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Exercise and fitness is not just a plan you wake up with one morning. It is a lifelong love of movement that will help you maintain the good health and physical appearance you want for yourself. Begin by broadening your definition of exercise: you do not need to run, sweat or grunt - any opportunity to partake in physical activity counts as exercise when you are just starting out. Remember: nurturing yourself and reducing stress are part of your goal to make yourself heathier and fitter. Make sure you will enjoy the activities you pick - “test” them and then commit yourself.
Think about bowling, softball, or any other type of entry-level team activity. Many people who are not natural-born athletes love team sports because of the combination of exercise and social interaction. If group activities are not for you, start a walking routine two or three times a week for 15 to 20 minutes. If you feel like it, jog for a few minutes during each walk. Do a few jumping jacks, sit-ups or push-ups along with stretches in the morning before work, jump rope or start with a beginners yoga tape.
Focus on giving yourself permission to enjoy your physical abilities. Learn to reconnect with your physical abilities and rediscover your body as a source of pleasure.
You can make your natural athletic instincts work for you by choosing the right exercise program that you will enjoy and easily be able to keep up with. Avoid intense and difficult exercise programs, especially when you are still figuring out what you can enjoy. Such exercise rograms can trim off inches for a little while but may not work in the long run because they can cause burnout. Remember that getting regular, moderate exercise is smarter and more effective than forcing yourself to do gruelling workouts that can lead to injury or burnout.
For lomg-term results, find actvities that you enjoy, instead of merely choosing those that burn calories. You probably already know some of the activities you like and those you don’t like. Select those you enjoy and prefer and drop the ones that bore or stress you. You might enjoy the challenge of participating in a run or bike race for charity which is a great way to get exercise and at the same time meeting new people and helping your community. Just be sure to make fun and stress reduction and not calorie burning your top priorities.
Your goal is to establish a healthy and pleasant exercise routine, interchanging challenging activities with peaceful and relaxing mind/body experiences. If you find yourself getting bored, vary your exercise routine with creative new activities. Spicing up your exercise routine will motivate you to stick with it. No matter what level of exercise is right for you, concentrate on nurturing yourself through exercise. When you do, you will feel good about yourself - and when you feel good about yourself you will stick with your exercise and fitness plan.
Make a commitment, based on self-love and self-affirmation, to make exercise a priority in your life. When you do, you will reap more benefits than you anticipated such as shedding excess pounds and inches. Most of all, remember that combining a variety of workout routines and ideas can help keep your exercise program interesting so that you will be more likely
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