3 Fitness Tips for Beginners

A lot of people tell me they wish they could work out or they wish they had time to work out. They also say things like, “I just don’t know where to start” or “I want to exercise, but I hate it.”

I thought I would put together this short list of quick tips to help you get going in a non-intimidating way.

1- Start slow if you need to. Start where you are! So many people think when they start an exercise routine that it needs to be an hour a day five or six days a week. It doesn’t have to be intense or long, it just needs to be consistent. If all you can handle to start is a 15 minute walk around the block three days a week, then that’s where you start. Three days of 15 minutes is better than zero days of nothing.

2- Put it on your calendar like you do all your other appointments so that you don’t miss it and you’ll keep the appointment. You’ll see it on there, you know it’s coming, you can mentally prepare for it.

3- Choose an exercise/activity you enjoy. If you set out to do exercise that you hate and that you don’t look forward to then you’re not going to stick to it. Pick something fun that you enjoy. When I first started exercising I hated everything but I started with something fun. I literally danced around my living room like a fool listening to my favorite 80s music. The more I moved, the better I felt and the more I became interested in doing. Ultimately, I ended up in a gym lifting weights. I’ll never be Ms Olympia, but I love the way lifting weights makes me feel and how it’s changed my body over the years. Bottom line, stop thinking about all the reasons you can’t do it. Stop voicing your excuses and just keep it simple. Any movement is better than no movement.