How many of us look down at our shoes and see a waistline that needs to lose a few pounds? How many of us think that our silhouette is just a little too broad for the summer season, that we’re not quite beach-body ready, and that we seem to run out of breath far more quickly than we used to? More than likely, most of us feel this way, and it’s just as likely that most of us are also motivated to lose that weight.
So, the solution to our problem is simple enough — proper diet and exercise.
The thing is, not too many people stick to weight loss goals once they start. In order to actually shed those extra pounds, we need a proper mindset before starting to exercise.
Here are five steps that everyone who wants to lose weight ought to consider before starting to work out.
Eat Healthy
Exercising without proper nutrition is wasted effort. You can do hundreds of push-ups, pull-ups, and squats, but if you don’t combine that with a good dose of vegetables or low-carb foods, your weight loss will take a lot longer than necessary.
If you can, discuss your fitness routine with a medical professional, like Dr. Blissenbach. They can let you know what types of food will complement your routine. Moreover, they’ll give you all the nutritional info about your new diet so you can keep track of your weight loss easily.
Do Anything
Are you strapped for cash and can’t afford a gym pass? That’s not an issue. You can do quite literally anything physical in order to lose weight. Here’s a short list of activities that you don’t need a gym membership for:
- Take regular walks
- Run anywhere with lots of trees (and therefore fresh air), e.g., parks
- Run up and down stairs, where possible
- Take your dog out for a walk
- Do some work around the house that requires lifting furniture, moving, etc.
- If you live in the countryside, do some fieldwork or gardening
- Take hikes
- Buy a jump rope and use it regularly
- If you have a bicycle, take it out for a spin
Find a Fitness Friend
Exercising is both fun and competitive when you’re doing it with a friend or a family member, or even a significant other. When you work out together, the other person can motivate you to push your limits, and vice versa. One friend should be enough, but if you can, feel free to invite more — there’s no shortage of people who want to lose weight.
Be Realistic With Your Weight Loss Goals
Figure out what you want to do with your weight loss. Do you just want to lose the extra baby weight, or do you want a toned core with a six-pack? Whatever your goal is, break it down and make it something you can achieve in a reasonable time period. When you see progress, you can shift your objective to challenge yourself.
Make Sure to Have Fun
A lot of people skip this step, despite it being extremely crucial. If you push yourself without any enjoyment, you will hate exercising and quit halfway through. Worse yet, you can actually hurt yourself by going too hard and doing something you hate.
So, try to make exercising fun. Here are a few ways you can do that:
- When running, listen to music or an audiobook to keep yourself motivated
- Play a long-form YouTube video (or a playlist) in the background when you’re doing sit-ups, push-ups, etc.
- Sing or tell jokes while hiking, or play word games with your fitness friend
- Take up a sport that you enjoy, and time will fly by.