As your mentors have always said, “You’ve got to start somewhere, right?” They are exactly right. Taking the right steps toward you goals, even the first five baby steps, lead to greater returns. In this article, I will attempt to guide your baby steps so that you can walk, jog, and even sprint on your own!
***
First, decide what you want. A goal may sound simple, like “loose weight” or “gain muscle,” but other factors can play a large role in the success of your efforts. Some people need to fit into an old pair of pants. Others want to be able to bench a certain weight. More often than not, you may have a more specific goal you have not yet discovered. For instance, you may need to learn to like yourself. I bring this up because liking yourself is a key to success!
The desire to change something suggests there is something wrong. Not liking everything about your body at all times is both okay and normal. However, letting negative thoughts take over the positive ones can be hazardous to your goals and your health.
Motivational articles, such as “How to Love Your Body Naked: A Guide From A – Z” by Pamela Blackburn, can help point your attitude in the right direction. More motivational, love- yourself articles lie within books, magazines and countless websites, such as LoveYourBody.org. Check them out to help build up confidence.
On the other hand, all the articles can do is help. No matter how much you read, only you can keep your spirits high and attitude in check. Be sure to think about your great qualities from time to time. Special features of your body and personality flatter you, but you may not even pay them any attention! Also, be sure to see your efforts as an attempt to better yourself, not fix everything. Are more muscles really going to help on the job? Is dropping a few pounds going to make you a better parent? No. It is just a way to get hot, healthy and a little happier with yourself.
Go ahead and start thinking of a couple specific tasks you would like to accomplish. Learn to love yourself, go find an old dress you have not been able to wear for a while, or go see how long you can play with your children before getting tired. Discover the possibilities!
***
The second step for beginners to take is to set real goals! Not just any goal will work. Follow the S.M.A.R.T. way to set goals. Greg Gillies came up with this useful method of goal setting. The S.M.A.R.T. way includes five key steps.
“S” stands for specific. Now that you have discovered possibilities, narrow it down.
“M” stands for measurable. How many inches off your waist do you want to loose? How quickly do you want to run a 5K? Find measurable ways to track your progress. You could measure numerous things at once to achieve one big, ultimate goal, such as to workout four days a week, have only two drinks a week, and weigh in every other day.
“A” stands for attainable. If you have not run since your peewee football game, do not expect to run a 10K in a month! Additionally, celebrating each five-pound loss with a trip to the spa sounds more attainable than one, distant, thirty-pound celebration.
“R” represents realistic. This goes hand-in-hand with “A.” According to the WebMD article, “Setting Realistic Weight Loss Goals: Realistic weight loss ambitions can help you stay on track—and reach your diet goals” written by Kathleen Doheny and reviewed by Louise Chang, MD, do not try to loose more than one or two pounds per week. Losing more than that would be unhealthy. Similar realistic goals can also apply to your workouts in order to prevent injury.
Finally, “T” stands for timely. Set small deadlines to measure your progress. Sometimes signing up for a road race, attend a reunion, or some other milestone helps people stay motivated. Remember that sometimes plateaus happen, but just keep pushing!
***
The next few steps involve research. Now that you have confidence and goals, you need to figure out how to achieve them. Everyone knows that eating well and exercising regularly lead to a healthy lifestyle. With good health often comes a great body! The key here is finding out which eating and exercise habits will work for you.
The third baby step relates to your body type. Every body is different. Women often relate their shape to fruit, such as bananas, pears, apples and even oranges. Better ways to judge your body include looking at your family genes and taking the quick body type test by Paul Becker.
First, an article found on WebMD, “Genes May Predict Fat Risk 3 Genes Play Major Role in Obesity, Body Shape” written by Daniel J. DeNoon and reviewed by Louise Chang, MD, tells about how genetics determine the quantity of fat cells you have and where they like to camp out in your body. Additionally, in the other article, Becker states that “many women who tend to be endomorphic will save themselves much suffering by not striving to change themselves into ectomorphs, it’s not going to happen.” If you look like a pear, don’t loose faith. You can still be a sexy, curvy, smaller pear!
How does this affect you? This helps to tell you what to train and what results to expect. Fitness expert Edward J. Jackowski recently wrote, “Hold It! You’re Exercising Wrong.” In his book Jackowski says, “For certain body types, step classes and stair climbers will actually increase the size of your buttocks, thighs and hips.” Be sure to work out your trouble zones, but remember that target toning and spot slimming generally work for no one.
***
The fourth step for a successful beginner involves math. You may have thought you were done with this in high school or college, but think again! Thankfully, helpful websites placed calculators online to help you with every fact and figure you need to see.
Figure out your Body Mass Index (BMI) first. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), your BMI is calculated from your weight and height. Your “BMI provides a reliable indicator of body fatness for most people and is used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems.” You can find an online BMI calculator at the CDC’s website and compare the figure to Dino Pierce’s Bodybuilding.com article, “Dino’s Bodybuilding Q and A.”
Next, find out your Basil Metabolic Rate (BMR). This will help determine how much you should be consuming. A very helpful article is ISSA’s “Nutrient Ratios & Caloric Needs.” Remember that consuming too many calories makes you gain weight, and too few calories can shut down your metabolism causing your weight loss or gains to plateau. A good balance specific to your goals should help you succeed.
Finally, figure out your target heart rate. Jeremy Likness created a great article and calculator to help with this. Just visit his article, “Heart Matters: Are you training your heart?” Everyone needs cardiovascular exercise. Those looking to loose weight need more cardio than other people. Simply jumping on an elliptical trainer for twenty minutes may not be enough. Make sure you keep an eye on your heart rate and keep a sweat-rag handy! Even those looking only to gain muscle need to exercise their heart to keep it strong and healthy.
***
The fifth and final step involves your happiness! Start researching toning exercises to work your muscles. It is important to avoid lifting the heaviest thing at the gym if you have not worked out in a while. To keep yourself healthy, happy and injury-free, tone your body for about six to eight weeks in order to figure out what you do and do not like. Some exercises will work for you better than other exercises. Some are just more fun! These are the things to notice while you build your strength. After the six to eight weeks of toning and strengthening, reach for the big weights. You’ve had plenty of time to research other workouts and have had time to put together something that sounds both fun and challenging. Go for it and keep things interesting by switching your more advanced workouts every four to six weeks.
As for cardio, think of things you enjoy. Cardiovascular exercise seems to be everyone’s least favorite gym activity. However, just think about how great you will feel after a good workout. They don’t call it a “runner’s high” for nothing! Are you bored of the treadmill already? Take your workout outdoors to run on trails or play sports with your friends or family. If you are a homebody, aerobic tapes can be a great way to start doing cardiovascular exercise. Once you get more confident and fit, take it to a gym machine or aerobics class! You can save money by just buying a jump rope to use while you watch your favorite television show. Whatever you like to do, just do it!
Lastly, figure out what diet would work for you. It is important to pick a healthy lifestyle that will keep you happy for years to come; however, if you choose a fad diet, pick wisely! Research to find out which diets sound healthy, then pick what you like! If you simply love carbohydrates, then Atkins may not be for you. Just restrict yourself to eat healthy, complex carbs instead of sugary, refined ones. If you love eating, then go for the Five-Factor Fitness plan that lets you eat five meals a day. In short, do not pick something with which you cannot stick.
***
Keep up the hard work, love yourself, and be happy! Good luck beginners!
Leave Comment