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Fitness truths 'Exercise might be uncomfortable, overwhelming. It's supposed to be'

Change your attitude – and even the goals themselves – to achieve real results. Here’s some advice from fitness expert Carl Cautley.

THE TURKEY HAS been reduced to bones and there are only wrappers left in the Roses tin, so it’s time now to turn our attention to that old chestnut — the New Year’s resolution.

It will come as a surprise to absolutely no one that “lose weight and get fitter” is the number one promise we make to ourselves every time January rolls around, but very few of us actually make it stick. You have to wonder, why not?

I think most people would acknowledge at some level that staying in shape is a good idea, and something we should all be doing. But few truly understand the many amazing benefits of fitness. We all know the basics, that working out strengthens your body and helps you burn fat.

The other benefits to being fit

But did you know that exercise also strengthens your bones, which can help prevent osteoporosis and relieve the symptoms of arthritis? Did you know that it significantly reduces levels of stress hormones while increasing endorphins, making you happier and more resilient?

The effects of keeping fit even spill over into other areas of your life. You’ll find you feel more confident and capable at work, in social situations, and just about everywhere else.

We can all enjoy these benefits, because no matter what your age, gender, current weight, fitness level, physical impairments, personal issues or family situation, there is always something you can do to increase your physical activity. You don’t have to look like a cover model or perform like a sports star. Fitness is for everyone.

I’ve seen this over and over again with my own clients. They come to us in all shapes and sizes — young, old, male, female — and it’s always amazing to be able to help them with their goals and see the incredible transformations they go through. And I’m not just talking about losing a few pounds or shifting a few inches off their waists.

It’s worth keeping your keep-fit resolve

shutterstock_272645438 Shutterstock / Undrey Shutterstock / Undrey / Undrey

Many of our clients undergo a demonstrable change in attitude as they become fitter. They report feeling better about themselves in general, having a new perspective on life, and even take on challenges they never thought possible.

Case in point: our client Michelle who, despite being an avid swimmer, was slightly out of shape and suffering from back pain. Michelle realised she needed support, and once she reached out to us her fitness immediately began to improve. So much so, in fact, that Michelle ended up competing in the World Masters Swimming Championships in Italy, where she swam personal best times.

Another client, Colette, ran her first 7K after completing her fitness programme — something she would’ve considered impossible the day she joined. Imagine what you could achieve.

New year, new world, no fear

I understand that committing to a lifestyle of healthy eating and exercise might be uncomfortable, overwhelming or even a little scary. But it’s supposed to be — fitness is all about pushing out of your comfort zone and becoming the very best version of yourself that you can be. That’s no small feat, but it’s worth every ounce of the blood, sweat and tears. So here’s my appeal to you:

Many of us resolve to shift the extra few Christmas pounds and keep on top of our fitness in the New Year. The reality is very few make it past the first or second week. This time, be different.

Break the mould. Commit to making fitness a part of your life rather than a means to an end. Stack the deck in your favour by reaching out for the support and accountability you need to make your goals a reality.

You already know what giving up feels like — now see what happens when you don’t.

Carl Cautley is a Certified Personal Trainer, Zest4Life Nutritional Coach and founder of Health & Fitness Together — an industry-leading Private Personal Training Studio in Ranelagh, Dublin. Get in touch with Carl at healthandfitnesstogether.ie or at 01 496 5829.

No time to go to the gym? Here are 7 exercises you can do at home>

Don’t get the recommended amount of exercise? You could be at risk of developing type 2 diabetes>

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    Mute Barbara Coleman
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:11 AM

    20 years in solitary confinement and confined to your cell 23 hours a day – completely barbaric I and 15 minutes to die
    by lethal injection- again barbaric !

    458
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    Mute Garreth mc mahon
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:19 AM

    @Barbara Coleman: shooting death a police officer on a traffic stop and sexually abusing a minor, that’s barbaric

    891
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    Mute Derek Moran
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:22 AM

    @Barbara Coleman: just think of the lives it saved keeping him there. Wish we could have done the same with that famous Irish crim / serial kilerr. that only served 10 years of a 15 year sentence.

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    Mute Colleen
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:46 AM

    @Barbara Coleman: don’t really agree with the death penalty but not too concerned about him spending years in solitary confinement. He murdered someone and it’s not supposed to be a holiday camp. Maybe if this happened here, it might act as some kind of deterrent. If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.

