Making Exercise a Habit

I often am asked how I manage to stay motivated and consistent with my workouts. Usually by people who are complaining that they just can't get motivated to keep up with the gym. I always give them the same response.

Would you go to work without brushing your teeth? No. Is it because you are motivated to brush your teeth? No. I bet you don't even think about whether or not you should do it each day. It's become a habit. Exercise is the same thing. You don't need to always be motivated to do it if you've made it a habit in your life.

Habits are funny things. They are so hard to form, and so easy to break. Some tips to make exercise a habit:

• Choose activities that you enjoy. With the limitless exercise options out there, there is no reason to do something that you hate. If you choose something you enjoy, you will be more likely to stick with it.
• Make exercise a priority. We do the things that are important to us. If you highly prioritize exercise, it should be easy to do that instead of watching TV, playing on the computer, etc.
• Make an exercise log. I have kept an exercise journal online since I started working out. I like the online aspect as you will have people following who will help keep you accountable. I can't tell you how many workouts I've made just because I knew someone who followed my journal would call me on it. But, even a personal log of what you are doing will give you accountability to yourself.
• Get an exercise partner. If you find you are unable to keep yourself working out, a workout partner can help. When I was in college and decided to start working out, a friend in a different dorm and I agreed to workout at 6 am every day. Since we didn't want to wake up the other person's roommate, we got up and met each other no matter what each day.
• Track your progress. This may be the increase in weights, speed, etc. It could be the movement on the scale. Or your measurements. When you can see in black and white movement towards your goals, you are more likely to stick with your routine.

Eventually, you won't need to be motivated to workout out. Just like brushing your teeth, you will do it without even thinking about it.

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Erin Zeggert, Certified Wellness Coach
http://balancinglifeandfitness.com

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Should You Combine Diet and Exercise?

Have you found it hard to lose weight that you don't believe there is an effective way of doing it? With good diet and exercise, you can surely shed off unwanted pounds that often, are distributed in the wrong places.

The quest for weight loss may not be easy but it is achievable. Surely, you have heard of success stories of people who went from size unbelievably large to healthy small. Alarmingly, "healthy" can never be associated with weight that can break the scale. However, the modern world that ushered in a lot of "instant" included food that contain calories that you cannot compensate with physical activities because of time constraints. Are fast-food chains to blame?

Who to Blame?

You might think that being on the plump side is something hereditary. To a certain degree perhaps but observe and you will realize that more and more people today are becoming overweight. Their genes have nothing to do with it but the lack of physical activity in an environment where there is quick access to food, healthy or not.

In the final analysis, the major cause of weight gain is the lack of exercise and proper diet. Without physical activities, people tend to gain weight especially as they age. Without proper diet, weight gain can also be the result.

What to Do?

· For faster weight loss, take less calorie and burn more by exercising.

· Strictly follow a diet plan that can aid in losing weight such as choosing foods that provide the vitamins and minerals that you need for energy and health but with less calorie count.

· Find a diet program that is conducive to your body condition and lifestyle.

· Include lots of fruits and vegetables in your diet. If you are not a vegetable fan, it is about time you start becoming one.

· As much as possible, prepare your own food to watch the amount of oil and fats that go into it. Takeout foods are generally fat-laden.

· Reduce the amount of your sugar and carbohydrate intake. Instead, go for protein and fiber.

· If you are a coffee or tea drinker, ask your doctor what sugar alternative you can take with either drink. The market offers many alternatives to sugar that taste as sweet minus the worry of weight increase.

Diet Plan that Works

If you think that low fat diet plus high carbohydrate diet is a sure-fire formula to weight loss, think again. What works for one may not work for the other because the right combination of protein, fat and carbs can vary from person to person. In other words, the road to losing unwanted pounds is not short. It is long but sure if only you strictly follow what is necessary for you to achieve positive results.

A diet plan that works is proper choice of foods and the right serving sizes that should go with the kind of metabolism you have and your lifestyle. Along with diet, you will also need to commit yourself to observe the right combination of strength and cardio towards becoming healthy, gaining muscles and losing excess weight. Great advertisements about weight loss pills, fad diet and other instant weight loss claims could only put you at risk. You could end up frustrated and go on an eating binge. The only combination that works is diet and exercise.

Combining Diet and Exercise

Needless to say, what works is not solely diet or exercise alone but together - diet and exercise! You could train no end, workout like there is no tomorrow but if you don't plan your diet accordingly, you will find that there is very little effect on your weight. You may gain lean muscles but they stay hidden under layers of fat especially on the big problem area, the stomach.

Combining diet and exercise could gain you muscles at the right places, fat loss at target areas and allow you easier weight maintenance. When you exercise and combine your training with low or reasonable fat diet, you create significant impact on your fat stores and your metabolic rate at its best.

What you gain as you combine diet and exercise varies with the training you do. To achieve preserved muscles along with consistent weight you can do strength training plus a diet that is very low in calorie. If what you are after is a consistent metabolic rate, you can go for resistance training partnered with a diet plan that goes with it.

Jen Rhoades is a work-at-home, freelance article writer and a homemaker with 6 wonderful kids. Nearing golden years, she knows the value of keeping a healthy lifestyle and body which allows her to enjoy life as it is with her children.

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