Ten tips
You do want to be more active, but it just isn’t in your system. You are too busy or too tired. With these tips you can make exercise a daily routine that can be fun too.
1. Make a choice
Research the possibilities before you start. Find an activity you like. Some enjoy going to the health club, while others prefer a walk in nature. Both will improve your fitness, function and quality of life, but only if you do it regularly.
2. Start slow
Many people start enthusiastically and go too far, which causes a lot of muscle pain and that can be very demotivating. If necessary, consult a doctor before you start exercising intensively. If you feel pain during or after exercise, first rest and switch to lighter exercises. Physical activity does not have to be intensive to achieve beneficial health effects: exercise is not necessarily sports.
3. Make an appointment
train together. Invite your partner or friends over for a workout instead of meeting up for dinner and drinks. Training together is even more fun! With a regular training buddy it is easier to keep each other motivated. Whether it’s a friend for a walk or a personal trainer in the fitness club. The appointment you have will help you keep it.
4. Set goals
Make your goals as specific as possible. For example: on Monday, Wednesday and Friday I go for a ten minute walk after every meal. Setting specific goals helps you make exercise a priority. Long-term goals are just as important. Perhaps a certain activity is still too ambitious, but you can train it after a while. This goal helps you actually carry out the short-term activities.
5. Make a list
Make a list of the benefits that the physical activities bring you. Make this list realistic and reasonable. Many people expect huge benefits, such as losing fifteen pounds in a month. When these expectations are not met, they are disappointed and drop out because they think they have failed. Set reasonable goals, such as stress reduction, stronger muscles, more flexibility, more energy and better sleep. Hang this list in a place where you will be reminded of it daily.
6. Invest in health
Don’t buy make-up or things for your home, but invest in your health. Spend some money on a fitness club subscription, a trendy training outfit or a pair of new walking shoes. This way you make exercise a fun priority.
7. Follow a full program
In order to have real success with a training program, there are several components to training. In addition to fitness, resistance training should also be part of a fitness program to maintain strength, muscle endurance and lean mass.
Agility exercises should be included to develop and maintain dexterity. Training the balance and coordination skills are especially important from middle age to limit the risk of falling.
8. Reward yourself
When you have achieved a goal, reward yourself with something that reminds you that you delivered a good result. Something that encourages you to keep going can also help. A reward does not always have to be in the form of food, it can also be a bunch of flowers or a nice outing.
9. No excuses
No time is the most common excuse to stop moving. That seems quite right, because we are all so ‘busy, busy, busy’, but it is of course a lame excuse to hide your laziness. Take an honest look at what you do in your spare time. And… was it really necessary to see that umpteenth movie on TV? Just put more exercise in your calendar just like you write other appointments.
10. Keep going
Make exercise a habit. Think of it like brushing your teeth; you don’t always feel like it, but it is part of your daily routine. Increasingly, it is not only the physical benefits of regular exercise that are being emphasized. At least as much attention is given to the good effect on the psyche. Exercising can reduce stress and you may even be less troubled by depressive feelings.
