TAKING YOUR WORKOUTS OUTSIDE OF THE GYM

Take your workouts outside of the gym for a change of pace. There are many effective training environments outside of the gym. Parks, beaches, hotel rooms, garages, stairs and playgrounds are excellent examples of places to get a great workout. By taking your workouts outside the gym, it lets you be creative and use your imagination. You can change up your workouts and turn it into a new adventure which will keep you motivated and less likely to grow tired of the same old workout routine. Working out outside is free and does not require a gym membership. You can alleviate a trip to and from the gym which will save you time and the excuse of not having enough time to get to the gym to workout. Exercising outside is perfect for people who find gym environments intimidating and overwhelming. Working out should be fun and by bringing the workouts outdoors, you are bringing an element of playfulness into the workout, reminiscent of when we were kids playing outside. Doing pull-ups on monkey bars, jumping rope in a garage, running up and down stairs, doing pushups in a hotel room or running on a beach are great examples of some of the workouts you can do outside of the gym.

EXERCISING WITH YOUR PARTNER ENHANCES YOUR RELATIONSHIP

Couples are always looking for ways to spend more time together, but with most couples working full time jobs, time together is severely limited. Exercising together is the perfect way to spend more time together. Making a fitness plan and sticking to it is much easier as a couple. People are more apt to keep consistent in their exercise regimen if they are working out with a partner. Think of it as a healthy date night, so to speak. Instead of a movie, go on a hike or run, this will improve communication between the two of you. Exercise is not only about self gratification but also giving to your partner. Exercising together is about giving to each other both physically and emotionally. The problem with today’s society is that everybody is so busy being caught up in their own lives, that we barley have any quality time with our partners. Try scheduling a day or two during the week to work out at home in the evening, or go for a brisk walk or jog in the morning before work or maybe meet at the gym on your lunch hour for a quick workout. Making time to work out together is a great way to get closer and communicate. In the end , I think you will find that working out together keeps the both of you inspired as well as taking the relationship to another level.

FITNESS IS NOT A RESOLUTION

Exercising and healthy eating habits should not be a New Year’s Resolution... Rather a part of your daily activities just like brushing your teeth. People who set out with strict fitness plans as well as stringent dieting as their goal for the New Year often set themselves up for failure. Often they will start out on their regime extremely disciplined and really strict, falling off of the fitness wagon in the first few weeks. Usually every January you will see health clubs as well as Yoga classes and tracks filled with ambitious people ready to set out on their new fitness program, By February, half as many people are still at it. This is because people will set unrealistic goals for themselves , going to the gym every day and overtraining, starting on a crash diet and stopping drinking. You should first start off by setting realistic goals for yourself. an example of this would be to eat clean during the week and give yourself a cheat day on the weekend or cutting your drinking out during the week and having a glass of wine on the weekend. Maybe start out going to the gym 3 times a week and making time to go on an hour walk each day. By starting of slow and not with an all or nothing mind set, you will be more likely to keep up with your workouts and healthy eating plan. A good way to start out on your fitness endeavor is with "Possibility thinking", which allows you to live into the body that you want. Examples of this would be putting up a picture of yourself when you were in good shape or a picture of someone's body who you would like to look like on your bathroom mirror. You can also make a scrapbook or "vision board" of things you would like to try such as snowboarding, kayaking or some yoga poses. Another example would be writing down all of the goals that you want to achieve with exercising, maybe running a 5k or doing a set of 20 pushups or going on a 6 mile hike. Each day you should try and incorporate a workout of some sort into your schedule, whether it is just doing 20 minutes of weights or going on a half hour walk at a fast pace at lunch, you will be more likely not to fall off course of your fitness goals and less likely to put off your workouts because of time constraints. This goes for your healthy eating habits as well, try and eat 4-5 smaller meals thru out the day or have a healthy breakfast and lunch if you know you are going out to a party or a dinner. In conclusion start out slow, be realistic with your fitness goals and healthy eating habits and don't set yourself up for failure.

GETTING THE MOST OUT YOUR WORKOUTS

Being mentally present in your workouts allows you to attain the greatest amount of results that you can achieve. Enjoy the opportunity to spend time with yourself. The time that you set aside to workout is quality time spent with oneself, which is becoming a harder task to accomplish considering all of the distractions that we have in our everyday lives. Instead of beginning each workout thinking about the end result, why not take in the beautiful scenery on your run, focusing in on the targeted muscle that you are working with weights, or feeling the way your body glides thru the water when you swim. Change the paradigm, shifting from dreading the workouts to enjoying them. It's the way that you relate to the workout, the same workout can be viewed two different ways positive or negative, the environment is the same, the room temp is the same and the workout is the same, it’s how you choose what state of mind to be in. Give yourself positive re-enforcement with self talk. Try giving yourself goal oriented marks, for example rewarding yourself for a week of working out, by buying a new workout shirt or a new yoga mat. Heighten the level of rewards by treating yourself to a massage or a spa day for being consistent for a month. Always remember to try and be present to your accomplishment in the workout and not to the clock. Keeping in mind that you are doing something good for your mind and body and allowing yourself quality time alone!