Get movin’! That is the bottom line… no, seriously.
I remember talking to a man in a health food store several years ago. He said that he doesn’t like exercise and if he hired me to train him (as his personal trainer), I would somehow have to make him like it. The bad news is no one can make you like it; however, there are steps you can take before you find yourself enjoying it. I used to love teaching step, when I gave up my fitness career to become a counselor, it was a long time before I found something as exciting and exhilarating as leading a step aerobics class. I find myself addicted to bike riding these days. The only bummer is when the winter comes around in Colorado I’m not as much of an outdoors person. But that just means that I need to find some other fun way to get my body moving. I remember taking a rebounding class that kicked my tuckus; it was WONDERFUL! I’m still ashamed to admit that none of the classes I’ve ever taught made me sweat that much! Trampolines are now looking pretty good to me these days and I’m thinking of purchasing one. It was fun, it’s indoors and it will keep me moving all winter.
There are so many other ways to get moving without having to get a gym membership. There are tons of exercise videos which I don’t always recommend because good form is often very important to avoid injury and no one is around to check your form. For people like myself who are trained to maintain proper form, there is a lower chance of getting hurt or if you do the video with a professional in your family or that you are friends with, that is another way to go. If you have kids, go out and hula-hoop or jump rope, it’ll get you moving, right? Colorado is known for the lean residents that live in it because of the biking, snowboarding and skiing. I have two in-laws who find enjoyment in running marathons. Running can be very addicting to some people. Then there is something as simple as brisk walking which can do wonders. My college roommates would wake up with me at 5am every weekday and we would walk for two miles, come home, eat and then go to the coffee shop to study. This was great because our brains were awake, alert and ready to absorb information. I had a client that was taken off two of her heart medications because I got her butt moving daily with brisk walking. I remember how addicted she was by the second day we walked together.
Who said that exercise has to be unpleasant? Find something that is fun and addicting or something that will bring you closer to another individual. What’s the bottom line?
Get movin’!
I just started to get back on the exercising routinely. It has been so many months since I last exercised and I noticed that I haven't had much energy or slept well. So a few weeks ago I was slowly lifting weights.
ReplyDeleteAs the usual advice, always start out slowly and with light weights and progressively move to heavier weights and more reps (this is the same as with all types of training). Never begin with the same amount that you left off from especially when there is a long lapse of time in between. Injuries are common for those who are naive or wants to be macho.
I only workout at home; therefore I don't join a gym. This cuts down on time wasted and money spent for driving there and membership fee. I rather save the money to buy more workout supplies. And with the time to travel to a local gym and back, I would have already finished my exercise at home.
Anyone CAN do a complete exercise using a bench, dumbbells in 5 lbs increments, liftup bars, and any other accessories/equipment (depending on muscle isolation and preference) at home. So for the price of a few months of gym membership, A person would of brought the whole set of tools that will last a lifetime to workout at home.
The only downside to phsyical training at home is that I need to motivate myself daily without external influence...which is usually the biggest hurdle. But once I get past that, the mirror of self-improvement and feeling of accomplishment are well worth it.
Amen! My body thanked me profusely when I started exercising. I try to do resistance exercises at three times per week. Anything that I do in addition has to be some sort of fun cardio exercise like biking or rollerblading.
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