There are certain crucial things to know if you’re starting a regular fitness program or if you currently exercise and want to make it your habit. Here are five shocking facts to help you become more active and get the most out of your workout!
1) You Should Change Your Workout Routine
You’ve been doing your workouts and watching what you eat for two to three months, but the scale hasn’t moved. Perhaps you’re even feeling a bit bored with your daily exercise. The issue might be that your body needs some variety. Repeating the same training program pushes your muscles into procedural memory (aka ‘muscle memory’). Your muscles grow more efficient at whatever you perform regularly. However, the rest of your body needs attention too.
Increase your calorie burn and reap the full advantages of exercise by stepping up your training regimen. If you normally stroll, try jogging; if you’re riding a bike, head for the hills. Alternatively, try a new aerobic workout such as cross-country skiing, swimming, or rollerblading.
2) It Might Matter When You Eat
Is it preferable to eat before or after your workout? The jury is still out on this one. Some experts say it depends on your workout objectives. If you want to do intensive exercise, you need to feed your muscles first. Yet, other studies suggest that if you want to lose weight, you should eat after exercising since exercising on an empty stomach causes your fat reserves to be depleted more quickly (You can read the study here, in the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism).
Experts advise that whether you eat before or after you exercise, you must keep hydrated. If your workout regimen lasts more than 15 or 20 minutes, make sure to drink often.
3) Listen To Some Tunes
Do you want to increase the intensity of your workout? Make an effort to listen to cheerful music. Music can boost your workout regimen and the advantages you gain from it. Your body hears the music and can’t sit still. Studies show that it might help you enhance your endurance by making it easier to overlook any discomfort from your training because music is distracting.
So those tunes don’t just keep you from getting bored, they can also push you to reach your athletic potential.
4) Get A Healthy Buzz
Endorphins are neurotransmitters (basically, brain chemicals), which are released when you exercise. Endorphins interact with the brain’s perception of pain by reducing feelings of discomfort and triggering a euphoric feeling in the body. Studies show that endorphin release typically occurs only after 30 min of exercise.
This suggests that the remainder of the morning will be more pleasant for you if you get up a bit earlier to finish a 30-minute fitness program before going to work.
5) Effort > Time
You might think it’s not worth your time if you can’t work out for at least an hour. Here’s some good news for time-crunched people: brief bursts of intensive exercise with short recovery pauses in between can be just as beneficial as endurance workouts. Personally, I like to mix it up a bit. One of the more popular forms of high-intensity exercise is known as the Tabata workout. The idea is that you exercise a 80% intensity for 30-60 seconds, followed by a 10-20 second rest, for approximately 8-10 sets. Give this one a shot…it’s a great way to mix things up as well.
Wrapping Up
These five facts about daily exercise appear surprising because they are so simple. Yet they’re often ignored. If you haven’t started incorporating daily exercise into your routine, keep these tips in mind and start today! If you enjoyed this article, please share it with friends on social media.
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