The ‘Naked Truth’

Last week, one very trending topic in the social media is the fashion show of a popular apparel brand entitled 'Naked Truth.' It swiftly became one of the most talked about topics.

What people don't know is that this 'naked truth' gives false motivation and false hopes to the people who watched these men and women walked on stage exposing their well- chiseled bodies. Yes, they look pretty damned good with  six-pack abs and sexy curves but it takes time, one has to hit the gym at least six to eight hours a day every day and eating next to nothing to get a body like that. Worst of all the food they are eating would taste like SH&*%T.

In order for your muscles to pop out the whole time, one has to use illegal drugs. So if you really want to look like these 'models', I suggest you work as laborer in a construction site or 'kargadors' in pier. They have six-pack abs but they do hard labor 8-10 hours a day and eat like a king.

What transpired during that fashion show was an eye-opener. The naked truth, or the ugly truth shall I say, is that one out of four Filipinos is either obese or overweight. And we all know that being an obese can lead to a number of diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and even heart, kidney, and liver problems. But with a little sacrifice, hard work, discipline and motivation, you can save thousands or even millions of pesos by doing something about it now. Don't wait for the day your doctors will give you the bad news and then wish you have started yesterday. It is never too late to believe in yourself. You are stronger than you think. Find your motivation and if not for you, do it for your family.

Now it's time for the reality check. Being fit is defined by these important factors:

Cardio respiratory endurance - The efficiency with which the body delivers oxygen and nutrients needed for muscular activity and transports waste products from the cells.

Muscular strength - The greatest amount of force a muscle or muscle group can exert in a single effort.

Muscular endurance - The ability of a muscle or muscle group to perform repeated movements with a sub-maximal force for extended periods of times.

Flexibility - the ability to move the joints or any group of joints through an entire, normal range of motion.

Body composition - the percentage of body fat a person has in comparison to his or her total body mass.

One can improve his or her cardio endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition by simply exercising 2-3 times a week. A combination of a short walk, jog, run and doing simple body weight exercises can improve one's overall fitness.Most people complain that they don't have enough time to exercise and going to the gym is expensive. But it's not. Just simply follow this easy five-minute workout and enjoy the rest of the day.

Here's the 'Naked Truth' workout I have formulated:

Jog in place: Exaggerate your movement by swinging your arms and raising your knees to waist level.

Squat: Pull a chair, sit down and stand up. The lower the chair, the harder it is. If you get stronger, add a jump or hop at the end.

Push up: If you have a hard time doing a full push-up, put your knees down or try the standing wall push-up.

Get ups: Lie on your back and get up to a standing position.

Counting will be in descending order. For example, the first round is 10 repetitions of each exercise, 2nd round is 9 reps of each, 3rd round is 8, and so on and so forth. Remember to stop after five minutes and remember which round you finished. As you get stronger and fitter, you increase the number of rounds and repetitions will get lower and lower.

You can log on to www.alanchoachuy.com and click on the page "Every Pound Counts" to get a better perspective of this 'NAKED TRUTH' 5 minute workout.

Aside from  doing the said  workout, simply go back to the basic like using the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator, carrying your groceries, cleaning your car, washing your clothes and etc.

SIDELINE: Congratulations to Dr. Janet Remedio Solis for landing at second place, Archt. Guian Capacite for finishing third, and Romulo Rossel for taking the first place honors in their respective age-groups during the Hunat Sugbu Triathlon-Argao edition last weekend.