I told you about the pedometer exercise plan where you add steps to your daily routine, but you don’t need a pedometer. You can use your watch and still have your exercise add up..
If you’re finding it hard to get motivated or it seems like you’ll never get that 30 minutes of walking in each day, start with just 5. But do it 5 minutes out of your front door and then 5 minutes back. That’s easy isn’t it? It even sounds easier. Come on… you can walk for five minutes and turn around and come back. Do that three times a day and you’ve met your daily goal. Then when you’re ready add a couple of minutes. It will just get easier and easier. It’s simple math that even a diet dummy can figure out.
TODAY: PUT ON YOUR WATCH AND WALKING SHOES.
Yesterday I told you to dig out that pedometer you have. I know one is around your house somewhere. McDonald’s even gave them away just a few months ago. The reason to use the pedometer is to find out how much you usually move around each day just doing what you normally do. They say that we take an average of 5,000 steps. I think that’s a bit low. Or maybe the average person is really sedentary. It may be revealing for you to find out this benchmark for exercise.
The next goal is to simply step it up. Add 1,000 steps to your total. Then the next day add some more. You get the idea. Think of the little device as giving your fitness a treat. Maybe you could call it a “peds dispenser”.
TODAY: TAKE MORE THAN YOUR AVERAGE NUMBER OF STEPS.
You probably have a pedometer in that drawer of stuff you ignore. Likely you put it on the day you got it and never again. It’s also likely that you simply didn’t see how it could be of any benefit. Well I have a plan for you to put it to work. You see we all get exercise every day without even knowing it. When you get up from the couch and walk to the refrigerator you get exercise. When you walk to the car to drive a block to the store you get some exercise. (I hope you see some of my sarchasm here.) To cut to the chase, (another pun) the average person takes about 5000 steps a day. But just like the car commercials say, “your mileage may vary.” So today dig out that pedometer and find out how many steps you are taking. Tomorrow we’ll take this plan one step further.
TODAY: DIG OUT A PEDOMETER YOU ALREADY HAVE, OR GO BUY A CHEAP ONE.
On this 41st Anniversary of the first moon landing, let’s use those famous words to get moving.
Here is some more walking data to chew on. Walking is great because anybody can do it. It doesn’t really take any special equipment other than comfortable shoes and a watch to keep track of your schedule. There is a proper way to get the most out of it though.
Start every walk by doing a few stretching exercises so you warm up your muscles for 5-10 minutes. Then hit the bricks. Walk at a brisk pace that will get your heart rate up a bit and generate a sweat. Do that for 30 minutes then slow down to an easy speed for 5 minutes to cool down. Then finish by doing a few more stretches before hitting the shower.
On a couple of days weekly (like weekends) walk twice as long. If you can’t do that yet, work up to it.
It’s important to remember that you should never take no more than 1 to 2 days off a week. Believe it or not, you’ll actually get hooked on the habit after 14 days.
It all starts with that first step. You’ll feel better, sleep better and make “one giant leap” to dieting success.
TODAY: DO I REALLY HAVE TO TELL YOU TO WALK AGAIN? I KNOW, I’M NAGGING.
The burst exercise plan seems to have a greater effect on my bike. That’s when you do short 30 second bursts every few minutes while you’re walking, riding a bike, using a stepper… whatever you’re doing to exert yourself. Studies have shown that it increases the overall effectiveness of your exercise and gives you more residual calorie burning. It’s sort of exercise kinetic energy. That is, you get the locomotive going faster and it takes longer for it to stop.
Of course you will notice it because you will have the satisfying pore cleansing sweat for a bit longer when you’re done.
TODAY: DO SOME BURSTS WHILE YOU EXERCISE. (WALK, RIDE OR WHATEVER)
The weekend is here. I don’t know about you, but it’s been a tough week. Take a few minutes today to plan an extended walk or bike ride tomorrow morning. The respite that a good long outing will bring should be something to look forward to. I always am stunned when I see someone walking and talking on their cell phone. Even wearing ear buds and listening to music seems like a missed opportunity. You get to know your environment more when you actually experience it first hand. You get to know your body better when you’re paying attention to it while you exercise. Finally you get to let your brain work and solve problems or create ideas from the seeds of information you plant there.
They have found that the left, right brain communication and activity increases when you walk. It’s good for Alzheimer’s patients and for keeping senior brains active. So if you’re not “senior” just think what benefits you can reap. Or… just think.
TODAY: PLAN YOUR EXERCISE FOR THE WEEKEND.
Newton’s First Law of Motion states: “An object in motion tends to stay in motion and an object at rest tends to stay at rest, unless acted on by an outside force.” Sound familiar? It pretty much describes how we let ourselves gain weight and resist loosing it. It’s time that you act on it. So get moving and lay off the (Fig) Newtons.
TODAY: TAKE AN EXTENDED WALK.
Daily Nag, Exercise | Diet Nag | 
August 13, 2010 6:06 am | 
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