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Sunday, October 27, 2013

Slowly and Safely Becoming More Active



It's not easy going from not being active for years to running every other day. So here are a couple of tips for a person like myself who doesn't have health problems but would like to survive the workouts.

You will be tempted to get a gym membership and maybe even get a trainer. Stop and think for a moment. Gym's are okay if you are an active person so let's save that for after you get the hang of it. Instead let's start a lot slower.

Let's start with not sitting or lying down all day. It may seem simple and obvious to most but to someone that works sitting down or even standing you may want to more resting than working out. A lot of times we take our home time seriously. When you finally get home you just want to rest and do as minimal "work" as much as possible but if you have children under the age of 6, you know that that is not always possible. You have to look at the time you spend exercising as "me" time. You are taking time out for yourself and your health.

Do what you know you can do. Starting simple and easy with leg lifts and crunches. Dancing is always a great warm up. Turn the music up loud and escape. Stretch after about 5 minutes of dancing and head back into the workout that you love best. Clean the house in one go. Don't stop for breaks unless it is very necessary. Stand the entire time. If you hurt stop. Unless you are a fitness trainer who has been slacking off lately do not push yourself too hard. It's good to be sore the next day but not so much that you can't function normally.

Find things to keep you motivated. Update your playlist and get out there! If you have workout equipment at home you can turn on the t.v. as you workout. Before you know it you will be 30 to 40 minutes in. Listen to an audio book only when working out. If your book is interesting enough you will have the motivation needed to keep it up.

Get creative. If you don't have workout equipment available you can always find substitutes. Canned foods or water jugs make great light weights. Toddlers make for great heavier weights! Walk the children to/and from school. Go outside and play. Walk the lot a work on your breaks.

Treat yourself. Changing your lifestyle is a huge decision that takes a lot of self control. It's okay to have a treat every now and then as long as you don't over do it. This is something that you want to be able to do your entire life so be realistic about your eating habits.

Be Proud. Get pumped about the little things. So what you only walked for 10 minutes. That's 10 minutes more than you did yesterday! Congratulations! If you ate one bag of chips instead of two. Congratulations! No matter what you weigh or how old you are it is a wonderful thing to make lifestyle choices that could prolong your health. Congratulations!


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