Fitness Notes
- Details
- Category: Health & Fitness
- Last Updated on Monday, 18 July 2011 12:25
When you begin any fitness program the first goal that you set for yourself should be health. The definition of health is absence of disease or injury with physical and social well being
All exercise should be introduced at a slow, tolerable level. Gradually increasing the effort and duration that it takes to perform each exercise session.
It is very common for people to begin an exercise program and stop after only a few short weeks. Some common factors a that can lead up to this are boredom, lack of motivation, and plateaus(without change). If you reach a point where your are considering quitting your fitness program tyr a few of these suggestions before throwing in the towel.
Find a new goal or challenge. Some examples are signing up for a marathon, or wellness challenge
Find online sites and message boards that allow you to read about and communicate with other people who have overcome the challenges that are associated with maintaining regular physical activity.
Find a workout partner or join a group exercise class.
Change the music on you iPod/MP3 player.
Reward yourself when goals are achieved. Treat yourself to a non destructive reward such as an outfit or an outing of some kind.
We tell children over and over again not to give in to peer pressure. It is importation to follow this advice yourself. You will begin to realize that a majority of your peers do not participate in a clean eating regime, and regular physical activity. Do not let their unhealthy habits affect you. Never look at your nutrition or exercise program as punishment or sacrifice( Robert Kennedy, Oxygen Magazine) Living a healthy lifestyle is a choice. There are a lot of factors that can affect this choice. There will be comments made “All you do is go to the gym and eat vegetables.” Temptations shoved in you face, “ Just eat one piece of cake, its not going to hurt anything.” Remember you are the only one who can make this choice, and you are the only one who can change this choice.
Try to surround yourself with people who are supportive of your lifestyle change. More importantly be confident and proud of you choice when around those who are not.
Once you have been exercising for awhile its is easy to start skipping little things and details that you did in the beginning. Common reasons for this are to save time, money, and just plain laziness. Here are a few things that I recommend to never eliminate from your fitness program.
A warm up prior to exercising
Stretching
a good pair of athletic shoes. They don't have to be expensive but look for a shoe that supports both your arches and ankle, has a non-slip sole and shock absorption.
Proper form is always a must.
Cutting these little things can and will injure you in the long run.
Fitness is a journey not a destination, Jim Bell founder of International Fitness Professionals Association.
When living a healthy lifestyle you are constantly setting and achieving a new goals for yourself. These goals can be both physically and mentally challenging. Its is important to acknowledge what still needs to be achieved, along with what has already been achieved.
Remember with exercise a lot of very important positive changes occur inside our body, and are not as apparent as those that occur on the outside.
This time it is simple. I am not going to use any fancy wording, or clever catch phrases. You can aks anyone who has ever been around me and I'm sure that they have heard me say this at least one time. When it comes to exercise regimens I strongly believe in throw things. They have to be practical, and you have to be consistent.
If your workout regimen isn’t practical its is likely that you will stick to int. Everyone starts out with great intentions and a lot of motivation in the beginning. As time goes on enthusiasm fades and excuses begin. This is why your workouts need to fit into your daily schedule without being a huge inconvenience. You have to find something that is:
Schedule Friendly. (one hour is plenty of time to do a little of both resistance and cardiovascular training)
Conveniently located. Time is precious so choose a gym near your daily driving routes.
Comfortable environment. You need to exercise somewhere that you can focus on you and not worry about everyone else. This is the biggest reason people choose to their homes over gyms. If its your choice to train at home do some damage control on as many potential distractions or interruptions as possible before you beginning your exercise:(kids, visible laundry, ringing phones, ect..) If you choose a gym pick one where you feel comfortable with the staff, the equipment and the clientele. If it takes your longer to pick an outfit do your hair and makeup than it does to make dinner, your not working out in a comfortable environment. If your not comfortable you wont focus on your workout.
The key to fitness success is consistency. You have to find a program that is not only effective, but also on that will fit in your daily routine.