How to Start Exercising
Last week we talked about the health impacts of exercise, such as burning calories, losing weight and improving your mental health. Despite these benefits, half of American adults still don’t meet the requirements for moderate exercise. Making a workout routine can be difficult, especially if you don’t know where to start. Today, we’ll talk about solutions to common problems and techniques you can use to build an exercise routine that works for you.
Types of Exercises
When building a workout routine, make sure you’re tailoring it to your own personal goals and enjoyment. According to the NIH (National Institute on Aging), there are four central exercises that can improve your health: endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility.
Endurance exercise, as the name suggests, refers to the act of “enduring” a certain type of activity for a longer period of time. Examples of endurance exercises include walking, running, swimming, cycling and even dancing. These increase your heartbeat and circulatory system, as well as your overall fitness. Endurance exercises focus on stamina, or focusing on doing something for a long period of time.
Strength exercises focus on building up mass and anaerobic endurance of your muscles, depending on which area of the body you decide to focus on. These are possibly the most “typical” workouts, focusing on lifting weights and resistance workouts such as push-ups, sit-ups, and squats.
Balance exercises, though seemingly simply, require a strong amount of effort. Balance comes in several areas of your life and having the muscles to keep yourself straight will benefit you in the long run. Similarly, becoming more flexible will allow you to perform functions and daily chores with more ease than before.
Exercising is Easier than You Think
The Invisible Benefits of Exercise by Dr. Ruby et al., discovered that participants typically underestimate how much they would enjoy. This is because of the “forecasting myopia” where people focus on the unpleasant pressure that comes in the beginning of the workout. significantly underestimated how much they would enjoy exercise. After the initial few minutes, people found out that they enjoyed working out more than they reported. Working out isn’t as hard, but getting started can be. Last we talked about common problems people encounter when trying to start exercise.
Lack of Time: Even five minutes of exercise is better than none. Look at your daily schedule and find out places where you can block out free time. Then, set up reminders to exercise. This can be a pair of running shoes by your door or even a specific alarm on your phone.
Lack of Energy: Exercise can be a paradox. It sounds like it’ll make you more tired, but people typically find that they’re more energetic after exercising. If you find out you’re too tired to do anything, begin with simpler exercises such as yoga or walking.
Lack of Resources: If you don’t have access to gym or workout equipment, it can be hard to exercise. The truth is that a lot of workouts can be performed without any form of equipment - plenty of free tutorials show you different techniques all without any extra tools.
Make sure to fit it into your needs
Based on what type of benefits you’re planning to get out of your exercise, you might discern between the types. However, no matter what type you focus on, there is an important step in your workout routine that you should always include - the “warm-up”. Warming up your body will prepare you for the physical exertion the actual activity requires. Not doing so may lead to greater soreness and aches later on.
The most important thing about creating a workout routine is to tailor it to your own needs. As we learned today, people who enjoy working out are more likely to do it in the future. Make sure to experiment with your goals and types of exercise in order to get the most benefits out of it. Next week, we’ll focus on a specific type of exercise. Yoga blends physical activity and mindfulness to create a positive effect on your lifestyle. Comment down below how much you do/you want to exercise!
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