Walk This Way!
Having trouble getting your exercise program into high gear? Don't push it. Instead, ease on down the road to good health by beginning with a simple, joyful walk!
This won't take much time or money -- and you can start today!
If you can, take a walk on the beach and while you are there, try to find things that have washed ashore!
Half the battle to getting fit is getting started. You can easily conquer that obstacle by just going out for a 10-minute walk! Don't put it off, because you "don't have the time" or because you "don't have the money to buy equipment." Those excuses won't fly. Just get off your duff and out the door!
If you haven't exercised for a while, start with just 10 to 15 minutes three days a week. Gradually build up to 30 to 60 minutes, five to seven days a week. If you're like most people, you'll start to really enjoy this time, and you'll love the way it makes you feel.
Weather permitting, you can get involved with short walking and running competitions and charity events that cover two to six miles. These are GREAT motivations for you to train on a regular basis, and they give you a goal to work toward.
Now, don't think you have to be in great shape or be able to walk really fast to do these. In fact, how you compare to others is not the point. It's about you working consistently toward a goal and getting fit and healthy as you do that.
Check local sports and bicycle shops for flyers announcing upcoming walking/running events. Send in your registration now, so you're committed to it. Start training and write down what you plan to do each week to be ready for the big day.
Chances are you'll get hooked on this stuff. Once you've achieved that goal, find another event and start training for that. Here's is what a friend of mine did:
At age 40, she was not going to let her weight consume her life anymore. She is very goal-oriented, so I suggested that she set exercise goals of participating in walking competitions.
She planned to do a 3.1-mile walk that was almost three months away. She walked daily following all kinds of instructions on how to train for it.
She felt so good to finish that race, even though she was still about 200 pounds. She came in third to last out of about 150 people. But, She knew at that point that she would be successful at losing every pound she wanted to lose.
Her next goal was a 6.2-mile walk, and her ultimate goal was to walk a marathon, 26.2 miles. She achieved the 6.2-mile-race goal a couple of months after the 3.1, and she was still almost last to finish. But, that didn't matter! A few months earlier, she couldn't walk down her driveway without huffing and puffing.
Last fall, she did it: she walked a marathon. Her family is still amazed at her accomplishments. She said that it was so much fun. When she crossed that finish line, she said that the feeling was incredible. Oh, and by the way, she lost over 100 pounds in the process of all this training.