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    Mute Dan Moran
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:21 AM

    @Garreth mc mahon: All of the acts are barbaric. The point being one of them is state sponsored barbarism administered to shown how wrong barbarism is. Its a bit of a contradiction in terms, apart from that it’s an easy way out for animals like that.

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    Mute EillieEs
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:19 AM

    @Colleen:if the death penalty acted as a deterrent then the US wouldn’t have such a high rate of violent death and nor would it have the highest rate of incarceration in the entire world.

    71
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    Mute EillieEs
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:20 AM

    @Derek Moran: incarceration without solitary confinement would have had the same outcome for society.

    26
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    Mute Alan Wright
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:38 AM

    @EillieEs: You are put in solitary confinement for a reason, either you are a danger to other inmates/staff or for your own protection. Remember, this was not a nice guy, that is a fact, you think the day he got locked up he became a complete pacifist?

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    Mute Sean
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    Apr 23rd 2022, 12:39 AM

    @Alan Wright: Texas keeps all death-row prisoners in solitary confinement.

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    Mute Colette Byrne
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    Apr 24th 2022, 8:00 AM

    @Alan Wright: 20 years come on, most corrupt police force, its nothing to do with protecting one of their own. I DON’T CONDONE his crimes. But how many innocent people have been out to death in the states. How many convictions over turned years later, esp against black people. Maybe if they dealth with gun laws, they might not have a need for death penalty. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

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    Mute Larry O Reilly
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:42 AM

    Great job fair play to the authorities, he was on death row for years then they carried out the rule of court executed him, he had it coming unlike his victim who was just doing his job.
    Why do so many forget that there is a victim and a family involved here, when they decide that this is wrong and break out the hankies

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    Mute sean o'dhubhghaill
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:18 AM

    Capital punishment is WRONG.

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    Mute Maurice O Neill
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:46 AM

    @sean o’dhubhghaill: It does not matter what you are I think. Texas has that law in place for a reason so its up to them to change it. I notice how there is no mention of the US President who is apparently against the death penalty. If they wanted to grant him clemency they could have but he was rejected by the parole board.

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    Mute sean o'dhubhghaill
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 11:25 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: Why does what I am have ANY bearing on this?

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    Mute Felix O' Mahoney
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 12:27 PM

    @sean o’dhubhghaill: Not for people who abuse children it’s not. They should ALL meet the same fate.

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    john
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    Mute john
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 3:16 PM

    @sean o’dhubhghaill: no its not we should have it in Ireland you kill he and out in. 5 years joke

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    Mute Maurice O Neill
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:50 AM

    Imagine for one minute if President Trump was still in office. The Irish media would be all over this and would really be laying into him today. But yet not a peep from any of the Major news outlets here about this. I suppose they have a friend in the White House now so it wouldn’t be seen as conforming to upset the current administration.

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    Mute Paul Clancy
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:56 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: you’ve mentioned the Presidency twice. I don’t get what you mean, what has the President got to do with this?

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    Mute Míchael Búrké
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:59 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: awww the bub bub bub, you okay hun?

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    Mute Paul Furey
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:05 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: former president and he (still) deserves all the criticism been thrown at him. A completely awful human being.

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    Mute Bríann O Connor
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:59 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: jeez that’s some hard on for trump you have.

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    Mute EillieEs
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:33 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: not a peep from any major Irish news outlet? Wow that is absolutely untrue, it’s reported in everything from RTE to the Irish Independent to the Mirror and you’re commenting on an article on it here on the Journal. Why lie about something so easily debunked? It just makes you look untrustworthy

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    Mute Colette Byrne
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    Apr 24th 2022, 8:02 AM

    @Maurice O Neill: It’s not major news.

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    Mute Eamonn O'Hanrahan
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:18 AM

    Nothing is more evil than a legally sanctioned killing of this kind.

    118
    RJ
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    Mute RJ
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:28 AM

    @Eamonn O’Hanrahan: not sure the victims of these perpetrators or their families would agree.

    261
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    Mute Alan Wright
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:29 AM

    @Eamonn O’Hanrahan: Nothing? Man, your sense of perception of what “evil” is, is very very wrong.

