Advice for Fitness Beginners

It can be a difficult process to start working out for the first time or after a long hiatus. There’s a lot of information and decisions. And when you’re starting out this can get very overwhelming. If you’re looking to really incorporate fitness into your life, we’ve got you! Here are some general tips and mistakes to avoid to help you along your fitness journey.  

Fitness Tips: 

Start by Setting Realistic Goals and Make a Plan 

The first step in adding fitness in your life is identifying your why. What do you hope to achieve? What do you hope to feel like or look like or be able to do? The next step is to create small and realistic goals. For example, if you hope to run a marathon, but have never run before, you wouldn’t start by running 26.2 miles. You might start with running 1 mile. Then adding on slowly over time. The same is true for any goal you might have. Break up your big goal into smaller, achievable steps. From there, make a plan! Put it into your schedule. It’s alright if that means adding a few minutes of movement a day in the beginning. Start small and build overtime.   

Prioritize Consistency over Intensity  

It takes time to build a habit. If you’re just starting to add workouts into your life, try to add realistic workouts into your schedule. For example, work on getting 2, 30-minute workouts in a week. After a couple weeks of consistency, you can build on the intensity. Trying to start off 1-hour strength training sessions 4 times a week can feel overwhelming when you’re starting out. Instead, build that habit of exercise first, then add the intensity later!  

Do Workouts You Actually Enjoy  

One of the best ways to make exercise a habit is to find a type of workout you really enjoy! That could be strength training, dancing, Pilates, swimming, running—there are so many ways to move your body. If you don’t know what you like, try a few different kinds out! If there’s one that really speaks to you and you enjoy, you’re more likely to do it since you wouldn’t be dreading it. It makes the whole process of exercise much more fun.  

Don’t be Afraid to Ask for Help 

Whether you are overwhelmed and don’t know where to start, have an injury you’re not sure how to work around, or are simply wanting to learn more – you can always seek out a professional, like a personal trainer. They have the knowledge and ability to work with clients that have a variety of needs to help you achieve your health and fitness goals. If you’re not sure whether or not you want to try a personal trainer, check out our article about it here: 

https://www.burn30.net/blog/how-to-know-if-getting-a-personal-trainer-is-right-for-younbsp  

Mistakes To Avoid: 

Too Much Too Fast  

Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes to avoid is starting off with too much. That could be overwhelming yourself with an intense exercise schedule or super heavy weights. Not only can this lead to fatigue and burnout, but you could also end up overtraining and injuring yourself. Start slow and focus on form first. As you build strength and confidence, you can start to up the intensity.  

Skipping Warm Up and Cooldown  

A proper, dynamic warm up is important to get the body ready to exercise to help improve flexibility and reduce the risk of injury. Focus on raising your heartrate to get the blood pumping as well as specifically warming up the areas of the body you plan on focusing on.  

Cooling down after your workout can include light walking to bring the heartrate down and/or gentle stretching. I also recommend stretching after your workouts. Stretching helps to reduce the muscle soreness and tightness that you might feel later! 

Not Considering Nutrition and Hydration 

No matter what your fitness goals are, one of the most important factors in your journey is how you fuel your body. Drinking plenty of water—especially after a tough workout—and focusing on healthy, nutritious foods helps with your performance while working out and your recovery after. 

Comparing Yourself to Others in their Journey  

Last, but certainly not least, don’t compare yourself to others and where they are in their journey. Everyone is different – we all have different bodies and goals. Don’t judge yourself over where you are now. Try to celebrate each step. It’s a process to get to where you want to be, and that takes time! At the end of the day, the goal is progress over perfection.