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The purpose of this manual This manual will provide you with the information you will need prior to beginning an exercise program. The following will help you determine an exercise program specific to you. The steps within this guide will help you in choosing an exercise facility, determining any health risks you may have, setting your fitness goals, and choosing an exercise specialist to get you started. Part 1) Choosing a facility: This section will provide you with information so that you can choose a facility that will meet your fitness needs. This section also identifies three questions you should ask before joining. � Before visiting a facility � While touring the facility � Questions to ask Part 2) Health risks: The information in this section is for your safety. Because most exercise facilities will not cover this information, you must do so yourself. This information will help determine if you can begin an exercise program or if you should have a physical before beginning. Please note: It is a good idea to consult your doctor prior to beginning any exercise program. � Definition of health risk factors � C.A.D Risk Factors � Health Status Questions Part 3) Fitness goals: Fitness goals are an important part of any exercise program, however most people do not set realistic goals and end up discouraged and unhappy with themselves. This section will provide you with the information you will need to set attainable goals for yourself. � What are Goals? � How to set Goals? � Sample Goals Questionnaire Part 4) Choosing a specialist: This section will provide you with the basic knowledge you will need when choosing an exercise specialist. Some individuals who call themselves experts are actually just telling you what they believe to be true. In most cases the information can be misleading. After reading this section, you will be able to weed out all of the self-proclaimed experts. Note: You can get a specialist to help you begin your program, all though there is much more to the sport specific exercises for race driving than most trainers understand. This site will help guide you through understanding what you are doing and why you are doing it. � What to look for � Question you should ask Part 1: Choosing a Facility Overview Choosing a facility is an important first step. There are a few things you must consider before you choose a facility. Choosing: 1) Gather information on club locations and features, such as equipment and programs. 2) Consider what time you will want to workout 3) Make calls to the clubs to find out their rates 4) Determine which club is the most cost effective 5) Which club is the easiest to get to at the time you want to go 6) Visit each club While looking: 1) Try to visit the club at the same time you would be working out. 2) Look for any specialized equipment they may have. These are things like rubber bans, workout balls, balance boards, ect ect. These things are a plus and will be a big part of you workout. 3) While touring, ask yourself how the staff is treating you? 4) Do you feel comfortable with the atmosphere there? 5) Is the club crowded? 6) Do they have a daycare? What are its hours? Questions to ask the staff 1) What is the club�s mission to the public? 2) What kinds of programs do they offer? 3) Do they have certified staff that can help you? Part 2: Health Risk Overview Before beginning an exercise program it is important to determine what your health risks are. First, health risks should not be associated with a diagnosis. If you have one or more health risks it simply means that you have an elevated probability for a health problem. It is also important to understand that some people should get a physical prier to beginning any exercise program. This section will help you determine if you think should get a physical or not. The final decision is yours. Risk Factors: Risk factors are positive or negative characteristics that may lead to or prevent disease. Positive factors enhance disease risk. Negative factors decrease disease risk. C.A.D: C.A.D stands for Coronary Artery Disease Positive Risk Factors for C.A.D 1) Age: men >45 and women >55 2) Family History 3) Current cigarette smoking 4) High blood pressure >139/89 5) High Cholesterol >200 6) Diabetes 7) Physical inactivity Health status questionnaire These questionnaires are used to determine your physical health. There is an example of such a form at the end of this manual. Part 3: Fitness Goals Overview Everyone starting an exercise program should set realistic goals for themselves. However, many who do set goals for themselves tend to set them to high at first. It is important to understand that a goal is really a series of small goals that lead you to your desired outcome. This section will help you what goals are and how to set them. What are Goals? A goal is a statement of what you want to achieve. Goal Setting Goal setting is the process of identifying your goals and the means to achieve them. The means to achieve your goal are the small goals you set along the way. How to set goals? (Important points) 1) Do not set goals to high. Set moderately difficult goals. 2) Set long-term and short-term goals 3) Write your goals on paper 4) Discus your goals with a family member, coworker, trainer or doctor 5) Set performance goals not outcome goals. Performance goals are tied to previous effort and outcome goals are tied to winning. For example: Allot of racers will set outcome goals like, �To win next week�. Outcome goals can be damaging if they are not achieved, where as performance goals can always be improved on. A good performance goal would be: �To get our chassis handling better next week� or �To drive smoother�. These performance goals will lead you to the wins. Look at this the same when developing your fitness goals. 6) Evaluate your goals by looking at them on paper and deciding were you are in regards to achieving them and were you need to go from there. 7) Use a goal-setting questionnaire to aid in setting and evaluating your goals, one is provided at the end of this manual. Part 4: Choosing a Specialist Overview When choosing an exercise specialist, it is important to know what to look for. Many health clubs have trainers on staff that will help you get started at no cost. Many people can�t afford a trainer, and that is OK because you can do it on your own. My site will help you. Believe it or not, vast majority of people who work with trainers do it for a few reasons: - Because they have the money and want the trainer to design the program - Because of health reasons (they need a trainer) - Because they will not go unless it�s scheduled This next section will outline what you should look for and what questions you should ask. What to look for 1) Look for a trainer that is willing to teach you not just train you 2) Look for a trainer who keeps records. There are many trainers out there that just stand there and watch their client�s workout. These are what I call the Wing-It Trainers, because they do not prepare a specific workout for you. To get the most out of your money ask them what they offer. 3) Do not fall for the misconception that the biggest trainers are the most knowledgeable ones. For example, Body Builders are some of the last people you should consider taking advice from. Body Building is not considered a healthy lifestyle; in fact, it is very unhealthy. Information from Body Builders can be very misleading to people trying to become better race drivers. Not all, but for most Body Builders it�s all about the muscle size and not about it�s function. Muscle Function is very important for drivers. 4) Ask the trainer what types of exercise articles he or she reads. If they say muscle magazines, then be on your guard. Muscle Magazines are for profit, remember that before you believe what those magazines say. The only articles in them that are good are the ones that site professional exercise journals. If the trainer says they read professional exercise journal articles, that�s good. Exercise journals are written experts and purely to increase our knowledge of the human body.
