Day 5: Choose Your 30 x 3 Exercise | 30-Day Weight Loss-athon
Welcome to Day 5 of the 30-Day Weight Loss-athon.
Today we’ll be committing to — dun dun DUN! — an exercise program!!
Read the steps first, then take 10 minutes to complete them.
We only have 10 minutes, so move fast, act quickly and stop over-thinking. Just throw yourself in. Ready?
What You Need:
- Your diary.
Important Note: Get medical clearance if you need it
It’s a good idea to get the all-clear to exercise from your medical professional if:
- You’re new to exercise
- You haven’t exercised in a long time
- You’re significantly overweight
- You have a medical condition or concern
- You’re nervous about exercising.
Step 1
The first step today is to have a little talk with yourself and make peace with the idea that you are going to become a regular exerciser.
That might be something you’re OK with already. Cool – then this will be pretty easy.
Or it could fill you with dread and panic. In which case, take a deep breath because I’m going to let you in on a secret – one that anyone who’s ever lost weight will confirm if you ask them.
As you start to lose weight, you start to enjoy exercising. It may seem hard to believe now, but it’s true.
So comfort yourself that soon, a kind of pleasure will start to kick in. Maybe not a rocking good time, but a definite this-isn’t-so-bad-ness. You just have to get past the beginning.
Step 2
Next, let’s find out what you like and don’t like, workout-wise. Some questions can help:
- Do you prefer to be indoors or outdoors?
- Do you like to work out alone or in a group?
- Do you prefer high or low impact activities?
- Do you prefer a consistent or varied pace?
- Do you want to start easy or be immediately challenged?
- Do you prefer music, TV, or your own thoughts when you exercise?
- Do you feel most energetic in the morning, afternoon or evening?
Once you’ve considered your answers, you’ll find it easier to choose a type of exercise that will suit you.
Step 3
Bearing in mind those preferences from Step 2, you need to:
- Choose something active
- Be prepared to do it for at least 30 minutes at a time
- Be prepared to do it at least 3 times a week.
In total, that’s 1.5 hours a week. Less than a movie.
If you feel resistance welling up and find yourself formulating excuses why you can’t spare 1.5 hours a week, then gently remind yourself that:
- This amount of exercise is a small price to pay for looking good, feeling good and getting healthy
- If you don’t exercise, you run the risk of all sorts of expensive problems that will cost you a lot more time in the long run
- People with greater time pressures and more weight to lose than you have done it, and you can do it too
- There are wonderful rewards waiting for you, as you identified on Day 1.
Choose from the list below, or feel free to add something else. Just be sure your choice raises your heart rate and makes you sweat. Pilates, yoga and shopping can be added extras, but they generally don’t burn enough calories to be good weight-loss choices.
- Walking – brisk
- Walking – hills
- Running
- Jogging
- Skipping (with a rope)
- Cycling – outdoor
- Cycling – stationary
- Elliptical machine
- Treadmill
- Boxing
- Exercise classes – including step, combat, attack,
- Swimming
- Dancing
- Dance classes
- Sports that raise your heart rate and make you sweat – eg tennis, squash etc
- Exercise DVD.
Step 4
Now the part that makes all the difference.
Enter your exercise sessions for the rest of the month in your diary. Yep – put them right in there, at the times you’ll do them.
You’ve just made exercise dates with yourself. Please don’t be rude and stand yourself up.
Bonus Step For 52 Weight Loss Missions Members
Revisit Mission 9: Fit Exercise Into Your Life to remind yourself how to see exercise sessions as commitments. Prepare your answers for those times you’ve scheduled an exercise session and your boss/colleague/friend says, ‘Can you [stay late/attend a meeting/go out]’?
Check in!
And you’re done!
Be sure to leave your comment below to check in and stay accountable. If you’re reading this by email or in a reader then please click here to leave your comment.
See you tomorrow!
I already have mine in my diary for the morning so I am going to work hard to go to bed early so I get up for my alarm and make sure that under all circumstances I get up and do it. no more excuses.
It’s the 30 minutes at a time that I struggle with. My son is content to let me play XBox Kinect Your Shape game for about 15 minutes, but beyond that he is trying to crawl all over me or sneaking away so I can’t see what he’s doing. Then I have to stop the game every minute to go find him, get him out of trouble, and bring him back to the living room.
