Fundamental Fitness Concepts for Beginners

So you have decided to drag yourself off of the couch, don a pair of runners, whack on your workout clothes and start exercising? Fantastic! However, there are a few fundamental fitness concepts you need to take into account before embarking on your journey.

Exercise program

Those that fail to plan fail to succeed. The importance of an exercise program when embarking on any fitness regime is vastly underestimated, and if you don’t set out a plan of attack, then how are you to succeed. Firstly you need to sit down and tackle the big questions: when are you going to work out and how?

You need to set up a workout routine that is regular, always at the same time, and that includes rest periods for your muscles to recover. This will allow your body and mind to become used to working out, to establish a routine, and to prepare for every session. Whether it is running, swimming, weight sessions, or cross-fit style sessions, you need to have a schedule and incorporate every muscle group. If you need assistance with this task, seek professional advice, and speak to a personal trainer at your local gym.

Cardiovascular workouts

Cardiovascular workouts are workouts or exercise that gets your heart pumping at a higher rate and burns mass calories. These types of workout sessions are especially suitable for shredding fat, building stamina, and generally assisting in core strength. They burn calories, lower cholesterol, and improve peak fitness. Typical examples of cardio workouts are running, rowing, swimming, skipping, and boxing. It is crucial that no matter what result you are seeking from your fitness regime, you need to include cardio sessions in your scheduled routine, even if it is a light jog before every session.

Weight sessions

Weight training builds muscle, improves strength, increases fitness, burns fat, and improves overall fitness. Some degree of weight training must be added to your fitness routine, preferably at least twice a week. When we speak of weight training, we don’t mean just lifting heavy weights; after all, if you are not looking to build mass muscle, then heavyweights are probably not the way to go. Utilizing light weights with higher repetitions is a great way to make more strength, improve your cardio, and to gain muscle tone.

Using your body weight as a lifting weight is a great way to improve core strength and develop better muscle tone. It is vital that you decide what result you want to achieve from your fitness regime when working out your exercise program, and tailor your sessions to drive that result. Weight sessions build strength and muscle mass, but they also assist in preventing injuries due to higher muscle tone and overall strength.

Stretching

You will hear many rumors about the pros and cons of regular stretching, some people will never stretch, and others will treat it as an integral part of your work out that it should be. Stretching allows your body to increase its flexibility, warm-up tendons, joints, muscle groups, and decreases the risk of injury.

Increased flexibility decreases the risk of muscle strains and can limit unnecessary injury, keeping you on track to achieve your fitness goals. Stretching should be conducted before any form of physical exercise and should be done regularly to increase the impact of your stretching, leading to greater flexibility. So stretch out your muscles and get on board the fitness train.

Keeping in shape is an integral part of life for people of all ages, old, young, or otherwise. Take care while you exercise and follow these simple strategies to maximize your results.