It is because a well-toned body not only helps us remain healthy but gives an immense boost to our personality and self-confidence. And, one of the best ways to achieve a toned body is to balance it with a good diet and the right kind of exercise or physical activity. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Well, not really. Earlier, fixing a quick, healthy meal and heading to the gym to work out seemed an ideal way to tone your body. However, the never-ending lockdowns, social distancing, and the scare of the viral infection has ensured that we all remain locked inside our homes for as long as possible. So, does this mean that we can never achieve a toned body? Not at all. With hard work and persistence, you’ll still be able to achieve a toned body right at your home. Here, we tell you how.
Reboot Your Diet
When everything else in your life is currently rebooting, then why not your diet. Your diet surely doesn’t need to change completely overnight. You can still have a go at your favorite dal-chawal or roti-sabzi. What you really need to do is add more veggies and fruits to your list. Fresh vegetables and fruits contain loads of nutrients. Try replacing your regular fried snacks with fresh, juicy fruits. If you crave for something salty and spicy, then ditch those unhealthy chaats for a more healthy and protein-rich chickpea-lettuce salad or add some crunchy greens, red/yellow bell peppers to a bowl of legume sprouts and you are good to go! You can always add a dash of lemon or a pinch of herbs and spices to make things interesting. Snacking on fruits and vegetables while retaining your regular food habits will help you tone your body faster without making you feel weak, which usually happens when you suddenly switch to fad diets.
Discipline Is The Key
One of the most common yet unforgivable mistakes that we all do in our body-toning journey is not doing it in a disciplined manner. No matter when you plan to start toning your body, make sure you begin with fixing a specific time – both for your meals as well as your exercises. And once you do it, stick to it as much as possible. For instance, try to have your dinner at least 3-4 hours before you sleep so that you have enough room for a quick, light snack for those bedtime hunger pangs. If you plan on having dinners early, then this should coincide with waking up early in the mornings and having an early, healthy breakfast. The same applies to your workout routines. In the initial stages, your body will take a while to adapt to the new routine. But once it does, changing your routine or being irregular with your schedules will throw out of gear your body’s ability to adapt. This will eventually affect your body’s toning outcome.
Increase Proteins In Your Diet
We mentioned earlier how adding fruits and veggies to your diet helps you improve your nutrition as well as keeps junk food at bay. However, to really build your muscles, it is important to add proteins to your diet. We all know how proteins can repair, build, and maintain our muscles. With minor muscle strains and sprains being the norm in exercises, a good amount of protein intake becomes all the more necessary. Having a breakfast packed with boiled eggs, beans/peas sprout salads, a sumptuous peanut butter sandwich, or a lean white-meat like chicken will help you give the right start to your day.
Try Equipment-Free Exercises At Home
Most people feel that it is next to impossible to achieve a toned body without gym equipment. If you too happen to feel the same, then don’t worry. You are not the only who thinks this way. This is because with gyms around, most of us never really bothered thinking about alternate methods. The fact is, even if you don’t have weights, dumbbells, or such equipment at home, you still do exercises that use your body weight to tone up. For instance, push-ups, planks, and some specific yoga poses help build muscle endurance by using your body’s weight. However, we suggest you go easy on these exercises if you are a beginner to avoid serious mishaps. Start with say, 5 push-ups or 10 planks every day and gradually increase it. And make sure you warm-up and stretch yourself well before doing these muscle-toning exercises.
Stay Well Hydrated
They say if you wish to have a toned body, you need to sweat it out! True, but so much sweating in a day can easily dehydrate you. Your body needs to have enough water to replenish itself after every intense workout. And let us not forget the dietary changes that it undergoes during this phase. When you add extra fiber to your diet in the form of fruits and veggies, you can reap their immense benefits only if there is a sufficient amount of water to digest them. A scarcity of water in your body can also sometimes lead to muscle breakdown, which can reverse your efforts of toning up your muscles. Drinking enough water and staying well hydrated will also help your body to flush out toxins easily.
Try High-Intensity Interval Training
Don’t get misled by its very gym-like moniker because high-intensity interval training can be done with seemingly simple activities as well. In this type of training, you perform a one-minute high-intensity activity that increases your heart. You then slow down the activity until your heart rate goes back to normal. Thereafter, you perform the high-intensity act again before going back to normal. You will continue performing the high-intensity training in intervals throughout your 30-minute or more routine. Activities that come under high-intensity interval training are jumping, skipping, running, etc., and help you achieve your dream of a toned body in no time if you do it regularly.
However, keep in mind that these activities involve increasing the heart rate so it is very important to take your doctor’s advice if you have any underlying heart condition or any other health issues. Even if you don’t have any serious health issues, it is prudent to try this routine for a short duration – up to 10 mins – in the beginning, and then increase the duration gradually.
Ditch Refined Foods
While you are planning your diet chart for body toning, make sure you don’t fall for false claims of extra proteins or fat-free processed foods. Such foods often contain excessive amounts of sugar or salts as a preservative to make up for the less fat or carbs. Instead, go for whole, natural products like whole wheat, fishes with natural omega 3 fatty acids, nuts, avocados, etc. Ditch foods that contain maida like white bread, pasta, so-called diet biscuits, etc. As much as possible, go for home-made food items.
As you can see, toning your body right at home isn’t that difficult at all! Now that you know, then what are you waiting for? Plan your diet chart, fix a daily routine, and you are more than ready to embark on an exciting, healthy journey toward achieving your dream body!