In the past, if a person reported that they had been sticking religiously to a particular health and fitness routine, yet had seen little to no improvement so far, it was generally assumed that they hadn’t been doing it right.
The strain of doing constant battle with one’s own body with no results, and to have that failure attributed to an inability to follow instructions or practice self-discipline – is very disheartening. In fact, it often ends in the eventual abandonment of any ambition towards better health.
Nowadays, however, as the result of a better understanding of the human genome, we are starting to realize that certain approaches to diet and exercise simply don’t work well for individuals with particular gene variations.
In this article, we look at how genetics and genomics can reveal why some of us struggle to improve our fitness and get in shape. We’ll also explain how these factors can be harnessed to make a difference in a manner we’ve never been able to achieve before.
What is the Study of Genetics and Genomics?
While there is a slight distinction between the two terms, both “genetics” and “genomics” focus on DNA – a collection of biological material that determines how our bodies are “built”, and how they continue to change and develop throughout our lives.
Genetics focuses on understanding the function of single genes. Genomics is the study of your own overall personal genetic makeup – or your “genome”.
What Genetics and Genomics Can Teach Us About Our Bodies
By arranging an analysis of our genetic makeup, we can better understand how our unique genes will affect our body’s responses to certain exercises and forms of nutrition.
For example, we can learn what the best approach would be for weightlifting or running when it comes to getting in shape. We can discover the ways in which our particular body metabolizes proteins, fats and carbohydrates – and which nutrients we are likely to need more of.
We can even determine how easy we’ll find weight loss in general by analyzing the body’s genetic tendency towards losing or gaining fat.
Using our specific genetic code as a guide, thanks to the published scientific evidence it’s easy to develop a diet and exercise plan that is tailored precisely to our requirements.
After years of forcing our bodies through unsuitable routines that do not take our natural tendencies into account, it’s a relief to know that a lack of results isn’t always down to a lack of discipline or understanding. Often, it’s simply because the approach we have taken is fundamentally wrong for us.
Now, we can refer to our genetics to tell us how regularly we should exercise, what exercises we should be doing, how much we should eat, what we should be eating and when we should be eating it.
Because this new plan will be developed to fit in perfectly with your body’s natural “code”, it’s likely that you’ll notice significant results over a comparatively short space of time – and that you’ll find it easier to stick to the new routine for the long term.
