Get up and get going

If you need that extra nudge to get up and be active, you need to be shown how exercising is more gain than pain

Exercising for fitness is not just a lifestyle change. For most of us, it is a daily struggle. Research indicates that one out of every five people give up on exercise just within the first two weeks of trying. Interestingly, one of the chief causes of this complacency is that the exercised routines become too monotonous too quickly. Therefore, motivation is key if one is to adhere to their fitness regime. Below are some ways that can boost your energy and keep you on your toes, even when all you feel like doing is quit. Read on and be on your way to a fabulous and fit new you!

Too much cardio: While cardio is indeed a very beneficial form of exercise that guarantees instant results, it doesn’t work with the popular misconception of ‘more the better’. In fact, spending long periods of time doing cardio, particularly continuous, low-intensity cardio, can actually be counterproductive. Therefore, make sure your routine comprises of different forms of exercise to reap maximum results and keep demotivation at bay.

Love what you do: In order to ensure good health along with mental satisfaction, one should only indulge in a set of exercises that they love and enjoy. Ideally, this should be something they can do at their current fitness level.

Mix it up: The human body is surprisingly good at adapting to different things. Once we perform the same exercise repeatedly, our muscles adjust to make that exercise easier. As a result, the body is — after some time —  no longer being challenged to the same degree as before. This prevents us from developing body strength, but if we play around with different techniques we can gain much strength and enjoy exercise too.

Get a massage: After a week or two of extensive movement, our bodies tend to become sore, making it almost impossible for us to move normally and carry out other daily activities. Many beginners are so put off by the pain that they quit the whole process altogether. A deep-tissue massage, at least once every two weeks, can help ease the tired muscles out and expedite our recovery and performance. Massages also inadvertently decrease the chances of an exercise injury.

Get off the scale: As soon as we start any workout, we become a little obsessive and start checking our weight again and again. In actuality, it is the most harmful misconception as getting in shape has nothing to do with weighing less. In fact, the ratio of muscle to fat is far more important than what the scale can reveal. So forget about the digits on the screen and focus on what you can do about it.

SOURCE: BUZZFEED.COM

Published in The Express Tribune, Ms T, November 15^th, 2015.