Josh Salzmann offers the 3-step alternative to the seasonal gym frenzy

Whether it’s a new year's resolution or a pre-holiday fitness blitz, most people join the gym in reaction to an excessive and unhealthy lifestyle.

However, if you are not obsessing about rushing out to the gym after a period of indulgence, you are probably healthier than most. You don't have to turn yourself into a wannabe gym queen and calorie watchdog, just because you've overeaten or partied too much. If you push yourself too hard after not having worked out regularly, your muscles will retaliate and you’ll risk injuring yourself. What most people don’t realise is that, being fit shouldn’t be (and can’t be) a one-hit wonder, but part of your life.

Committing to an exercise routine, feeling healthy and getting the body you want, takes discipline and a little focus, but it doesn’t take obsessive behaviour. If you work out moderately, have a balanced diet and get enough sleep, you’ll have a high resistance to illness and injury, a load of energy, and you’ll look fantastic.

Here’s my three-step prescription for maintaining fitness for life:

1. Exercise for quality, not quantity. No one needs to exercise more than 5 times a week, and each session can last from 20 minutes to one hour, depending on your fitness ability and your goals. The easiest and smartest way to get fit is to combine strength training, cardiovascular and flexibility workouts.

   Strength training (lifting weights or doing exercises like yoga or Pilates) is crucial for toning muscles, and staying flexible. Using slow, precise movements, and doing up to 20 repetitions, when lifting weights, can elevate your heart rate enough to improve cardiovascular fitness, and will strengthen your core muscles (abs, spine, hamstrings, adductors and abductors (inner and outer thighs). Don’t think of exercise as deprivation, but as an empowering discipline. Working out should be a benefit, not a penance.

2. Don’t sweat the sofa time. Recovery is an essential part of being fit. The more your muscles are able to rebuild after a workout, the better you’ll feel and perform the next time you exercise. If you’re thinking about all those days you didn’t do anything active, look at the positive side: you did your body a favour and you’re ready to rock, next time you hit the gym. Also, realise that part of being fit is enjoying treats like dessert or a lie-in. Who cares if you ate chocolate everyday of the break and slept until 11? Live a little.

3. Eat all day long. Munch on something small every three hours, to keep your blood sugar and energy levels high, and your metabolism going strong. Each meal should have a component of complex carbs, protein and essential fats, if possible. Remember that having an appetite is good; just make sure you balance what you eat. If you eat only sugary, fatty foods, you won’t feel or look your best. Splurge occasionally and drink lots of water, whether you’re exercising or not.

If you still need a reminder of why not to jump into the seasonal fitness rush, just take a look at that neighbour of yours limping up the stairs.