“Change we can believe in.” Sound familiar, doesn’t it? Obama shouldn’t be the only one ushering in change in 2009.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner to working out or if you’re the most seasoned veteran. If your workout program doesn’t involve the following, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner to working out or if you’re the most seasoned veteran. If your workout program doesn’t involve the following, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
A more suitable workout program:
You’ve probably started the new year off working out and some random times, doing a random exercise that you found in some random magazine. Wrong answer. You need structure: a designated time, on designated days, for a designated time-frame. If it’s before work…keep it before work. If it’s three days a week, make it the same three days each week. The more you create a routine, the more you’ll follow it.
Not getting enough sleep:
Even I fall into this category periodically. We all do. We think that getting between 3-6 hours of sleep will be enough to get by. Sometime it is. But it’s never enough to recover from a workout. See, you don’t build muscle in the gym…you actually break it down. It’s during sleep that the body repairs and rebuilds the muscles…stronger. Eight full hours of sleep is mandatory.
Reducing (and eventually eliminating) bad habits:
Yes, this includes cutting back on junk food and sweets. Don’t eliminate all “bad” foods. This leaves you feeling deprived and punished. Remember, there’s a time and place for all foods. This also means eliminating smoking and alcohol consumption. Again, quitting cold turkey rarely works. Aim to have 1 or 2 less drinks or smokes a day. Slow and steady.
Realistic expectations:
Be totally honest with yourself. You didn’t get OUT of shape overnight. So you won’t get IN shape overnight, either. If you’re new to working out, don’t try to jump in head first and end up overwhelmed. Try going two times a week first instead of five. If you’re a gym veteran, switch things up a bit by taking a class, or setting a new performance goal.
Don’t fall off the workout wagon. Stay motivated. Involving these strategies in your overall fitness goals for 2009 will ensure that change becomes your official mantra for the year.
Yes, this includes cutting back on junk food and sweets. Don’t eliminate all “bad” foods. This leaves you feeling deprived and punished. Remember, there’s a time and place for all foods. This also means eliminating smoking and alcohol consumption. Again, quitting cold turkey rarely works. Aim to have 1 or 2 less drinks or smokes a day. Slow and steady.
Realistic expectations:
Be totally honest with yourself. You didn’t get OUT of shape overnight. So you won’t get IN shape overnight, either. If you’re new to working out, don’t try to jump in head first and end up overwhelmed. Try going two times a week first instead of five. If you’re a gym veteran, switch things up a bit by taking a class, or setting a new performance goal.
Don’t fall off the workout wagon. Stay motivated. Involving these strategies in your overall fitness goals for 2009 will ensure that change becomes your official mantra for the year.
1 comment:
I had no clue that muscle builds during sleep..thanx for the info
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