- First of all, define your goals.
Your routine and diet will depend on what you want to achieve. For example, lowering your calory intake and cardio is much more effective for weight loss than for muscle building, and vice versa.
Choose an exercise that you enjoy very much because you’re going to do it very often.
Don’t get into a routine you hate; exercise should be one of the happiest times of your day. If running or going to the gym seems boring to you, look for other programs, try some sport. Don’t settle until you find a routine that makes you genuinely happy.
- Invest in the exercise; it’ll make you feel better.
You’re going to need a nice bottle to drink water, exercise clothes, the one that looks better; the two most comfortable pairs of tennis you can find and some useful hearing aids.
This serves a dual purpose: it will motivate you to continue training and give you a sense of responsibility because you have already spent money.
- Routine is more effective than motivation.
Motivation changes and disappears. You don’t need pictures of healthy people with corny text on them; you need a routine. Pick the most useless time of your day and dedicate it to your training.
- Listen to your body; let it rest.
After your first workout you’ll feel like a champion, but if it’s your first time, the next day you won’t be able to move. Let your body get used to the routine. If you have to wait a day or two, it’s preferable to an injury.
- And since you get used to it, don’t skip a day.
The key to progress is constancy. It doesn’t have to be daily either; five days a week is enough for a good routine. Try to work for a different muscle group every day, to let your body rest.
- Nothing easy is worth it.
Don’t believe infomercials. The magnetic belts, the Bio Shaker and the other exercise devices while you watch TV, they don’t work. On the other hand, the T25 and P90X exercise programs are designed for beginners and let you advance at your own pace, making them an excellent option to start getting in shape from home.
- Do not forget to warm.
A cramp can ruin your day and, an injury, the whole routine. Don’t stretch like the fools in the picture; it’ll just tighten your muscles and increase your chances of injury. To warm-up, start with a lighter version of your routine and gradually increase the intensity.
- Weapon a playlist.
Get ready with a playlist composed of all your favorite songs, the fastest, to help raise your heart rate.
- For half an hour a day, you won’t be available to anyone.
From the moment you start to warm up to the last breath of your routine, forget about answering calls or messages. That way, you’ll concentrate better and finish faster. It will also give you a moment of peace and help you organize your thoughts.
- Adjust your diet gradually.
Starting to eat pure chicken breasts overnight is going to depress you. Try to eat cleaner, avoid junk food, and cook whenever you have a chance.
- Small changes can make a big difference.
You’re the result of all the things you do every day. Over time, changing any detail will result in apparent changes.
Do you drink a daily Coke? Change it for water. Do you buy a frappe at night? Better order an American on the rocks. You know what your bad habits are, get rid of the most disposable, one by one, so it doesn’t hurt.
- Pick a big day and make it the happiest day of the week.
Fat day is the day the diet doesn’t exist. You need one to not go crazy. Pamper yourself: do it on the weekend to eat throughout the day, visit the restaurants more stuck in the city, prepares one of our glorious videos of food and upload the result to your networks to teach people how to enjoy life.
- Plan the days when you could break the routine and get ahead of the circumstances.
At some point of the year you’ll get sick, or you’ll go on vacation. You have to plan so you don’t lose the habit. If you can, exercise at home, if you don’t have time, at least try to follow the diet.
- Don’t worry if you don’t see changes immediately.
Rob Sulaver of Bandana Training describes it very well with the 2-4-8 rule: if you are constant, you will need two weeks to start feeling changes, four to start seeing them and eight for others to notice.
- Forget the scale.
Don’t weigh yourself until you start looking the way you want, or you’re just going to get depressed. The numbers mean nothing. You can lose weight in fat and regain it in muscle, but if you’re only guided by weight, you’re going to feel like you’re not making progress.