Hot Tips for Creating a Safe, Healthy and Effective Weight Loss Exercise Program!

A weight loss exercise program is vital to shedding excess weight… and keeping it off.

The body was meant to be active and that is often a challenge in today’s often sedentary lifestyles.

White collar workers, security workers and drivers make up a large part of the workforce, and most of these people get very little exercise daily, if any at all.

If you fit into this category, a concerted effort must be made in order to ensure that a weight loss exercise regimen is followed that will afford you a level of activity that will provide the amount of activity you need to stay healthy and avoid obesity.

People often dread exercise, projecting it as a gruelling task that will leave them without any energy, sore muscles and feeling generally “stuffed”. This doesn’t have to be, and shouldn’t, be the case.

Regardless of what you may have been told or believe, it is not necessary to employ a vigorous workout in order to have an effective weight loss exercise plan.

Any regular exercise plan that is cardiovascular, ie raising the heart rate for at least a half hour straight, is extremely beneficial and will do wonders for your body. Simply taking a walk, starting slow, then working your way up to power-walking, is an excellent method of weight loss exercise.

Riding a bike can be equally, if not more effective.

Click here for a comprehensive list of exercises and sports that detail how many calories you burn per hour of activity.

If your time is limited, or you live in a location where weather may impede your workout schedule, you may want to invest in a treadmill or other exercise equipment so that you can work out daily without interruption.

A word of warning…

Skipping days can become addictive and before you know it days can turn into weeks where you have not worked out, so avoid this trap by removing any obstacles, such as using the weather as a weak excuse.

So if you choose to ride a bike or walk as a form of healthy weight loss exercise, then you may want to employ the option of purchasing a stationary bike or a treadmill (or whatever) to not only add variety, but to make sure that weather does not impede you from your daily routine.

In Ayurveda, walking and simple movement exercises is highly recommended. So if you have the time, seek a yoga class in your area. Styles of yoga can range from mild to vigorous and can provide conscious movement as suggested in Ayurveda.

Such conscious movement is vital to weight loss… and conquering obesity!

If you have children that are not active, whether they are obese or not, you should definitely engage them in some sort of physical activity on a daily basis.

Sedentary lifestyles brought on by modern phenomena of excess television watching, consuming fast and packaged foods, and playing video games are causing marked increases in obesity amongst children. So getting into the habit of weight loss or fitness activity at an early age is the key in avoiding obesity during youth… and controlling it later in life.

Be aware of your children’s lifestyle and pro-actively promote physical exercise through enjoyable activities. Encourage them to engage in activities away from the television for a couple of hours a day, preferably engaged in an organized physical activity or team sport.

It is a habit that they will often take with them into adulthood and benefit from it for a lifetime!

Weight Training

For those that would like a more vigorous workout plan, weight training is a viable option that can combine building muscle tone and working the cardiovascular system.

Weight training tones your muscles and raises your metabolism, which helps your body burn more calories not only when exercising, but also while you sleep, thus promoting weight loss.

Weight training can reverses the natural decline in your metabolism, which begins around age 30, and therefore this is something to seriously consider for all those who have reached this age.

Working with weights can produce a great deal of energy, as a full workout works almost all of the 650 muscles in your body. Weight training also strengthens bones, which can have major long-term benefits for women, as it can reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis.

Many women worry that weight training will make them muscular and bulky, however you must keep in mind that men and women have different muscular structures. Therefore, if done correctly, rather than developing big muscles on women similar to that of men, weight training will just tone and firm your muscles.

Not only is weight training a routine that makes you strong, it is a routine that trains the body to build muscle instead of fat, takes stress off key areas of the body, such as the lower back, and making you less prone to injury in that area. Since high blood pressure or hypertension is also a big concern with those who are obese, it is welcome news that weight training can also decreases your resting blood pressure.

Weight training has also been proven to increase your blood level of HDL cholesterol, which is commonly referred to as “good cholesterol. Overall it can be said that your health is definitely improved through weight training.

It is best to start with a plan, which may be joining a gym where you can regularly go to get a full workout, or purchasing a home workout system which uses resistance instead of weights, but produces similar results.

You must assess what type of person you are and make the appropriate decision from there. If you like the idea of going out somewhere daily for your workout, welcoming the change of scenery and benefiting from the camaraderie of others who are also training, then you may want to opt for a gym membership.

However, if you know you are the type that enjoys working alone and will not work out unless its in the convenience of your home, where you do not have to get dressed and go out, then the home gym system option is for you.

Only you can make this assessment of yourself. Some popular home gym systems include CrossBar™ and BowFlex™. Many quality home workout systems exist, but of course none of them work when not being used, so be sure that you remain focused and dedicated to your plan.

Here are some great links to weight training exercises and tips to get you started in the right direction…

http://www.abcbodybuilding.com/animatedexecrcise.php
http://www.netfit.co.uk/bodmen.htm
http://www.obesity.org/treatment/weight.shtml

Whatever exercise plan you choose, it is best to exercise first thing in the morning… every morning.

Our bodies were made to be active daily, and it has been proven that if you exercise in the morning you will be more willing at exercising on a consistent basis. But the secret to being consistent is to make your exercise as enjoyable as possible.

To help in this regard, depending on the type and location of your workout, consider utilizing music, a book on tape or watching television during your exercise routine.

If you're a walker for example, you may want to get a good CD player to listen to music or books on tape. If you're exercising inside, you may want to setup a television or a stereo so that you can watch or listen while exercising.

Whatever you do, make your exercise experience one you look forward to each and every day!