Workout: Getting Started - Part 1

We receive the most questions from people looking to start working out and/or lose weight. Everyone is different and their are numerous ways to achieve this goal but we figured it would be best to jot down some thoughts to hopefully help inspire folks and provide a general direction on how to start.

Basic Advice 1 - Make the Decision to Change 2 - Take the First Steps 2A - Small Nutrition Tweaks Cut down on unhealthy drinks (i.e. cola, alcohol, etc) Snack healthy Eat healthy side dishes w/ your meal Eat 5-6 small meals per day Practice portion control Cut out fattening condiments Eat breakfast daily Don't fall victim to "quick fix" pills 2B - Find An Activity Workout at home Join a local gym Start walking/running Take a class: Zumba, kick-boxing, crossfit, etc 3 - Stay Motivated/Committed Have a positive attitude Start with small changes Find an enjoyable activity Reach out for support Don't obsess over the scale Keep things interesting and seek new challenges. 4 - Track Your Results

Detailed Advice

1 - The Decision Many people will experience a moment where we make the conscious decision to create change in our lives. This “change” could manifest itself in many forms. It could be a decision to go back to school, to cut back on alcohol, to switch careers or even to settle down with the special somebody. Regardless of what the destination is, the journey to that place begins with the deliberate choice to step onto a path toward that goal. With regards to fitness, the goal could be to lose weight, train for a marathon, beat an illness or just simply be around long enough to watch your grandkids grow up. My own personal path to fitness began in high school. I was always skinny and just an unassuming band geek, carrying around my saxophone everywhere. I generally did do OK in Phys Ed, because I played basketball frequently and could handle running plus other sporting activities well. Freshman year we did wrestling as an activity for Phys Ed class. I did not do well at all this day. Back then I weighed around 100lbs soaking wet and was the lightest male in the entire class. I just remember feeling utterly helpless and totally at the mercy of every opponent I faced due to my lack of strength. Eventually the coach had to place me against female classmates since they were the only people in my weight class. That day after school I decided I needed to throw on some weight and develop more strength. Over the past twenty or so years my decision has helped me in numerous ways. When I was younger, it helped my b-ball game a lot and provided me the confidence to talk to girls. I was already prepared for the physical demands of the military when I joined the Army. The habit of fitness also stayed with me into civilian life and currently keeps me in shape despite having a desk job. And rocking a six pack during lake/tubing season doesn’t hurt either (haha).

