It's Not Easy
There are still many people that think weight loss is as easy as the "one month miracle diet". I'm here to tell you that losing weight is usually a long process that takes a lot of work. It is clear that most of us aren't born with society's perception of a "perfect" body. Some celebrities may boast that they don't need to exercise to get their slim bodies, but most, including fabulously fit women like Jessica Biel and Gwen Stefani, have to work hard to get the bodies they love. They don't take shortcuts.
Let me make one thing clear: I'm not here to tell you that you need to lose weight. If you're happy with your figure, that's great. But if you're reading this Hub, chances are you're wanting to lose a few extra pounds or build some muscle. The good news is that this is entirely possible! The bad news is that there are no shortcuts on this fitness journey. Let's get started!
Diet Is Important
Should I Count Calories? This topic is of much debate in the fitness community. Personally, I don't count calories. Counting calories can be very beneficial, but when I start counting calories, I can't stop. I become obsessed with how many calories I eat to the point that I don't enjoy food. If you want to count calories, there are many websites to help you track how many calories you should be eating and how they all add up. They're usually called food diaries (use Google!).
Can't I Exercise Without Changing My Diet? You can. Is it as effective? No. If you keep eating greasy chicken strips, french fries, and cheeseburgers on a regular basis, it will be harder to lose weight, even if you exercise your butt off every day. Coupling exercise with a lasting change to your diet will give you the results you want faster while making you healthier.
So, what diet changes should you make? That's completely up to you. If you want the best results when paired with a workout routine, taking a serious approach to changing your diet is for the best. Cutting out greasy and overly fatty foods, excessive candy, and unhealthy carbohydrates is a good start.
"Bad" carbohydrates include things like soda, cereal, pasta, muffins, bagels, juices, etc. If unhealthy carbohydrates make up most of your diet, you should see a real change in your body after you alter your eating habits. Instead, eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grain foods like oats.
You can find more information about diet elsewhere, let's get to the reason why we're here: exercise.
Don't Make Weight Loss The Primary Goal
Of course, many people probably wouldn't exercise if one of the benefits wasn't a toned, lean body, but stay with me here. Sometimes people get into pitfalls in their workouts because they aren't seeing and weight loss results fast enough. This in turn discourages them to not work out because they aren't seeing the results they want when they want them. Don't fall into this trap! You probably aren't going to have a perfect body a week or even a month after you start working out. This is a change that takes some time for your body to get used to.
Making weight loss the primary goal is also scary because some people cease exercise once they've reached their fitness goal. Hopefully you know that this is a very bad thing to do. Gaining weight back after you stop exercising is VERY easy to do, and we don't want that.
If you make health your primary goal instead of weight loss, things change. Instead of having your primary motivator be weight loss, your primary motivator is your overall health. Since your health relies on how well you eat and what kind of exercise you do, you're never finished working on your health. Make keeping your body in great shape a way of life and it will be a lot easier to pick up the weights from now on.
Fitness Ideas To Get You Started
Let me be straight with you: This isn't going to be easy. I know you want to hear that you only have to walk around the block for 10 minutes and lift 3 pound weights and you'll reach your fitness goal in a week, but it doesn't work like that. If you're willing to put in some serious effort towards weight loss, then this will work for you. If you're looking for an easy way out, you're not in the right place, and you never will be. Once you grasp that there is no easy way to lose weight, then you'll be on your way to looking great!
Fitness experts usually agree that 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week is a good starting point for getting serious about fitness. If you want to do more, that's great! You're in control of your entire fitness routine, so it's all up to you to make a change in your life.
Here's a few fitness ideas to help get you started on your own with a routine:
Get a Gym Membership/Take A Class
Don't do this if you aren't serious about getting in shape or losing weight, because you could end up wasting some money. If you don't have the money to do this, that's fine. There are still plenty of options for you. Losing weight doesn't require any special equipment but your body and some time. The only reason I recommend getting a gym membership or taking a class at your local gym is that it forces you to get up and get to work. If you have someone pushing you along, it isn't as easy to give up halfway through the workout. Someone is there doing it with you, encouraging your progress.
If you're the type of person that needs to be assured, this could be very beneficial for you. If you've got a scheduled class or a trainer of some sort at a gym, you'll have much more reason to get up and work out! If you have had trouble sticking to an exercise routine in the past, try this method.
Pilates and Yoga
Yoga has been a popular world-wide exercise for years and years. Doing yoga not only strengthens muscles, but increases flexibility. I wouldn't recommend just doing yoga if you're serious about weight loss, but adding yoga to your weekly workout schedule can help clear your mind and relax your body.
Pilates is similar to yoga, but there are many differences between the two. Both arts focus on control and precision of the body and build strength and flexibility, but Pilates is less focused on inner energy and more about body conditioning. In a way, it is less spiritual. Pilates is a great way to get a lean, dancer-esque body.
If the idea of yoga or Pilates interests you, but you aren't sure which would be better for you, try them both on for size. There are plenty of videos of examples on the web outlining a few basic moves of both techniques.
Jump Rope
I have a very special place in my heart for jumping rope as a form of exercise. First of all, its a great cardio workout. Boxers use intense jump rope routines to build speed, coordination, and improve footwork. Jumping rope is also less of an impact on your joints than running, which is why I prefer jump rope to running any day.
Another bonus is that jump ropes are relatively cheap, and you can probably find a good one for less than $10 in stores. If you're worried about tripping over the rope, start slow and build up skill as you go. You can also get something called a "rope-less jump rope" which is essentially just weighted handles that you move like a jump rope.
0 comments:
Post a Comment