Music on Mondays
Bust a Move!
Are you tired of listening to the same old playlist every time you are at the gym? Or does the jarring randomness of shuffle, which inexplicably changes to something you would swear you never downloaded, change your rhythm in the middle of your last rep?
Then bring your doughnut or your iPod
and tune in on on Monday’s
when I post my most popular playlists of the week.
Image by Dan Diemer
http://www.flickr.com/photos/diemer/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
KISS your Workout
Go ahead, you know you want to…
The idea of beginning a workout routine can be daunting. You make plans and set goals in your head but somehow the time never seems just right. Scheduling in time to sweat is never easy. The best way to work out and stick with it is to just go ahead and KISS it. The Keep It Simple Stupid method of working out makes working out enjoyable and as simple as possible. Working out is a relationship, a relationship with your body. Following the simple steps below will make your workout a permanent fixture in your life.
Assess. The best place to start is with yourself. Take your body out for a trial run, time a fast walk and take your pulse before and after, see how many sit ups you can do. Don’t push yourself too hard but see what you can do comfortably. If you can, get your Body Mass Index and take a few measurements of your body, these will give you clear signposts for success.
Set Your Goals. As always, with any relationship, it is your responsibility to tell your partner what you want. Set clear goals and expectations for your workout. Are you trying to lose weight, reduce stress, get ready for a marathon? Know your limits and set attainable goals within that framework. Write them down and talk to your friends. Go public with your relationship and hold yourself accountable by sharing your goals with family and friends.
Form a Plan. Make space for working out in your life. If you always get off work early on Thursday, start there. You like to bike or swim but haven’t in years? Now is the time to start. If you just can’t find something you love find something you can do together. If you like to read, get an audio book and hop on a treadmill or a recumbent bike. Or if you and your workout have dated previously and were in a rut then plan to bring in a third to spice things up this time, a partner can always make things more interesting. Take turns choosing the activities and you might find something you didn’t know you liked. You will find, as with most good things in life, if you like it and you KISS it you are only going to want to do it more!
Go For It. But start slowly, those early days will set the tone for the rest of your time together. Begin with a gentle warm up and then speed up to a pace that you can continue for at least 10 minutes. Slowly add to that until you can comfortably do 30-60 minutes most days of the week. Don’t forget to take some alone time and give your body a chance to recover. Studies have shown that recovery time for your muscles is essential.
Stick with It. If you have KISSed your workout properly then it will start to kiss you back. The more time and effort you put into it the more you get in return. Start to neglect it and it gets harder and harder and the common ground you have built on will start to fade away.
Lasting relationships are based on solid communication so remember to check in with your body and keep reassessing your goals, maybe you have passed one without even knowing. So, keep the love alive and give your body the attention it deserves and don’t forget to mix it up every once in awhile. And always remember that good kissing is never out of fashion! Read on
Bored out of my mind !!!
What’s the #1 reason why folks stop exercising??? …BOREDOM…
We just get “bored to tears” at the thought of another 30 minutes on the treadmill or on the stationary bike, or on the…you name it!
But lets just admit that and Move On. We can define boredom as lack of motivation.
So motivation is the reas
on why we exercise and diet and expend energy to get fit. Even though most everyone knows that fitness is important for so many reasons, why are so many out of shape? Ask around and you may get several different reasons, but lack of motivation is probably the main culprit behind each excuse for not exercising.
Yes, it may be hard to fit exercise into your schedule. (We all could use more hours in our busy schedule.) But time is just another excuse since we all make time for what is really important in our lives. Motivation is, in other words, the reason why we exercise, diet and try to get fit. Without motivation we will quickly loose interest and stop caring about what food we eat and how we live our lives. With motivation, on the other hand, we can sustain an exercise, diet and fitness regime.
With proper motivation, we can live our lives to the fullest and not feel constantly under pressure. Keeping fit should not be a burden or something we hate doing. If it is, we will not keep up the activity and interest. Fitness must be fun and enjoyable. If we have a positive approach to fitness, exercise and diet, we can develop a healthy lifestyle without problems.
I exercise because I wish to remain healthy Exercise also helps me maintain my independence as I grow older. I don’t want to become a couch potato (or a burden) as I age. Instead, I hope to enjoy my grandchildren and great grandchildren. My clients tell me that they love the way they feel after working out and that they notice the difference when they miss a training session.
Even though I love to exercise, I will admit that some mornings I would rather spend that extra hour in bed, or getting caught up on my task list. But, I know that I will accomplish so much more if I spend even just a few minutes maintaining my fitness level. Usually, by the time I’ve walked the dog or worked out, I am thankful that I decided to get out of bed and get moving. By the time I’m finished, I’m feeling tired but great.
Finding something you enjoy may be the most challenging part, but once you get into the habit of exercising and start seeing results, you too will become excited and may even grow to love exercise. I have and I don’t want to quit!
Keep Up With Your Grandchildren
If we are going to exercise and train consistently, and steadily, we first need to find out what motivates us. In order to develop an exercise plan and schedule which you can maintain and which fits in comfortably to your lifestyle, list the top three reasons or goals you have to become fit. Identify what makes you want to get healthier, and to keep exercising. Some will be positive reasons to do with living longer to enjoy life with your family, or being fitter so you can play with the grandchildren or even get cheaper travel and health insurance.
If you are interested in fitness so that you can lose fat or increase your muscle mass, you should be aware of that this is going to get harder as you get older. It’s difficult to imagine just how important all the components of fitness are (strength, cardio and stretching) until we have grandchildren. It is then that we realize just how exhausting (and wonderful) it can be to spend time with your grandchildren!!!
Keeping fit should not be a burden or something we hate doing. If it is, we will not keep up the activity and interest. Fitness must be fun and enjoyable. If we have a positive approach to fitness we can develop a healthy lifestyle without problems.
….BANISH THE BOREDOM….