I prefer to run on a treadmill. Love it, in fact. But I don’t have a treadmill and can’t afford one. Hate, STRONGLY HATE, running outdoors. So XBox is the way to go for me. I only have the Kinect Your Shape game and it’s obviously not meant for pregnancy exercise. It expects perfection and my pregnant body just can’t do some of the things it thinks I should do. I wish there was a tract for less physically fit (aka pregnant) folks. So my score SUCKS and it’s a real downer, but I’m going to kick that game’s butt after I have this baby! ;o)
I’ve been exercising for a while and have really discovered what I like through experimentation. I have to be careful because of past overuse injuries to my knees. I usually when doing a workout video follow the person doing the modifications and I still get a great workout. I have also surprised myself with some of the new activities I love along with walking, such as Pilates. I’m definitely going to keep it up because I am definitely feeling and seeing the benefits. Now I have a plan for what I’m doing for the month that I can definitely stick with.
I have been putting this one off but I know what needs to be done! I must take the dog for a walk at least 3 times a week. I’m starting work at 8-9am everyday and often I wont get home till 9pm. I’m going to try and take the dog for a walk when I get home, before I have something to eat. Once I have something to eat I tend to be in bed an hour after. I’m starting this tonight!
Upping the treadmill to 30 mins 5 times a week. I will so miss those extra 10 mins sleep!
Zumba for one hour on tuesday- wed-and Friday. Also love outside walking so ail try to do that.
I have fallen into the trap of exercising too much too soon and paid for it with injuries. SO, I have made dates on my calendar beginning Monday and repeated them for as long as possible. I will exercise on the treadmill at my gym (I love my little gym) on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I will work up to the elliptical machine.
I am going to be walking as its free and increase the intensity each week!
I am going to exercise! It has been hard with the New England weather and my 5 yr old. He does not do anthing for 30 minutes. I am going to get up early and try this. We’ll see what happens. If not there is always Wii Fit!
Tomorrow, I’m going to ease into and “Hula with Kili”. Next week, I’m going to Hula a little more, then do some “Dance with Denise” to prepare me to finish out the month and to “Shred” with Jillian. I put each “appointment” in my calendar with these fun DVD references instead of the yucky word “exercise.” I am so stoked to get started MOVING with my “new friends”.
It is so true that when you start excersizing you actually start to enjoy it. I excersized every day in the mos. of Jan. and Feb. (save a few days) and felt awesome. I excersized 2 days in the month of March and didn’t feel so awesome. I went back today and started my Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. I feel shaky and tired, but I also feel like I conquered the world today. I also posted on facebook (so I can be held accountable) that I will not eat desserts and sweets for at least 1 month straight. Now I just have to read my Bible (which I probably should have started with first) and my day will be completely awesome. Plus, my hubby is coming home from his business trip. :o)
I have dusted off the treadmill and created a new jam station on pandora. I am committed to walking at least 3 days a week in the morning before I go to work. My goal is to do it 5 days a week though.
So far I’ve walked 3 out of 4 days to pick up my son from school – about 38 minutes moving round trip. However, I had wanted this to be a part of my finding more ways to be active, not my actual scheduled exercise time. I have an elliptical that I love & a set of great dvds, but I find myself doing a zillion little things around the house when the baby naps instead of prioritizing exercizing. I may have to write myself a new motivational post-it that the dirt will still be there tomorrow, & so will the fat on my thighs, which one is more pressing for me to get rid of?
I love to exercise! No question, but finding balance between all my responsibilities and having a peaceful household, well…. I had to choose between my Body Pump and Zumba classes or having dinner on the table homework done and kids in bed a decent hour. So I’m working on finding new exercise that doesn’t require me to be away from home as much. So I’ve made it a point to get outside everyday for at least 30 minutes (Thank you God for the beautiful weather lately) and work in my yard, serious work, digging, raking, moving dirt, pulling weeds, laying patio blocks. Long story shortened, I am making baby steps toward balance! Oh, and Mary if you’re out there, thank you for listening to me complain today! Hugs!
Committed to walking a minimum of 3 times a week for 30 minutes.
I’ve been busy busy busy…and it’s only day five! I usually park my car half a mile away from school…the school parking lot is a zoo. SO I walked one mile to and from school. It was a gorgeous day, so I did about a mile this morning before class. My neighbor invited me for a walk so we could gossip…I think we did about 12 loops around the track = 3 mi ( clearly we needed to catch up). I had a cup of coffee at 6 pm…so I walked 2 more miles to my Zumba class… I think I might need to take some Advil tonight.
I think I can do more!
Pingback: Paper Planner Or Digital Diary? How To Choose.
Pingback: How To Burn More Calories: Part 1 | 52 WLM
Pingback: I Did More Of This And Lost Weight | 52 WLM
Pingback: I Lose Weight But It Always Comes Back... Here's Why. | 52 WLM