Take the time to understand your body

I am constantly talking about how different our bodies are, yet many people still copy and paste their friends’ diets or exercise programmes and are disappointed when they don’t have the same results.

We are all individuals and our genetic make-up is most certainly different and unique. I have always been curious about genetics and how our bodies are modelled.

The curiosity stems from a variety of conversations I’ve had with people over the years. Many believe that our body types cannot be modelled by diet and exercise but are rather determined by genes.

Being physically active since the age of eight and always eating fairly healthily, I have been an advocate of diet and exercise keeping me in shape. I hadn’t explored the genetics side of things until I paid a visit to DNAlysis, a company that does a variety of DNA tests, including diet, exercise, sport and skin-related DNA tests.

Naturally, I opted for the diet and exercise tests and was quite amazed at the results. The reports were comprehensive but I’ll highlight my results. I learnt that my body is predisposed to being overweight and if I wasn’t as active and a healthy eater, my body type would definitely not be what it is currently.

I also learnt that my body reacts very well to a combination of cardio exercise and strength training. I can attest to this because once I started adding strength training to my long-distance running and cycling training two years ago, my body immediately toned up and I became stronger in both sporting disciplines.

With regards to my body internally, I learnt that I had a problem with inflammation and this was the result of recurrent injuries and slow recovery after training. I simply added an inflammation-assisting supplement to my daily tablets, and anti-inflammatory foods, like green leafy vegetables, celery, berries and raw nuts.

My PopUpGym co-founder Khethiwe also did the same DNA tests and although there were some similarities, there were also differences. She learnt that her body responds better to short bursts of exercise (30 to 45 minutes), so that’s what she’s started doing.

She has completed in ultra marathons and long-distance cycling before and can confirm that they didn’t tone and strengthen her body as much as the short bursts of exercise do.

What I took from this experience was that our bodies are, indeed, very different and we need to take time to learn about the differences. Yes, it’s good to train with friends and follow similar diets, but ultimately we need to listen to our bodies, understand what affects them positively or negatively and tailor our own diet and exercise programmes.

Even twins born minutes apart have different body types. So, yes, genes do play a part but they are not the be all and end all. Just because a family member is morbidly obese or has a debilitating disease or illness, it doesn’t mean that you, too, have to accept that as your path.

A healthy and active lifestyle tailored to you plays a major role. Take the time to understand your body.

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