Home By Geneva >> Fitness Tips For the New Year
For many people, improving your physical health is a big focus when it comes to New Years resolutions. Whether this means cutting snacks, losing weight, or finally getting the six pack you’ve always wanted, health is often prioritized. This can be a daunting task but with the right mindset and preparation you can knock it out of the park!
Pace Yourself
Improving your physique takes a lot of time and isn’t something that’s gonna happen after a few workout sessions. If you overextend yourself early on you increase the likelihood of burnout and not meeting your goals. We recommend starting off slower and building up the intensity of your workouts and diet as you become more acclimated to the lifestyle change. Finding time to workout and look for healthier recipes can be a lot to juggle at once but taking it step by step is more likely to lead to long term success.
Find a Workout Buddy
Workout buddies make going to the gym fun! This also holds you accountable for your exercises. It’s easy to cancel your gym session when you’re the only one going, but when you have a workout buddy to hold you accountable it’s easier to muster up that extra energy and hit the gym. Workout partners also offer extra motivation and encouragement, and vice versa. When you’re well motivated and have someone by your side to work with, this chore can become something you look forward to throughout the day!
Create a Plan
The first step to starting a new program is to create a plan. This includes workout routines, meals, scheduling, and so much more! Having a plan takes a lot of the stress in workouts as you know when you’ll be focusing on your goals and can more easily plan your life around it. Sure, sometimes life will get in the way, but if you plan accordingly you can keep up much easier!
Have Fun!
One of the best ways to stay motivated and active is to have fun with your exercises! You can make your daily cardio exercises a game by trying to run farther than you did yesterday or beat your workout buddies mile time. If you enjoy sports, playing pickup games of Basketball or Flag Football are fun ways to get your cardio in while also scratching that competitive edge! Don’t let this become a chore, have some fun with your routine!
Break Down Your Goal
If you are looking to completely reset your fitness routine, it helps to spread it out so you don’t get overwhelmed. For example, if you want to cut calories, get more sleep, and go to the gym more, focus on one step at a time. Make January the month you cut carbs from your diet, have February be when you focus on sleep, etc. It take up to 4 weeks for habit to form and if you can work on one at a time, you’ll have a much better chance at success!
Goal Stack
What better way to maximize productivity than working on two goals at once? Goal stacking allows you to simultaneously work on multiple items on your to do list. Is one of your goals to spend more time with the kids? Run around with them at the park! This lets you get your exercise in and also spend quality time with the kiddos! As hard as it may be sometimes, it is possible to incorporate your life into your health routine.
Avoid Crash Diets!
One of the biggest warnings any dietician or trainer will give you is to avoid crash diets. Crash diets are very low calorie diets that can be defined as 800 calories or less. This stops you from getting the proper nutrients your body needs and makes it harder to store energy for your workouts. This type of diet is not healthy for long term goals and don’t last. Avoid these at all cost!
These fitness tips should hopefully help you kick some butt and improve your health in the new year! Not all of these work for everybody, pick what works best for you and your situation!
If you used any of these tips for your New Years resolutions, let us know by tagging @homebygeneva on Instagram!
