In our fast-paced modern world, finding time to exercise can be a challenge. The most common reason people give for not maintaining a regular fitness routine is a lack of time. However, with a little determination and some smart strategies, it’s possible to overcome this hurdle and make fitness a priority.
Prioritize Your Health
Before making any changes to your diet or exercise routine, it’s crucial to consult with a medical professional. Once you’ve got the green light, it’s time to get serious about your fitness goals. If getting in shape is a top priority, you’ll find a way to make it happen. The key is to want it badly enough.
Strategies to Make Time for Fitness
Here are some practical strategies to help you overcome the “I don’t have time” excuse:
Rise Early or Stay Up Late
Consider adjusting your sleep schedule to create an extra hour for exercise. While eight or nine hours of sleep can be beneficial, it’s not always necessary. You might find it easier to wake up an hour earlier and start your day with a workout. This approach not only boosts your metabolism for the day but also eliminates the chance of skipping a workout due to fatigue or procrastination later in the day. Even if you can only manage an extra half hour, that’s still three and a half hours of exercise time per week.
Create a Home Exercise Program
For those days when you can’t make it to the gym, a home exercise program can be a lifesaver. With a modest investment, you can equip your home with dumbbells, a bench, and a floor mat for abdominal training. Even without a full gym setup, you can still achieve great results with basic exercises like push-ups, sit-ups, and cardiovascular workouts. Consistency and intensity are the keys to success.
If budget is a concern, consider workout videos. There are hundreds of excellent fitness videos available for toning, weight loss, and fat burning. These allow you to exercise in the comfort of your own home and often feature music to keep you motivated and make the workout seem faster.
Choose the Right Workout Video
There’s a workout video for every taste and fitness level. If you enjoy music from the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s, consider Richard Simmons’ “Sweating To The Oldies” or Cory Everson’s “Step In Time”. For martial arts enthusiasts, a tae bo tape could be a good fit. If you’re in decent shape and enjoy modern dance music, consider MTV’s “The Grind Workout Hip Hop Aerobics”, Paula Abdul’s “Get Up And Dance”, Milo Levell’s “Hip Hop Body Shop”, Kathy Smith’s “Latin Rhythm Workout”, or Christy Lane’s “Funky Freestyle Dancing”. For beginners, Denise Austin’s Xtralite Beginner’s Aerobics is a great choice.
These tapes and many more are available for purchase at most music and major department stores, and many can also be rented at your local video store.
By incorporating these simple strategies into your daily routine, you’ll find it much easier to stick to your fitness program, improve your health, and move closer to your fitness goals.
