We all need to exercise, the body thrives on movement to. I moved ahead to write this chapter because I have a struggle with myself when I am working on too many exciting things, have deadlines to meet and exercise is sometimes the furthest thing from my mind but I know I have to leave my time in for exercise and fitness. The problem is, once you quit moving so do our endorphins and it gets a little depressing.
1. Make The Time!
We think we don’t have time but actually we do. I have found in my experience, the more time I make to move my body the more time I have in the day. Funny how that works! I think it is because I have more energy and I am sure that endorphins have something to do with it as well. The truth is, the more you move, the more active you become!
2. Find Something You Enjoy!
You need to do something you love. It doesn’t really matter what it is as long as you do it. I love yoga and walking. Yoga helps loosen up my muscles, strengthens, calms and grounds me. It is very good way to de-stress at the end of a busy day or get you setup for the beginning of the day.
Walking may be your thing as well! There is nothing like getting out and getting a little fresh air and moving your limbs. Walk around your neighbourhood and park if you have one near you, will make you feel connected to nature – that is like getting a double whammy of healthy!
3. Pair It With Something You Love!
You can even do things you don’t love to do. However, these are the hardest. That is why you need to pair it up with something you do love to do. I know some of you who are reading this know what I mean. The thing that I am trying to say, is that if you choose something you don’t like to do and have a higher purpose you reach new heights of satisfaction you would never have known otherwise. I don’t like running but have recently challenged myself to move from walking to running, which for me feels like a tall order but I’ll see how I get on – I might eventually start enjoying it.
Experiment and find what is right for you. Some people like to play. If that is you then join a basketball team or perhaps a volleyball team. Sometimes if you pair it with being social then it doesn’t feel like exercise. Dance is exercise too! Pair it with romance!
4. Clarify What You Want To Achieve.
Do you want to lose weight, de-stress, build strength, improve your golf game, rebuild your knees? If you need to get to the grocery store, you have 3 choices, walk, ride your bike or drive. If you want to rebuild your knees, you are not going to pick lunges well that just doesn’t make sense. If you can’t figure it out, don’t be afraid to hire a professional trainer. They have been taught to know the things that you do not. They know what you can do that will best achieve your goals. You can hire them for one visit to make a plan or you can hire them for a few to show you how or long term to build on your success.
5. Make An Appointment With Yourself For Exercise.
Schedule it into your day. The reason I say this is because, if you show up you will do it.
6. Get More Out Of A Shorter Amount Of Time.
That is the principle of high intensity interval training (HIIT). The idea is that you start out slowly and build up to intense bursts of effort. You do this about 10 times and you have a really good workout. Bill Phillips recommends you do a 5/25 – you go 2 minutes walking, 2 minutes jogging and then run as fast and hard as you can for 1 minute. Repeat this 5 times. When you get bored with that then you can do 1 minute pedaling slowly, 1 minute pedaling your heart out for about 15 times. You can vary it any way you want. Tests have shown that this works for reducing body fat levels. If you have no fat to spare…this workout is not for you. You should stay with more endurance type exercises. You can also do the same with weight training workouts. Start out lower weight and build up. You can vary the muscle movement so you don’t have to take one minute breaks.
7. Do Your Homework And Know Why You Are Moving It And Shaking It!
It helps to know that if you don’t work out on a regular basis that you are going to be sick. Exercise prevents heart disease, diabetes, cancer, depression, osteoporosis and arthritis (just to name a few). Exercise makes you smarter (proven), leaner and healthier. If that isn’t enough exercise gives you energy!
8. Look For A Mentor!
There are tons of people out there who have done it. Those are the people you want to find. They are also very willing to show you how to do it. At IIN we were treated to the most fun workouts at the Mega Conferences. There was one in particular, the Masala Bhangra dance! I came straight home and ordered her dvd. It felt so good to do it at the conference! She knew how to do it and she passed that on to us. Brendan Brazier has a book out (read Thrive Fitness: The Vegan-Based Training Program), he knows his stuff. There are a lot of people who have done well with (Body for Life, Bill Phillips). The secret is to find someone who is doing what you want to do and learn from them. You don’t have to do the same thing over and over because you can learn new things and add it in to your old routines. You can diversify.
9. Exercise Just Like Food, Changes Everything.
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