By: Jayme Hanson
Submitted: 2008-08-09 05:06:02 | Word Count: 725
When most people start an exercise program, they don’t really know where to start so they buy a lot of work out books and DVD’s in the hopes they will be successful in either getting into shape or losing weight. Individuals who first establish an exercise plan will have more success in sticking with the program and losing weight at a much faster pace.
There are many free exercise plans available to you depending on what goal you want to reach. Programs range from cardio, strength training, flexibility, body building, weight loss and exercises designed specifically for woman.
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Free Exercise Plans #1:
If you are currently overweight and are just starting out, you will want to gradually start your program and then slowly increase your activity. For example, if you are comfortable with walking for 20 minutes, then your goal should be to walk for 20 minutes a day for 5 days a week. When it becomes easier and easier for you to walk for 20 minutes then you will want to increase your daily walking time to 30 or 40 minutes per day. By gradually increasing your walking routine, your joints and muscles will get used to the exercise without causing any physical problems for you. You might want to purchase a pedometer to keep track of and count your steps. You can then work to increase your step count each week. Swimming is another great low impact exercise that will have minimal impact on your joints when you are first starting your program.
Free Exercise Plans #2:
Once you have started your walking or swimming plan and your body is used to activity and movement, it is time to introduce other types of exercise. If you are used to walking, try power or brisk walking to increase your heart rate. Optimum cardio durations for fat loss are between 35 55 minutes. You could also add circuit training to your routines. Circuit training is typically done in a gym or fitness center and will help you preserve muscle mass while you are trying to lose fat. Circuit training is high repetition resistance exercises with very little or no rest breaks in between each set of exercises. When joining a gym or fitness center ask if they have a personal trainer that you can consult with on your exercise program. If you have only been doing a single exercise such as walking or swimming, then you will want to start adding more exercises into your daily or weekly routine. Try adding working out on a rowing machine, jogging or cycling. Your body will benefit from a variety of exercises. Studies have shown that if you never vary your exercise routine over a long period of time, then your body will quit burning fat and try to conserve energy.
Free Exercise Plans #3:
The ultimate key to burning calories and losing weight is to increase your metabolism or in other words the rate at which your body burns energy. Resistance or weight training not only boosts metabolism, but the increase in lean muscle requires your body to burn more calories to maintain that level. If you are a beginner at weight or resistance training then you will want to train 3 times per week, with one rest day in between (for example, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday). You will want to start with a warm up exercise first such as working out on a rowing machine for 10 minutes. After you perform your warm up exercise you’ll want to work out your chest, back, triceps, biceps and legs. You will want to establish a baseline of repetitions or number of times you lift the weights for each body part. Start with the number of repetitions you are comfortable with and then slowly increase the number over time. The most important and beneficial characteristic of lifting weights is a good slow technique instead of wildly swinging the weights around which could cause some serious physical injury.
There are hundreds of free exercise plans that teach different techniques, types of exercises, how long and how often you should train. If you are not knowledgeable enough to develop your own plan, then ask a personal trainer or fitness trainer to help design an exercise program that will work for and benefit you. The most important thing about free exercise plans is to get up off the couch and get started.
