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Great Gifts
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Shape Up For The New Year
You want your body in the best shape with minimum hassle. To often your New Year’s resolution is finished sooner than your Christmas chocolates. You need a plan that works to breath new life into your fitness routine when you resolve is fading.
In the desire to get fit in the New Year we can quickly come up with a plan that involves us looking like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie by March as a result of training like Paula Radcliffe or Lance Armstrong. We head to the gym or endless laps of the park with a grim look on our face and the scales waiting in the hallway for our return. Guess what? It isn’t going to work! Even top sports men and women spend years getting their body into the shape where they are at the top of the game. You don’t need something matching their regime to get in good shape. And, believe it or not, even the toughest sports stars don’t head out the door determined to hammer their poor body into submission each time they train before returning to a meal of cabbage soup and water followed by bed. So what should you be doing? There are some simple measures you need to put in place 1 Make it fun If you don’t enjoy it you will never stick to it. Forget the ‘if it’s not hurting it’s not working’ rubbish. It’s just not true. Banging your head against a brick wall is bad for you as well as painful. A walk through stunning scenery is fun and healthy. There are ways to make training fun!
2 Make it sustainable Paula Radcliffe did not get out of bed, think ‘I fancy a bit of marathon running’, and break the world record straight away. It took her time to build up to it. She succeeded, and sometimes failed, at a whole range of targets she had as stepping stones along the way. Physically and mentally too much too soon will lead to you not being able to sustain the effort. It is also probably not necessary. If your weight has been stable and you up your exercise levels and maintain your calorie intake you will lose weight! Look at your diet and make it more sensible too and the effects will be greater. Here’s how to make your exercise sustainable:
3 Have a routine As touched upon already look to how much time you can commit. Also consider when it is best for you to train. Some people find that it is best to train first thing in the morning and get it out of the way before life gets busy. Others use a lunch break at work to head for the gym. For some people it may be a case of going training straight after work and therefore missing the rush hour traffic. Sometimes you can combine exercise with other ‘activities’. If your children join a swimming club find out whether there a gym at the pool you could use while they are there rather than driving home and back to pick them up. Or may be you can bike or run over to a friends house or work if you can have a shower and get changed at the other end. Work out where training fits best for you. 4 Stay fuelled One problem people have when taking up exercise is that they go to an extreme with their diet. This can be very unhealthy, particularly if you are trying to up your level of exercise on reduced levels of nutrients. Read some of our articles on nutrition to find out more. Trying to force your body to operate when it is not properly fuelled, either due to inadequate food intake or because the food eaten is not healthy, will see the same result as if you did the same with your car – it will break down. It may be worth considering supplements but always remember to base your eating habits around a healthy diet. A snack of celery won’t turn a bad diethealthy and a Mars Bar won’t turn a good diet unhealthy. A good diet with all the vital nutrients included will make you look better and feel better. Make sure you drink enough water each day, including before, during and after training. This should be 2 litres to 2.5 litres of fluid a day and your urine should be fairly clear. Dehydration will affect many things including your skin, digestive system, concentration, sleep and ability to exercise. 5 Stay positive Keep a perspective on your fitness and remember why you are doing it. Beyonce Knowles has said of exercising: “When you look in the mirror and you see your body transforming, you see the pounds dropping off, your skin clearing up and you sleep better you feel good.” There are potential harmful ways of making someone look better (eg plastic surgery or crash diets) but these are not even always successful at their aim, and they do not make you healthier. By committing to getting fit you will look better, feel better, and be healthier. The best way to look better is also the healthiest!
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