Posted by Nikoletta Ventseslavova

Cost: your own will to make a change into your routine and be healthier, or $9-15 per gym session

Gain: Strength and satisfaction with minimum effort.

Everyone of us knows in his heart that movement can be substituted for medicine, but the reverse is not true. Unsurprisingly, our health and shape are inextricably linked with movement. It’s important to know how much exercise is the minimum we need to be healthy because more exercise than this is by definition, unnecessary. Most of us tend to start dieting and/or engaging in sport after a new year’s resolution or in the summer before our vacation, with vanity as the motivator. More often than not this comes to nothing and the pounds pile on year after year. We all know the answer is a more healthy lifestyle but but we live in denial thinking that it’s possible to exercise or crash diet a few weeks a year so we can have our cake and eat it too. The answer of course is to modify our behaviour over the long term. I know it. You know it. It’s just a question of how far we let things go before we are pushed into action.

Increased physical activity can lead to a longer life. Not all of us are motivated to live longer but being less disabled for the period we are alive is more interesting. Exercise helps us prevent heart disease and many other health problems. Also, it builds our strength, gives us more energy and reduces stress. It is also a good way to curb our appetite and burn calories, has a positive effect on the human psyche, coordination and ability to concentrate. In addition, regular physical activity is essential for good health and can help prevent the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, the American Heart Association says. The P90X workout is a good example of a diet/exercise combination which works.

Staying in shape and in good health depends on the amount of  exercise in our daily routine and our current health status. Of course, each one of us has his own rhythm of life. Generally, there are two main types of people: Inactive ones – who have a sedentary lifestyle, with a minimal amount of physical activity and moderately active- those which are on the go and expend energy throughout the day, engaging different movement-oriented activities.

What the Experts Say is a Minimum:

For  people, whose current regime doesn’t involve exercise it is recommended to start with 30 minutes of exercise like walking twice a week. After two weeks, it’s good to add an extra day per week to your routine. Once used to activity for 30 minutes per workout, it is possible to incorporate more time into each workout depending on our goals for health.

According to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, the average healthy person should include at least two 20-minute muscular strength training workouts per week, three 30-minute muscular endurance sessions a week and three 20-minute aerobic activities per week. Flexibility and stretching are also advised daily before or after our main workout.

Before we start exercising:

A medical consultation is advisable for people who are over 35 and have been inactive for several years and also for younger people with the following conditions:

• High blood pressure.
• Heart trouble.
• Family history of early stroke or heart attack deaths.
• Frequent dizzy spells.
• Extreme breathlessness after mild exertion.
• Arthritis or other bone problems.
• Severe muscular, ligament or tendon problems.
• Other known or suspected disease including hereditary conditions.
• A history of eating unhealthy foods

Before beginning, learn the basic elements of fitness and how they work for our bodies. According to experts, the four components are:

“Cardio respiratory Endurance - the ability to deliver oxygen and nutrients to tissues, and to remove waste, over sustained periods of time. Long runs and swims are examples of cardio.

Muscular Strength - the ability of a muscle to exert force for a brief period of time. In short, the ability to lift weight.

Muscular Endurance - the ability of a muscle, or a group of muscles, to sustain repeated contractions or to continue applying force against a fixed object. Examples include push-ups or riding a bike up a slope.

Flexibility - the ability to move joints and use muscles through their full range of motion. It’s amazing how inflexible we can get. If you have been sedentary you may be shocked at what you cannot do.

Getting Motivated:

Susie Shina, the author of “Sixty Second Circuits” and also trainer and owner of “Fitness 180” advises, “It takes about 5-7 minutes to begin to feel the endorphin rush that comes from exercise, so most people find the 10-minute workout three times a day may actually be more pleasurable than the 5 minutes six times a day.” She also says that it’s better to use exercises that engage several muscle groups at once. Her clients’ favorites include simple movements, such as standing up super-straight, with shoulders rolled back, abdominals tight, and chin up. “The trick is to set a timer for 5 minutes and hold that posture,” says Shina. She also recommends diversity, time and intensity increase. “Keep changing up the movements to keep your body guessing, in order to gain benefits from these activities” she says.

If the sessions are short, it’s easy to put them off without guilt. To stay focused it’s necessary to “keep your eye on the prize: Don’t think about what you have to do, think about what you will get if you do it. Namely, you’ll feel better, you’ll look better, your health will be better.”

Finally, if your motivation is still lower, set up a competition with a friend, Shina suggests. “First, each of you buys a gift card to a favourite store. Then, each of you must write down all your fitness activities — when you did them and for how long. And at the end of the week, compare notes. Whoever did the most for the longest gets to have both gift cards.” Or we can compete with ourselves, by continually adding challenges to our goals.

If you liked this article, read also: The most efficient combination: Anaerobic and aerobic training and Avoiding junk food – The easiest way to fitness without sweat