Diet And Exercise

Weight Loss - Diet and Exercise

No matter! It's an inescapable fact that proper diet has to be accompanied by an age-appropriate, regular exercise program if the goals are to be good health and an attractive body. Diet, at least as the word means "what you eat", is essential of course, but exercise is its essential partner. A good diet provides the proper fuel, but exercise uses that fuel to generate health and fitness.

There's not any need for someone to become a fitness fanatic or guru, but there are several simple exercises you can begin today. You can begin with a daily stretching routine of at least 10 minutes before doing any vigorous training. A 20-minute walk every other day is a great beginning for those not used to exercise. Here's an article on Walking and Weight Loss.

Work up to a more intense level of effort, but do so slowly. Most folks new to exercise get discouraged and quit too soon because they try too do too much at first. This produces soreness and sometimes injury. That reduces the motivation.

Instead, you could start with some light weight training, using 5-lb, 10-lb, then 20-lb weights. Curls, squats and other exercises are pretty simple and you'll soon graduate to more advanced levels. Then, you can add a 10-minute jog, a 20-minute jog, then 30-minutes. Once you hit an hour long run, you're into the serious workout category.

If possible, invest in equipment that may help you get motivated. My recommendation for one single piece of exercise equipment is the Bowflex. That baby's great!

Other people feel the need for the hubbub and social stimulus of a gym to keep their willpower up, but in any case, don't let your money go to waste. Make a commitment to regular workouts, whether at home or away. If you do join a gym, don't be shy. Take advantage of the expertise of more experienced fitness enthusiasts and the staff.

In order to lose weight, you want to be sure to include some cardiovascular exercises to your routine. That could be anything such as running, walking, swimming, cycling or any number of alternatives. To tone muscles and tighten the slack skin that will result from major body fat reduction, you'll need to add resistance and weightlifting exercises. You can use stretchers, rope and pulley or other equipment to supply the resistance. Weight machines are great for lifting exercises.

Once you get into a routine, you may or may not actually lose weight. If you're not obese but merely overweight, you may not see much loss. Here's why: as you reduce fat deposits the difference can be made up by gains in muscle mass. Don't pay much attention to early losses, they may well be due as much to water loss as anything else. Pay more attention to things like how your clothes fit and how YOU feel rather than what the scale says. Some people exercising to LOSE weight actually GAIN some for a while as lean tissue mass adds itself on faster than fat can leave.

As you reduce excess body fat and tone your muscles you'll experience many side benefits beyond a more attractive body. You'll feel better overall, be more energetic and should experience a heightened mood.