Start Now!

Well, it’s the day after Christmas. After weeks of planning for a frenzy of fun-filled days and nights with my family, life is quiet again. This is traditionally the day I spend contemplating my New Year’s resolutions.

As usual, I’ve fallen out of my fitness routine during the last couple of weeks. Shopping, cleaning, cooking, and eating have replaced my workouts, and my food choices have been less (much less!) than ideal.

Because I’ve developed my own personal fitness program that works for me, I shouldn’t have too much trouble getting back into the routine. But what about women who are thinking about beginning fitness program for the first time? What is the best way to get started?

The first step is to decide why you think you might want to commit to a fitness program. Do you want to lose weight? Do you want to be able to climb the stairs without becoming breathless? Do you want to be able to keep up on a hiking trip with your children? Do you want to improve your mood and self esteem? If you’re doing it just because you think you “should” you will not be successful. Knowing why you are making the decision is all-important.

When you know why you are embarking on your fitness program, set some specific goals. Without goals you are just hoping something happens. So rather than say, “I want to lose weight”, you might say, “I will lose 8 pounds by the end of February”. Make sure that your goal is realistic and that you can measure whether or not you have reached your goal within a specified time frame. And write it down!

Now that you are fully committed to a fitness program, you can design YOUR fitness program. To do this you should take into account your present physical condition, your lifestyle, and your likes and dislikes.

When assessing your physical condition, make note of anything that might affect the types of activities you can safely and realistically take part in. Do you have a heart condition, joint problems, etc.? Checking with your doctor is the best way to assess your condition.

Your fitness program will need to fit into your lifestyle. Do you work unusual hours? Do you have young children? Find a way to weave your fitness program into your daily life. Schedule specific times for your workouts then put them on autopilot just like showering.

Think about your likes and dislikes: Would you rather exercise alone or with others? At a gym or at home? Indoors or out? Do you love swimming? Walking? Dancing? Choose activities you enjoy and make your exercise a joy, not a chore.

Ease into your new routine with low impact activities until you see how your body is going to react. Don’t go overboard when you’re first starting out. A bit of muscle fatigue is ok but if you feel extremely sore the next day then you’ve overdone it. You don’t want to get discouraged or even injure yourself into quitting!

As the people at Nike say, just do it!