Exercise is a pivotal part of getting and staying healthy. The Mayo Clinic cites multiple benefits of regular physical activity, such as improved mood, a reduced disease risk, better sleep, weight reduction and an improved sex life. When it comes to factoring exercise into your life, you should learn the right ways to prevent yourself from getting injured and to enjoy what you are doing. Include both cardiovascular training and weight training into your program.
Step 1
Begin all of your workouts with some stretching. Choose dynamic stretches which are performed in motion to get your body acclimating to movement. Side bends, lateral lunges, knee highs, ankle bounces, spinal rotations and leg swings are a few examples. Aim for 10 to 15 reps with your stretches.
Step 2
Choose a type of cardiovascular exericise that you will look forward to doing. This way it will not feel so much like work and you will reduce your chances of quitting. Spend a few minutes at your local gym using a number of different cardio machines and pick the one you like best. Walk through an interesting neighborhood or around a tranquil lake, or join a local tennis meetup group.
Step 3
Execute a light warm-up before you do cardiovascular exercise. Start out at a slow pace and gradually increase your intensity through a five-minute time span. This will slowly increase your core temperature and it will also further loosen up your joints and muscles.
Step 4
Increase your intensity to a point that is at least moderate. You should be sweating and breathing heavily at this point. Remain at this pace for the remainder of your workout. Alternate your intensity back and forth from high to low to increase your caloric expenditure.
Step 5
Include weight training with your fitness plan to build muscle. Use weight machines when you first start out and slowly work your way to free weights. Do exercises that target all of your major muscle groups like chest presses, lateral raises, lat pulldowns, triceps extensions, biceps curls and leg presses. Aim for eight to 12 reps and do three or four sets.
Step 6
Utilize proper form with your weight training exercises. Raise and lower the weights in a controlled fashion. Do not bounce the weights off your body or swing them to gain momentum. For example, when performing a bench press, ower the bar slowly and let it lightly touch your chest before pushing it back up.
Step 7
Exercise often enough to reap health benefits. Aim for four or five cardio sessions and two weight training sessions a week. Perform 60 to 90 minutes of cardio if you want to lose weight and do at least 30 minutes if you just want to gain health benefits.
Tips and Warnings
- To stay healthy, continue to exercise every week for the rest of your life. If you miss a workout here or there, that's fine. If you do not pick right back up and continue though, you will not experience a long-lasting effects.
- Before you do any type of new exercise routine, make sure you have spoken to your primary care physician.
