We exercise for all sorts of reasons; to feel good, to chomp up some stress, to have some personal time out and some people even exercise for the sheer fun of it. No matter your motives, exercise is still the best way to increase fitness and strength as well as massively reduce the risk of disease, injury and getting sick. However, exercise lovers always seem to be looking for ways to make exercise longer, harder, more extreme and unfortunately more unattractive to the folks who already hate it.
These people often ask “Which exercise gives the best results in the fastest time?” Or to put it more bluntly, “How little can I do to still look good and fit into my clothes?” In order to get the most out of any exercise program without spending endless time in the gym or hours pounding the pavement, try the following:
- The BEST exercise and/or exercise program is the one YOU like! Pick an activity you enjoy, not one picked for you by one of those exercise lovers/fanatics!! Running is the fastest way to burn calories and to get fit but if you do not like to run, running is the worst exercise for you.
- The minimum you should aim to do to get results could be a short burst of exercise such as a 5 mins hard and fast workout, which is much easier to mentally prepare for and sometimes a better workout, than a slow, long tedious endurance event. A collection of short, fun workouts are also much easier to fit into your schedule and making an excuse of no time because you are supposed to exercise for an hour cannot be used when you only have to puff for 5-10 mins!
- STOP picking unsafe exercises! Always ask, “Is this the very best (and
safest) exercise for the time I have to do it? Time is not unlimited and if you are going to put in time to move, make sure the movement you choose is the very best exercise for the result you want. The latest fad, or oldest opinion, is often wrong and if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. All exercise choices should be made on the following strict guidelines:
- Is it safe?
- Is it based on functional anatomy?
- Is it physiologically sound?
- Is it based on common sense?
- Do you like to do it?
- Does it fit in with your lifestyle?
- Is it the very best exercise for the result you want?
- You must add strength-training to any exercise program: A stronger you means you can go harder or longer, have less chance of injury and disease and get more out of every step, punch, kick or stroke of every other exercise you do. To get strong, you have to overload your muscles with resistance- not measure it in time or numbers. What the weight is does not matter, your muscles can’t see and they can’t count, they just get stronger when you make them work harder than the last time.
- It is not about how much you do, but how often you do it: An exercise program comprising of 3-4 minutes, 365 days a year is more likely to give you a healthy, fit and strong body than a few scattered exercise sessions. Exercise is like brushing your teeth-if you want healthy teeth you brush daily. The daily habit keeps your teeth strong and healthy and missing a few days makes you feel yuck.
Find a fun way to move your body everyday and love the way it makes you feel!