6 Elements of a Well-Rounded Exercise Program
November 3, 2009 1 Comment6 Elements of a Well-Rounded
Exercise Program
Exercise is an important key to keeping fit. It is crucial in
proper weight loss and is important in maintaining overall health.
Here are the 6 elements that make up a well-rounded exercise
program.
1. Goal and Determination
This element is as important, if not more so, than those that
follow. It is the starting point. Here you should take time what
your goals are and what motivates you.
For a lot of people, the goal of exercise has something to do with
weight whether it is weight loss, weight gain, or weight
maintenance. If that is the case for you, then you can use your
ideal body weight as your Goal. Your nutritionist or your doctor
can help you determine your ideal body weight. There also resources
online that does the computing for you. You can also make the
number of minutes you spend exercising in a day or in a week your
goal.
Failing to find determination is the reason why so
many quit exercising easily. Exercise can be difficult, but more so
is finding the motivation to
stick with out. Look into yourself; find out why you are doing it.
Are you doing this for your health, your self esteem, or for the
sake of your overall well being? Once you have determined what
motivates you, list it down and place the list where you'll see it
all the time. Use that to motivate yourself whenever you feel like
you want to quit.
2. Mental Preparedness
It is easy to get motivated when starting out on an exercise
program. You feel pumped up and ready to go, then after a week so,
you find yourself ready to give up. That's because you weren't
mentally prepared for the work that you had to do and you
underestimated the dedication that was required from you. That is
the reason why you need to be mentally prepared before you begin
exercising.
In order to prepare yourself, you have to know exactly what you
will be doing. Prepare yourself to give up certain food items. Prepare yourself
to wake up earlier or stay up later than usual. Know what you are
getting in to. Doing so can really help you push through towards
your goal.
3. Physical Readiness
This should be one of the major concerns of anyone who is about to
start on a fitness exercise program. Being physically ready is more
than just warming up before a routine. You need to find out if you
have any health
problems that may restrict you from doing rigorous
activities.
If you have ever wondered why some gyms take your blood pressure
before you sign up, it's because they need to determine if you are
physical ready or not.
Contact your health care provider. If necessary,
undergo a checkup to find out if you have any underlying health
problems. Once you get the OK from your doctor, you can start your
exercising.
4. Diet and Nutrition
Exercise and Diet and Nutrition go hand in hand.
A fitness regimen should not be built on exercise alone. You need
to improve the way you eat and the way you see food. Start making
healthier choices and watch your proportions better.
It is also important to remember that a healthy diet doesn't have
to be a restrictive diet. You can still eat what you want, but you
should keep the proportions small and substitute healthier items
when you can. For example, you can still eat that glazed donut
you're craving, just make sure you stick to one every once in a
while and not go after the entire dozen in one sitting.
For a better understanding on diet and nutrition, you can contact
your doctor or a nutritionist that you are comfortable with.
5. Staying Fit
Staying fit involves doing the exercise that you need. Keep in mind
that a good exercise
regiment is a balance between cardio and weight training.
Cardio is necessary in burning calories. Swimming, running,
jogging, biking, hiking and several others are considered as cardio
exercise. Most sports are also classified as cardio activities. The
goal of cardio is to get your heart rate up. Monitor your heart
rate through your exercise. You can do it manually or with the help
of digital
monitors.
Muscle gain is the goal of weight training. It also helps to strengthen bones
and can help increase strength. Weight training needs to be
specified to your needs and you level of experience. A trainer can
help you with this. You can also do it on your own by starting
light and gradually increasing resistance.
6. Healthy Living
This is another important element of a well-rounded exercise
program. When you decide to live healthy, you need to be conscious
of what you do to your body.
Stop smoking and cut out alcohol from your diet. Even if you are
not on a fitness program, you still need to seriously consider
stopping smoking and reducing, if not cutting out alcohol from your
diet. Both elements can have negative effects on your body and
ceasing their use can benefit your body in more ways than you
think.
Try to get at least seven and a half hours of sleep at night. Sleep
deprivation can lead to all sorts of mental and physical stress.
Also, consider 15-minute power nap midday. This will help your
energy level and help make you more alert and productive.
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Articles on Exercise Programs
6 elements that make up a well-rounded exercise program is a very insightful article for those looking to better their physical state. I like how the first 3 elements focus on being prepared for the fitness program which a person will undertake. Without preparation, one could get lost and frustrated along the way when getting in better shape proves harder than anticipated. Setting goals is always important before any achievement.
I would like to see this article go into some more details about what type of goals should be set for an exercise program. If I didn't know anything about fitness, I might have some trouble determining my fitness goals just from reading this article. Of course, losing weight is a common fitness goal, but there are many more. People that are not overweight can be in bad physical shape as well. Many people like to undergo an exercise program not to get in better shape, but to make their body look better to the human eye, i.e. more toned and firm. I think it is important to mention different fitness exercises that help achieve certain goals whether it be getting nicer pectoral muscles or getting in better cardio shape.
This article does talk about strength weight training vs. cardio training. However, there are different types of cardio and weight training goals with separate exercises and methods to achieve those goals. For example, some people work out with weights to get bigger muscles while some people do it to gain more strength endurance. The weight training exercises for these two motives are very different. For example, gaining bigger muscles requires lifting more weight less times while strength endurance training involves lifting less weight for more reps. There are also different types of cardio training. For example, runners need different cardio training than tennis players since running is non- stop straight forward moition while tennis is a lot of lateral movement with a lot of stops and starts. Both require a lot cardio strength, but in very different ways. It would be good for people to become aware of these points when setting their goals and preparing for their fitness exercise program.