Making Exercise a Habit

Do you have an exercise plan? Do you own any exercise equipment? Perhaps a treadmill, an exercise bike, or any of the gazillion exercise machines advertised on infomercials over the last 10 or 20 years? I think we've all been sold at one time or another on something to make exercising easier... or so we thought. And that's good! Having the desire to look better, feel better and implementing a good exercise plan can help us to reach those goals and also help us to keep our weight under control. And those are just a few of the benefits of exercise.

When we perform an exercise routine regularly we begin to not only look and feel better... we even sleep better. When you get right down to it I think we all know that a good exercise plan is part of a healthy lifestyle. I often hear people ask "What is the best exercise?" And the answer to that question is the one you like the most. Why? Because that’s the one your more likely to do! For many people, just one exercise would not be enough because although we all want to be in good shape and the proper weight, we all have different fitness goals... but for others, one exercise performed consistently and regularly provides all the benefits mentioned above and then some!

So... how many exercise plans do you need to receive all of the exercise benefits described above? One! That's right... just one! And how many exercises do you need to do? That will depend on your particular fitness goals your likes and dislikes but the first question I encourage you to ask yourself is What one exercise do I like the most? That answer will get you started on a good exercise plan. Now... Did you know that how often you exercise is the single most important factor in whether you:

reach your weight loss goals
will be satisfied with your results
will feel good about your progress

You could own every piece of exercise equipment ever advertised on an infomercial, from an exercise bike to an exercise ball and every exercise machine in between, but if you’re not going to use them, then your exercise plan will never succeed. Now I’m not saying that you need to own exercise equipment to be in shape. There are many people who are in excellent condition who own nothing more then a pair of Nikes. If you get just one thing from reading this, understand that your fitness level is directly related to the frequency in which you exercise.

It doesn’t matter if you know how to do every imaginable abdominal exercise, dumbbell exercise, aerobic exercise, tricep, deltoid or backside exercise. The important thing is how often you do them!

I challenge you right now to base your exercise plan on frequency, and I promise you will be much more successful. Whether your exercise plan consists of 20 different exercises or one... please remember this. Now I don’t want you to get carried away. There’s more to life than just exercising... much more. All I’m saying is when you set about creating an exercise plan, the frequency of exercise is crucial. So as you create your exercise plan answer these two questions:

1) What one exercise do I enjoy the most? Even if you currently hate all exercise... there must be one that you like more than the others or hate less than the others ?

2) And secondly, how often can I sincerely do this? Answer those two questions and your exercise plan will be off to a great start!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Don_Pasco

Exercise Is a Key to Good Health for All of Us

By Valerian D.

There’s plenty of evidence that an essential component of a healthy life is physical activity. It has been shown that exercise has a positive effect on both your body and mind.

Exercise helps blood flow, pumping more blood through your arteries. First of all that means your lungs will become better conditioned for work bringing more oxygen for your body cells. Then, more blood increases the size of your arteries and veins preventing fat from clogging them and helping to lower your blood pressure.
There is an inverse relation between the level of exercise and the presence of cardiovascular disease. Regular exercise is a way your heart learns to work harder so you are less likely to have a heart attack. On the other hand, exercise reduces blood concentration of C-reactive protein lowering the risk of periodontal disease and inflammation in the heart. Physical exercise has a positive effect on the severity of many cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia and obesity. By increasing the coronary blood flow, exercise also limits the atherosclerotic lesions extension.
Physical activity can help elderly people prolong their independence and improve the quality of their life. Exercise is an opportunity for middle-aged and older adults to slow some of the consequences of aging on the cardiovascular system.
You probably know that every bad health condition starts with obesity. When physical exercise is combined with healthy nutrition, it can help control weight and prevent obesity.

A very important thing to remember:

People forget that regular exercise can be used as a drug. Physical activity is one of the best therapy for insomnia, weight control, and reducing insulin resistance. Exercise may also be as effective as medication for battling depression. It has been demonstrated for a long that people who exercise regularly live longer and are healthier than sedentary people.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Valerian_D.

Additional Information & Articles From Amazon.com

BodyMinder Workout and Exercise Journal (A Fitness Diary)

Exercise Physiology: Energy, Nutrition, and Human Performance (Exercise Physiology ( MC Ardle))

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