Welcome Back Readers! It’s time once again for our Monday Lancaster Fit Bit from Mickey Glick at Body and Soul Fitness Studio! This being the first Fit Bit of 2010, Mickey wanted to make sure she gave you the basis for a solid plan to carry you through the year. Read on after the jump to see what she has in store for you!
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So it begins. The New Year’s resolutions. People deciding to lose weight. And then, the endless hours on the treadmill, elliptical or stationary bike. You’ll even see it when the local newspaper does their obligatory New Year’s exercise story- rows of cardio equipment filled with people slogging along in the hopes of dropping excess weight.
The most important element is proper nutrition. I can go on and on and on about the many mental, physical and emotional benefits of regular physical activity but if you are interested in dumping excess fat, any decent fitness professional will tell you that you can’t out-train a bad diet.
I realize that every overweight person wants to be thinner yesterday but most people set themselves up for failure by making massive changes to their nutrition (often eating too little) or exercise (often doing too much). If you are serious about slimming down and then maintaining a healthy weight, you need to accept the fact that the process will take time. You must commit to a lifestyle makeover- not a “diet” that ends when you meet your goal weight. If you truly want to see a lower number on the scale, you must decide that your lifestyle will include good quality nutrition and regular physical activity.
The cold, hard, truth is that no infomercial ab gadget or quick fix diet will get you where you ultimately want to be. Start small. If you eat fast food five times a week, resolve to cut back to two or three; then do it. If you haven’t exercised in years, don’t start working out an hour and a half every day. Pick a reasonable amount of time based on your current fitness level and lifestyle and commit to it. You can even start out with 10 minutes a day but do not allow yourself to crawl into bed until you have completed your daily exercise. There is no one who can’t find 10 minutes in their day to improve their health.
Dump the “all or nothing” mentality – ten minutes every day is actually better than 70 minutes in one day. Small, consistent changes are much more productive than big, sporadic ones. Once you have created new, healthy habits and had success with some small changes, start making bigger ones. Stop spending so much time on the cardio machines and do some strength training (it doesn’t have to be as strenuous as the lady up at the top of the page, but 
you get the point). It’s a big fat lie that cardio is the most important exercise for weight control. It’s not. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve seen in gyms, month after month, plodding along on the treadmill or elliptical whose bodies barely change. Women, especially, are afraid of lifting weights but their results would be so much better. Do total body strength workouts, concentrating on compound movements. Intensity is the key. Push yourself. (I didn’t say kill yourself.) Shorter, more challenging workouts will save you time, burn more calories and fat and result in a healthier, trimmer, more toned body. Isn’t that what you want? If you’re ready to stop wasting time and start getting results, call Mickey today at (717) 509-7777.
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I’d like you to be part of the conversation, so if you like what you read here please comment, forward The Lancaster Connection.com to your friends, subscribe and as always, if you have questions, need real estate advice or want to buy or sell a home, you can call or text me at 717-371-0557, email me at Jason@JasonsHomes.com or contact me at the office at 717-490-8999!Your Friend in Real Estate,Jason BurkholderWeichert, Realtors – Engle & HambrightSearch for Lancaster County Homes for sale at www.JasonsHomes.com by clicking here!Want to see what’s happening to home prices in your neighborhood? Go to www.RealEstateCrystalBall.com !
