Exercise Prescription: Where Do I Get Started?
It’s easy to get sidelined by the overwhelm of where to start when beginning to exercise, train, or lose weight. The options are endless and if you don’t know what to start out doing, oftentimes we do nothing. Nowaday there are many different apps that can help you plan out your exercise depending on what type of workouts you want to do: crossfit, HIIT, weight training, yoga/pilates, plyometrics. Regardless of which route you take, just start! I’ll share a few ways to start a plan and help you make the first move.
First Step: What are Your Goals?
Sit down and think about what you want to accomplish through your training or exercise. Are you trying to lose weight? Increase strength or endurance? Master a skill? Build a community of friends?
No matter what your goals are for starting to exercise or train, make sure you write them down and put it somewhere that you can see it regularly. There is research behind writing your goals down and actually achieving them. Maybe start with 3-5 goals for the year; you can break them down to make them more manageable by designating 1-2 to achieve weekly, 1-2 to achieve quarterly, and 1-2 to achieve by the end of the year. Here’s an example to get you going:
Sign up at the gym for a membership and classes.
Attend 1-2 classes and complete 1 day of cardio for the first week.
Exercise 3x/week for the first quarter of the year.
Only eat out/order in 1x/week for the first quarter of the year.
Run a 5k before the end of the year.
Lose 10lbs by the end of year.
Second Step: What’s it Going to Take to Meet Your Goals?
Ok, you’ve got your goals written down and timely. What next? Well, you need a plan for how you’re going to achieve your goals.
What gym are you going to attend? It needs to be convenient and have the equipment and/or classes that you want to participate in. What does it cost and how will it fit into your budget?
When are you going to workout? Mornings, before work? After work? Evenings? You want to pick a time that you will really stick to. It takes some serious discipline to wake up early to get it in and showered before work. It also takes serious discipline to stay motivated after a long day at work. Whichever way you look at it, there are going to be more days than not that you have to talk yourself into getting your workout done. Stay focused on your goals and remember how great you feel following your workout.
What are you going to do for your workouts? Are you going to follow an app? Use a personal trainer? Join a class? Whatever route you take, just have a plan so you don’t get there and have no clue what to do first.
Finally: How Will You Track Your Progress?
Tracking your progress may be the most important part. In order to stay on track for the long haul, you’ll need small wins to keep you pressing forward. This is why it is important that your goals are measurable. Each week you should be able to look back at your goals and see where you are in your trek to meet them.
Did you get to the gym 3 days this week? Mark the days off on a calendar so you can keep track of how consistently you are meeting this goal.
Did you eat out only once this week? Track this in your budget or in a calorie tracker to see your progress.
Average your weight over a week's period to see if you are making progress towards your weight loss goal.
Overwhelmed With Where to Start?
That’s what I’m here for! Together we can go over your goals, make them measurable, and develop a plan to meet them. I can also keep you accountable to stick to your plan each week or help you progress along the way. All you need to do is schedule a phone consultation so we can discuss what you would like to accomplish and see what needs to be done to get you started. Here’s the link to get scheduled: Schedule A Consultation
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