By
David Grim
If you want to start exercising for the first time (or after
years of inactivity) you need a beginner work out to follow while you
get into better condition. You should be sure to ease into your new
routine to prevent discouragement as well as potential injury. So how
should you start? First is realizing that you are not going to break any
world records in your first week of training. This is fine though
because once you get back into shape who knows what you will be able to
do. You shouldn't think about how in shape you want to be, but
understand how in shape you are right now.
With this in mind you need to know your limitations. Start building up to the condition you want to be in and practicing exercises you may not be able to handle right now. The first thing to do is get some basic stamina and base strength. Once you get that covered you can move on to harder workouts. Here are some tips to build a beginner work out:
Build Up Your Base Conditioning First
When you haven't worked out before, or not for a while, you will be weak in three main areas: exercise technique, strength and cardio stamina. You need to address these three issues before you can even think about stepping up a gear. Here are some basic tips to help you to increase your body's capacity in these three areas.
To improve your strength start off with with pull-ups, push-ups, planks and lunges. If you do each of these you will workout your entire body. If you can't do a single exercise that's okay. Modify the move to fit your ability then progress on to the next step.
If walking up a flight of stairs causes you catch your breath, you need to build up some cardiovascular endurance. The first step to improve your cardio is the easiest, just go for walks. Get some fresh air and sunshine. A 20-30 minute daily walk should be your starting goal to build up your cardio. Walk with a purpose - don't just drag your feet along watching the birds and the neighbors. Try to walk quickly, do not start jogging but keep up a healthy pace. Keep this up until you are ready to mix in some jogging while you're walking.
The Internet is a great source of information when it comes to planning a workout regime. If you need to improve your form then head to YouTube and watch people doing exercises with the perfect technique. You could always go see a personal trainer who will be more than willing to show you how to workout properly, for a fee of course. Either way, when you perform the exercises concentrate on the form first not how much weight you are lifting.
Another area to focus on is your nutrition, if you are eating properly you will see results quicker.
Nutrition will account for about 75% of your work out results. Do not overlook this when you start out. Start by cutting all the sugar, fast food, junk food, soda and processed foods from your diet and focus on whole, basic foods instead. Forget all those fad diets - they are dangerous and in most cases won't even work for most people, so they aren't worth the time or the money invested in them. Start thinking about food as a friend that gives you fuel. If you learn how to make healthier choices you will see the results.
Get Plenty Of Rest
Rest is very important when you begin a workout regimen. Over training and not giving your body time to rest will really slow your results down. The perfect amount of sleep is 8 hours a night while it is completely dark.
Sample Beginner Work Out Plan
To start out, plan on working out every other day (but only 3 days a week total) with a "rest day" in between. The rest day will be an active day but won't involve any weight lifting or body weight exercises.
Here is a sample plan:
On Monday, Wednesday and Friday do three sets of as many push-ups and pull-ups you can, followed by 15 lunges on each leg and a plank hold for 30 seconds. You should only rest for a single minute between sets, and no more than 2 minutes between the change up to a new exercise. After this you should go for a fast paced walk for 30 minutes. This should take you less than an hour to complete.
On your rest days, which include the weekend you should go for a quick 20 minute walk. Stretch our before and after your walks, also remember to stretch before and after your workouts.
Keep doing this beginner work out for anywhere to 1-2 months as you build up a solid foundation. Then start adding some different exercises that include resistance weight training. From here you can get into as good a shape as you wish. Now get started and change your life!
With this in mind you need to know your limitations. Start building up to the condition you want to be in and practicing exercises you may not be able to handle right now. The first thing to do is get some basic stamina and base strength. Once you get that covered you can move on to harder workouts. Here are some tips to build a beginner work out:
Build Up Your Base Conditioning First
When you haven't worked out before, or not for a while, you will be weak in three main areas: exercise technique, strength and cardio stamina. You need to address these three issues before you can even think about stepping up a gear. Here are some basic tips to help you to increase your body's capacity in these three areas.
To improve your strength start off with with pull-ups, push-ups, planks and lunges. If you do each of these you will workout your entire body. If you can't do a single exercise that's okay. Modify the move to fit your ability then progress on to the next step.
If walking up a flight of stairs causes you catch your breath, you need to build up some cardiovascular endurance. The first step to improve your cardio is the easiest, just go for walks. Get some fresh air and sunshine. A 20-30 minute daily walk should be your starting goal to build up your cardio. Walk with a purpose - don't just drag your feet along watching the birds and the neighbors. Try to walk quickly, do not start jogging but keep up a healthy pace. Keep this up until you are ready to mix in some jogging while you're walking.
The Internet is a great source of information when it comes to planning a workout regime. If you need to improve your form then head to YouTube and watch people doing exercises with the perfect technique. You could always go see a personal trainer who will be more than willing to show you how to workout properly, for a fee of course. Either way, when you perform the exercises concentrate on the form first not how much weight you are lifting.
Another area to focus on is your nutrition, if you are eating properly you will see results quicker.
Nutrition will account for about 75% of your work out results. Do not overlook this when you start out. Start by cutting all the sugar, fast food, junk food, soda and processed foods from your diet and focus on whole, basic foods instead. Forget all those fad diets - they are dangerous and in most cases won't even work for most people, so they aren't worth the time or the money invested in them. Start thinking about food as a friend that gives you fuel. If you learn how to make healthier choices you will see the results.
Get Plenty Of Rest
Rest is very important when you begin a workout regimen. Over training and not giving your body time to rest will really slow your results down. The perfect amount of sleep is 8 hours a night while it is completely dark.
Sample Beginner Work Out Plan
To start out, plan on working out every other day (but only 3 days a week total) with a "rest day" in between. The rest day will be an active day but won't involve any weight lifting or body weight exercises.
Here is a sample plan:
On Monday, Wednesday and Friday do three sets of as many push-ups and pull-ups you can, followed by 15 lunges on each leg and a plank hold for 30 seconds. You should only rest for a single minute between sets, and no more than 2 minutes between the change up to a new exercise. After this you should go for a fast paced walk for 30 minutes. This should take you less than an hour to complete.
On your rest days, which include the weekend you should go for a quick 20 minute walk. Stretch our before and after your walks, also remember to stretch before and after your workouts.
Keep doing this beginner work out for anywhere to 1-2 months as you build up a solid foundation. Then start adding some different exercises that include resistance weight training. From here you can get into as good a shape as you wish. Now get started and change your life!
David Grim is a personal and group trainer who works with men and
women to help them get fit and lean. For useful tips, techniques, ideas
and commentary on fitness and exercise visit him at http://www.GetFitGetLean.com
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