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    Mute Roy Dowling
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:53 AM

    @Eamonn O’Hanrahan: So in your opinion the people who gave carried out the legally sanctioned injection are more evil than a man who sexually assaulted a minor and killed a police offer? Seriously?

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    Mute Geoff Bateman
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:30 AM

    The sentence is correct, but the years of waiting for the sentence to be carried out is Barbaric

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    Mute Felix O' Mahoney
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 12:28 PM

    @Geoff Bateman: almost as barbaric as the poor innocent child having to live their entire life with the knowledge that they had been sexually abused by a monster.
    Monsters deserved to d i e. Slowly.

    54
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    Mute Anna Carr
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:02 AM

    I’m always torn by this. My head tells me it’s wrong, but my heart always pipes up as to why tax payers should contribute to the upkeep of these people in prison. Plus an eye for an eye and all that. Grateful I don’t actually have to make the decision.

    33
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    Mute EillieEs
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:34 AM

    @Anna Carr: an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind

    35
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    Mute Felix O' Mahoney
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 12:29 PM

    @EillieEs: no it doesn’t, it leaves everyone with one eye

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    Mute Anna Carr
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 12:42 PM

    @Felix O’ Mahoney: lol

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    Mute The Ghost of Micheal Collins
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:28 AM

    I disagree with capital punishment because I think the prisoners should be forced to serve the full duration of their sentences.

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    Mute John Martin
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 8:18 AM

    Hardly breaking news, 78 year old dies

    33
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    Mute Shane Kennedy
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 11:59 AM

    Two wrongs don’t make a right. Nobody has the right to kill another person. The USA’s correctional system isn’t working.

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    Mute Paul Flynn
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 9:32 AM

    The only cruel part of this was making him wait twenty years. He should have been hanged after one tril and one appeal.

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    Mute Barry Evans
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 1:44 PM

    @Paul Flynn: I’m sure there are quite a number of people who were acquitted years later with the dawning of new forensic technology who would disagree with you………

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    Mute Conor Furlong
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:09 AM

    Barbaric. Utterly barbaric. This is murder.

    24
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    Mute Alan Wright
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:45 AM

    @Conor Furlong: Where is your condemnation for the vile crimínal that put himself in this position for murdèring and innocent cop and abuse of a child. Your concern for criminals really shows your character. You could’ve condemned both in your post, but sided with the evil criminal.

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    Mute Marty Quish
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:22 AM

    Uff. What a way to go . 20 years solitary confinement is a death sentence in itself.

    21
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    Mute Alan Wright
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:45 AM

    @Marty Quish: Its not. He didn’t die in his cell.

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    Mute Marty Quish
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:33 PM

    @Alan Wright: aren’t you a bright one .

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    Mute Declan Carr
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 11:45 AM

    They would have been better off killing him 20 years ago, think of all that TAX payer’s money they would have saved. After 20 years locked away from everyone, and being old, death would be a doddle. Saying I’m ready to go, rather than begging for forgiveness, takes the good out of it for his family.

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    Mute Tony Harris
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 1:06 PM

    @Declan Carr: What you say I’d true, but remember, in the U.S. prisons are a money making racket for private enterprise!

    9
    Paul
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    Mute Paul
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:00 AM

    Given that his health and medical conditions were going to end him soon anyway I think it was more a case of execution by euthanasia

    13
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    Mute O'connor Joanne
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    Apr 22nd 2022, 10:46 PM

    Justifying one murder by committing another

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    Mute Ciaran Leonard
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    Apr 23rd 2022, 1:15 AM

    The United States and it’s people must be very proud to be able to keep someone in solitary confinement for 20 years and then execute an old age pensioner. Torture followed by execution. How can they be allowed to lecture the rest of the world? It is a very sick society but unfortunately they are not even aware of it.

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    Mute Seamus Quaide
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    Apr 23rd 2022, 5:54 AM

    And Trump walks around free…..

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    Mute Seamus Quaide
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    Apr 23rd 2022, 5:54 AM

    Any Trump walks around free….and will probably be elected president again.

    America is deeply lost.

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    Mute John Nolan
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    Jan 1st 2024, 2:07 PM

    Why after 30 years do this?

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    Mute Anne Feerick
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    Apr 24th 2022, 5:43 PM

    @Barbara Coleman if he was in general population he would been a target for attack.

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