2 - First Steps Now that we have the inspiration to start our journey we must now choose what steps to take to begin down our path to success. For most people, the goal includes losing weight for various reasons so I will focus on that (there are other blog posts specific to gaining muscle and bodybuilding). Initially we want to focus on simply developing healthy habits. Fitness is a lifestyle and a lifestyle is basically a collection of actions and attitudes that reflects a way of life. The ultimate goal is to build a healthy way of life that is sustainable. Rome wasn’t built in a day and we need to realize that this will be a long journey. There will be milestones on the way however and hopefully they will act as positive reinforcement to keep on the path. This being said, you don’t want to start a marathon at a dead sprint. We want to start with small, manageable steps. Nutrition Some may disagree but nutrition is king when it comes to fitness. With regards to weight loss (and even bodybuilding too), nutrition can make or break your results. Some have reaped great results from simply making changes to their diet without much exercise. Before even thinking about joining a gym or heading to a boot camp, take a minute to examine your daily eating habits. We want to find ways to make small, maintainable tweaks to spark results. Below are some easy tweaks: i – Beverages Of course the best beverage for you health-wise is h2o. We all know water is what we’re supposed to drink but unfortunately it doesn’t help satisfy our taste buds. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth but I do enjoy beer an awful lot so I can sympathize. So many drinks nowadays are packed with various forms of sugar (even the diet ones!). If you drink anything but water during the day, we want to try to slowly cut back on that. Again, the idea is to slowly introduce changes that we can maintain. Downgrade your favorite unhealthy drink. For example, if you drink cola with every meal then for at least one meal attempt to drink a half-sweet/half-unsweet tea or juice. Slowly try to wean yourself off soda until you can go without it. Once you do, you won’t miss it. Of course, we want to eventually downgrade all the way to drinking water or things closest to it. Alternate drinks are coconut water, teas (unsweet or half sweet w/ stevia), natural juices (still has natural sugars so dont go too crazy), or even water w/ add-ins like Mio, Crystal Lite, etc. Cut the alcohol. Alcohol contains nothing but empty calories, helps kill your metabolism and likely your will to exercise the next day. Depending on how serious you are about your goals and your body type, you need to examine your alcohol intake. If you are a heavy drinker, a small change would be to limit the amount of brews you have when out and/or switch to lighter beer. You can also try to alternate water w/ beer (prevents hangovers and keeps you from getting too drunk). ii – Snacks Snacking can be beneficial to maintaining fitness when done correctly. The content, timing and portions of snacks are the tricky part. Snacks are useful to stave us over until the next meal but we need to make healthy food decisions. Of course we want to cut down on unnecessary snacking but we can make small replacements to certain foods to at least help us start eating right. We also need to identify situations which trigger extra snacking and try to avoid those (i.e. opportunity, stress, boredom, etc). Salty: Chips – Replace w/ a healthier snack. Grab some hummus (or another healthy spread) and eat w/ lightly salted crackers. You can also eat those 100-calorie packs of popcorn for a salty snack. Sweet: Ice Cream – Replace w/ Yogurt or similar dairy product. You can place yogurt in the freezer for a day & its consistency will be similar to ice cream but without all the sugar. Start w/ regular yogurts and eventually downgrade to healthier types of natural or Greek yogurt w/ fruit thrown in. You can even freeze grapes, watermelon or other fruits and simply eat those to cool off. iii – Meals The bulk of your caloric intake will come from your main meals. The amount of advice and types of diets are too numerous to examine in one blog post. Our main goal is to avoid any “gimmicks” as far as diets go. We want to instead create changes to the way we eat that are manageable for life. This doesn’t mean that you can’t gain any wisdom from popular diets but just tread carefully and remember that there are no shortcuts in life. Make small replacements. Of course my first point was going to be simply “eat right”. The typical response would be “no sh*t Sherlock” so I decided to keep with the theme of small, manageable changes. You don’t want to immediately turn into a health nut and attempt to only eat salads and chicken with brown rice every day. We want to slowly phase out unhealthy options until it’s easy to make good food decisions unconsciously. For example, let’s say you eat out for dinner and order a steak w/ fries normally. Keep your steak but replace that side of fries with a healthier choice. The best choice would be steamed veggies but even a plain baked potato would be better. Once you get used to having your regular main entrée but with a healthy side, try to start ordering healthier entrees. Like instead of the red meat, go for chicken or fish. Spread out your meals. A universally agreed upon truth is that we are best served eating multiple smaller meals throughout the day as opposed to the traditional three large meals. Spreading your meals out throughout the day helps keep you feeling full and helps boost your metabolism. Watch your portions. When spreading out your meals, this should naturally lessen the portions you are eating. Even when eating your larger meals around lunch or dinner, be aware of how much you are eating. Tracking your calories (or “points” in some systems) is best but you can start small by simply not ordering/making the largest meal available. If you are spreading your meals and/or snacking healthy, you shouldn’t be totally starving when going to eat. Try to avoid getting that second whole portion. Don’t use the largest bowl or plate you have when serving yourself at home. When eating out, order the lunch portion and avoid appetizers. Check your condiments. There are many meals that would inherently be healthy if left alone but are ruined by condiments. As with the steak example mentioned earlier, you can ruin a baked potato w/ sour cream. Try to eat it dry or just use a pat of butter. When getting grilled chicken or steak, don’t smother it with ranch, gravy or BBQ sauce. Eat breakfast. I know its cliché, but it is the most important meal of the day. It will get your metabolism jump started and prevent you from gorging at lunch. You should also be more alert and have better overall energy for the start of your day. Even if it’s something small, try to get something in your stomach. If you’re always in a rush in the morning, try to plan the night previous or on the weekend for your breakfast meals. A premade shake, a breakfast bar and a piece of fruit is a good combo for a fast on-the-go breakfast. iv – Supplements There are several supplements out there that claim to be “magic bullets” for weight loss. In general there are no shortcuts when it comes to fitness. The basic formula of eating less and exercising more is the only truth. That being said I personally do take supplements for bodybuilding and occasionally for weight loss (when cutting). When I drop weight during the summer, I do a cycle of supplements that include appetite suppressants. They do work for me as far as taking the “edge” of my hunger. They do not replace willpower however as I still am consciously keeping in mind that I need to eat less. I am also tracking an approximation of calories, carbs, proteins and fats for everything I eat as well. So I already have the “habit” and willpower to adjust my nutrition as needed. For those that are just starting out, they often lack healthy habits or the ability to make wise nutrition choices. So various weight loss pills will likely help them initially but you are not forming healthy habits and therefore will eventually lose any results gained from the supplement. Fat burners or similar supplements can help boost calorie burning but they are just quick fixes and can only do so much. The bulk of your results will come from your diet choices and exercise. Supplements are best to just complement a healthy lifestyle and help push you over the edge for that last 5% of your goal at most. We have a couple blogs on supplements that do not claim to be “magic bullets” but instead will help with a general goal. Those types of supplements become necessary to facilitate more advanced aerobic activity. Exercise If nutrition is king then exercise is queen. Exercise helps turbocharge your results by helping your body burn more calories. If you choose exercises that build muscle then you will burn calories throughout the day while the muscle builds and repairs. The key to anyone starting out is to try and find an activity that you will enjoy and can maintain. For some people this activity may need to change occasionally (or even often at times) to keep them from growing bored. Don’t be discouraged if it takes time for you to find an activity you enjoy. Home Workout – We outline several home workouts in this blog. Just grab a few dumbbells and workout in the privacy of your own space. This benefits people are who shy initially and/or may need to familiarize themselves with working out before hitting an actual gym. It also saves the time of driving to a gym and can be just as effective with the right motivation and equipment. Gym – Find a convenient gym and test it out. Most gyms have a trial membership or let you pay monthly. The key is to find one that’s both affordable to you and in a good location. You will be more likely to get your gym time in if it’s close to your home or work. Also find a trainer that you feel comfortable with. You don’t have to pay for personal training forever but if you are new to the gym, pay for a month or so of sessions and learn the equipment. After you are familiar, you can work out on your own. If you there is an apartment or community gym available, train there. Try to find a trainer or friend that will show you how to exercise using the equipment found there. Running – Grab yourself a good pair of shoes and either hit the trails and/or the treadmill. Even if you can’t run at all, at least get out and walk. The best way to work up to running is to do interval training. Start walking and then when warmed up jog for a short 30 second burst. Continue walking and when you’re up for it, jog for another 30 second burst. Eventually you will find that you can jog for longer periods of time. If you have issues with your knees/ankles, try to run on a track or treadmill/elliptical. Activity – Whether it is Zumba, Self-Defense courses, Kick-Boxing or Yoga, just get out and do something. There are outdoor bootcamps, crossfit classes, softball and other group-related exercise which may appeal to you. Since you are often working out with others you may be more inspired to continue and find moral support there. These classes often do have trial periods as well to let you figure out if you would like it.

