How to Start Exercising Regularly

                We are almost one month into the New Year which means it’s time to check in to see how you are doing with your New Year’s Resolutions. Typically week 1 and 2 of January is the honeymoon stage with your New Year initiatives – you are enjoying the taste of your green smoothies in the morning, you don’t mind carrying around a water bottle wherever you go, and you are enjoying your new running shoes. But then real life sets in and for many of us that means that the goals that don’t fit into our usual schedule get pushed aside – for many that is exercising. Today I am going to share with you some tips and tricks to help you start exercising regularly.

Find the Time

                Without a doubt, the number one excuse to not work out is the lack of time. So the first, most important thing to do to start exercising regularly is to find the time to exercise. For a one entire day, write down everything you do on a piece of paper at the time and for how long in which you do it. This includes each time you stop to scroll on Instagram, the minutes spent watching Netflix, your commute time, and the time it takes you to eat lunch. Once you have your time sheet for the day, review it and ask yourself what is an activity that could be replaced with 30 minutes of exercise. What I realized by doing this is that I was spending 1 hour, from 5-6pm, looking on  my phone after work each day prior to getting dinner started. Instead of wasting time staring at a screen, I started moving my body and it has become a regular part of my daily routine.

Write it down

                Like I mentioned with setting your New Year’s Resolutions, writing down goals makes you more likely to accomplish them because we actually see what we have to do rather than just thinking about it. With that idea in mind, starting writing down and scheduling your workouts. Whether it is on your work calendar, personal calendar, or to do list at the beginning of the week, write down all your workouts and rest days for the week. When you accomplish your workout, check it off! This is an easy way to keep yourself accountable and keep your workout at the forefront of your mind.

Start Small

                If it’s been awhile since you exercised, it is important to start small. Not only can you accumulate a mass amount of pain and soreness from going too hard to fast, but it can also be discouraging at the beginning keeping you from sticking to a regular workout routine. The key is to start small. To work your way back into working out, start with a 20 minute walk in the treadmill and a combination of body weight exercises including body weight squats, lunges, crunches, and pushups. Do this for a week before working your way up to a 15 minute jog on the treadmill and the inclusion of some 5# weights into your routine. Moving your body, even for 10 minutes, is better than not moving your body at all!

Try New Workouts

                If you have found the time, you are writing down you workouts, and you are starting nice and slow, but you still can’t seem to get on board the workout train then it’s time to see if you are doing the right workout. If you told me that I had to ride a stationary bike to exercise each day, I wouldn’t do it - I strongly dislike the exercise bike, cycling is simply not for me. But I have found that I love the treadmill, dance cardio workouts, and interval training. Try new workouts as your begin exercising to find what kinds of workouts keep you coming back for more! There are a variety of websites and apps, like FitOn, that contain different workouts for you to try to see which one works best for you.

                Regular exercise has so many health benefits including weight management, better sleep quality, and improved mood. Use these techniques to find a way to include regular exercise into your routine.