Greg O'Shea: Making fitness fun and sustainable
Greg O'Shea. Photograph Moya Nolan
Over the past three weeks, we’ve pushed through a high-intensity fat-burning circuit, picked up the dumbbells for a total-body, muscle-building workout, and grabbed the kettlebells to tone up. This week, we’re focusing on rest and recovery — an often overlooked but crucial part of any fitness journey.
I am a big believer in making fitness fun and sustainable, and to keep it that way, you have to give yourself a break. When you’ve done the work, it’s important to allow yourself that cheat meal, the night out with a few drinks, a weekend away from the gym. As I’ve said throughout my four weeks writing this column, you don’t have to be a soldier. You’re allowed to enjoy yourself, and you’ve earned it.
It is recommended you complete about 15 minutes of stretching/mobility exercises at least once or twice a week. I have also included two activation exercises to stimulate blood flow in the body which is good for recovery.
Mix up the movements below to suit your needs and flexibility requirements. Foam-rolling, using a massage gun or getting a deep-tissue massage are all great ways to help your body recover and increase your mobility.
- Start standing upright with a slight bend in your knees, allow your upper body to fold forward so your head is hanging down by your knees.
- Grab your elbows and relax into the position, sway gently from side to side to increase stretch.
- Slowly rise and restack your spine.
- Step out into a long deep lunge with your hands on the ground inside your front leg, keep the leg out the back fully extended.
- Take your hand closest to your front foot off the ground and drop your elbow towards the ground.
- Next, rotate upwards, pointing your hand towards the roof.
- Repeat for a few reps and then swap sides.
- Sitting on the ground with your legs extended at 45 degrees.
- Extend your arms upwards and hinge forward from your hips.
- Try to reach out and touch the wall in front of you (don’t reach towards the floor), stay here and take three deep breaths increasing your reach slightly with each breath.
- Starting on all fours (on your hands and knees) fold one leg underneath your body with the outside of the leg touching the ground.
- Relax your upper body over the folded leg either propped up on your elbows or with arms extended out in front.
- Hold this position for five breaths. You should feel an intense stretch on your glute. Repeat on the other side.
- Start sitting on the floor with legs extended out from your body at 45 degrees.
- Reach down towards one foot with both hands and relax your upper body onto that leg.
- Hold for three breaths.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Sitting on the ground, pull both feet in towards you so that the soles of your feet are touching.
- Keep your torso upright and hold your feet with either hand, then use your elbows to slightly push your knees down towards the ground creating a nice groin stretch.
- Hold for three breaths and repeat.
- Lying on your back, bend your knees, keeping your heels roughly a hand distance from your bum.
- First, tilt your pelvis to raise your bum off the ground without lifting your lower back. This activates the glutes to allow you to complete the movement correctly.
- Next, drive your hips upwards to full extension.
- Once at the top of the bridge, alternate lifting one leg off the ground, making sure to keep your hips level.
- When you’ve completed at least three reps on each leg, slowly lower your spine back onto the ground vertebrae by vertebrae with your bum being the last to touch the floor.
- Lying on your side, push yourself up into a side plank position on your elbow.
- Raise the arm on top up towards the roof and then rotate, tucking it underneath your body and turning your chest down towards the floor, then rotate back open to the starting position.
- Repeat on both sides.
We’ve all been there. You’ve signed up for the gym, you’ve bought the dumbbells, maybe you’ve even signed up to a fitness app like my own. It’s all going great, and then you hit the plateau. Perhaps you do not see the results as quickly as you expected, or life has started getting in the way. While this is all normal, there are some steps we can take to help avoid us falling into this trap and gradually giving up on our goals.
First things first, remember your fitness journey isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. It’s all about consistency. If you struggled to complete the five rounds of my muscle-toning workout, why not start with two or three rounds and gradually build up to five rounds?
When it comes to your diet, begin by cutting out sugar-heavy treats like chocolate, biscuits and sweets on weekdays. Aim for 1.5lt of water a day before going for the full 2lt.
I’ve learned that good things happen when I surround myself with positive people. Surround yourself with people who exercise regularly, eat well and enjoy feeling good. Soon, you’ll be one of them.
- For more live Workouts and Wellness tips from Olympian Greg O’Shea subscribe to ‘BettrWithGreg’ via the website www.bettrwithgreg.com
- Location: Our thanks to the Datry Health Club, Dublin 6
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