In my professional opinion, what makes a workout routine healthy or not stems from your reason for choosing to exercise. Many people exercise to lose weight or to acquire a certain body appearance. While these are great reasons, weight is a multifactor ever-changing item, and so many things can affect this. Therefore, it is inevitable that the relationship you have with exercise will yo-yo, and you will not be as connected with the experience of taking care of your body. The pleasure and attention to the act of working out is less likely to be there. You could imagine that it is like being focused on the outcomes versus the actual experience. So, instead of saying that you choose to exercise to lose weight, make the primary reason be that you want to feel strong in your body each day, you want to take care of your heart health, etc. This will be the start of a healthy workout routine.
After you have a healthy reason why you are choosing to exercise, make it SIMPLE for you and make the plan MATCH your current way of living. When you make the routine simple, it is obtainable, and when you make it match the way you live, it doesn’t feel like you have to move your current responsibilities and enjoyments. Find one time each day that you will choose to take care of your body and make it non-negotiable. After you identify a time, create a basic plan. Let’s say that Mondays are for a form of cardio, Tuesdays are for using your stretch bands, and Wednesdays are for working on your balance and stability. If you are a person who gets overwhelmed and doesn’t know how to choose exercises, go to YouTube! It is a great resource and takes away the thinking so that you can just go and do. Type in something like chair stretches and see what you find. Remind yourself that you do not have to be at a gym for movement and exercise to be effective. You can do it anywhere and it’s equally beneficial to your whole health of mind and body!
Additional Tips for Throughout the Two Weeks
- Link an everyday sedentary behavior with a form of body care. Example: Every time your mom calls, walk or stand up.
- Utilize different furniture and items around the house to vary a routine. Use the chair, use the couch, and use the counter.
- When you wake up in the morning, ask yourself, how do I want my body to feel by the time I eat lunch?
- Keep a resistance band where you spend most of your sedentary hours and use it during any downtime. Having exercise equipment nearby can reinforce the act of movement.
