Things You'll Need:
- Fitness journal
- Motivation
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Step 1
PLAN PLAN PLAN. Preparation is the key to success and in fitness this rule definately applies. You need to know what your goals are, and what you need to do to achieve them! I've said it before, I will say it again, you need to keep a fitness journal in order to get a handle on where you are and where you need to go. Record diet, exercise, how you feel, what was going on. Did your boss yell at you the day you had a cookie? We're your kids stressing you out when you had 10? Identify certain behaviors that may be keeping you from your goals. Once you are aware of them you can make change!
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Step 2
Diet.
For one week write down everything you eat so you can see exactly what you are taking in. Do you eat out a lot? Do you eat a lot of 'fast' or processed foods? Is your refined sugar in take high? All these things play a huge role in how your body will respond to exercise. You need to burn more calories than you take in. Yes that is true. But what KIND of calorie you take in will as well as how often you are eating determine what shape your body will take as you go. Eating high protein small meals every 3 hours will get your metabolism moving and promote muscle. -
Step 3
Strength training. This is a very important part of the puzzle. You need to build muscle to burn fat a rest. If you have never lifted weights I suggest hiring a personal trainer for a few sessions to teach you what exercises and weight is right for you as well as proper form. Every trainer is different. I recommend breaking your strength training routine into body parts. ie. Day1 legs, Day2, chest, Day3 biceps and triceps, Day4 back and shoulders Day5 repeat the area you want to work most (for most women it's legs and ab) Always give body parts at least 48 hours rest.
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Step 4
Cardio. The third piece of the puzzle and very important in burning the fat that you currently have. I highly suggest a minimum of 30 minutes a day but you can do up to an hour depending on what your goals are. (something is better than nothing especially if you are short on time) I suggest if you have a short term goal kicking up your cardio to 4-5 times per week. I like to break mine up doing 30 minutes first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and then 30 minutes after a strength training routine.
MIX IT UP! Our bodies were meant to adapt to any condition we put them in. After awhile running 4.5 on the treadmill will lose it's effectiveness. You will need to kick it up a notch. If 5.5 seems too hard, then do intervals ie. 4.5 for 2 minutes, 5.5 for 2 minutes etc. You should mix up any routine ever 6-8 weeks, however I recommend varying your cardio each day or every few days. -
Step 5
Perseverance. This is hard stuff, but COMPLETELY attainable. If you are an unmotivated person, hire a trainer. The accountability is worth every penny. If you are already motivated just make a plan and do it! Hard work does pay off!
Comments
acole said
on 5/20/2008 Nice article! Good tips. I like the idea of taking a pic of yourself in the bathing suit before and watching progress. Thanks!