Juggle Your Exercise Program |
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Have
you ever watched a juggler and wondered how he or she manages to toss
numerous balls at once? Are there people you know who are great at
juggling time? They have great time-management skills—somehow they
manage to get everything done and still find time for themselves.
When you think about all the components of an exercise program—physical
activity, aerobic exercise, and strengthening exercises—it can seem
overwhelming. How can you fit it all into your schedule? Who has time
to exercise every day? It may feel like you're being asked to climb
Mount Everest at first. Yet once you get to the peak, it's all down
hill from there. The key is to start adding one activity at a time.
Which activity comes first? It all depends on which one you're ready to
begin doing. If you're more interested in aerobic exercise, start
there. If it seems less threatening to work on the 30 minutes of daily
activity, then that is the right starting point. Once you've started doing one activity, it may be
useful to think about how another could fit in. For example, when you
do aerobic exercise, it's important to warm up your muscles and to
stretch them before and after exercising to avoid an injury. Next, you
could add strengthening exercises following an aerobic exercise
session. This could include a few sit-ups, push-ups, or lifting weights
or soup cans at the end of the session. By adding strengthening exercises two or three times a week after
aerobic exercise and getting a few minutes of daily activity here and
there throughout your day, you balance your fitness routine. The key is
to incorporate each activity into your schedule until you feel
comfortable juggling all the balls. |
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