3 - Commitment / Motivation Your journey will be long and difficult at times and you may falter. It’s all about trying to pick yourself back up and get onto your original path. Keep grinding and make sure your goal is still in mind so you can get back on course when you have a hiccup. The only person that can ensure you succeed is you but there are definitely steps you can take to help set yourself up for success. Mindset – Try to get your mind right and don’t look at your journey as something that is difficult or “sucks”. Look at is in a positive light as a challenge and a change of pace. It will seem hard at first but if you start small, it will not be too bad. If you fall off the fitness wagon, don’t get too down on yourself. Even when starting out, try not to be too discouraged about your current fitness level and obsess on the “how did I let myself get this way”. Look forward to the future and take joy in small victories on the way. Start small – Many people try to start too hardcore and quickly burn out. The theme throughout this blog post is to slowly implement change. Have the mindset that this is a marathon and will take time. You may want to start with one, single small change and let it snowball from there. Start with something like making a commitment to walk two blocks once a week. Make it an easy activity to accomplish. We want to practice forming habits, not necessarily practice difficult activities. Once you can commit to your small change 100% of the time you should be in the practice of accounting for the change. Whether it is a nutrition or exercise change, your mind should automatically know how to account for it. You can use this mind training to help form other healthy habits and implement other changes. Find your “thing” – If you can find an activity that counts as an exercise and a fun hobby, then you are more likely to stick with it. Try to get involved in something that appeals to you. For some it may be things like competitive sports. Others may enjoy running. No matter what you do try to beat your personal bests. Support group – If possible, surround yourself with positive influences and people that will enable you to succeed. Those that are negative influences may be a detriment to your commitment. This doesn’t mean disassociate yourself with people that aren’t into being healthy but don’t let them drag you into unhealthy behaviors. It’s always easier to have people around you going through the same struggle. Reach out to your friends and family members for support but don’t rely on them too heavily as this is a path you must walk on your own. No one can force you to make healthy food choices and exercise regularly. So even if your gym buddy starts to flake, stay on course and keep it up solo. Hopefully you can inspire them to get back into it. Don’t obsess – Do not obsess over the scale or results. Your overall goal may be a long ways away so don’t go crazy over weekly results. If you start to develop the appropriate habits, the rest will take care of itself over time. You want to definitely track your changes but if you pay too close attention to it, you may become discouraged if you don’t see immediate results. A healthy lifestyle is for life and the results that stem from it are not quick. You are in this for the long haul, give it time to develop. Switch it up – As mentioned above, a lifestyle change takes time. A main enemy of change is boredom or monotony. Working out the same way or eating the same things can become boring over time. Try to find new and exciting ways to exercise or eat when you get a routine down. If you walk/run around the neighborhood when practicing your intervals, try to change locations. Go to different local trails or scenic places and train there. If you’re in the gym and have a routine down, research some different workouts. Engage a trainer or take kettle bell class. Look for ways to spark new interest in your routine. As far as eating goes, look for different healthy recipes and/or restaurants you can try out.

4 - Tracking When starting out, you want to try and track your small victories. As said before, try not to obsess over the scale but you do want to keep a record. Try to track your small changes. In the cola example from earlier, maybe notate how many sodas you have per day. Try to decrease that number weekly until it becomes pointless to track because you are only having one or two. If you start exercising, make a goal to walk/run at least once a week. Mark it down on a calendar. Once you see you can hit that regularly, try to bump it up to twice a week. After awhile you can start tracking miles and try to exceed personal bests. Once you have developed some healthy nutrition habits and have at least some form of regular exercise, I would start tracking your body measurements in greater detail. Do keep track of weight losses but pay more attention to body image. Use cheesy mySpace-like mirror pictures to track changes in your physique.

Check back for additional beginner advice and browse our posts regularly for ideas on workouts and nutrition. Good luck!