The scary words here are "commitment" and "self-discipline." Yikes! Who wants to hear about that? The supportive word is "class," which means you don't have to do everything alone.
Everyone wants to get in better shape, or at least maintain. But no one seems to want to get up an hour earlier every day and exercise, all alone.
So how do you keep your promises to yourself?
A Good Idea: Find a short-term class doing something you will do on your own after the class ends. Most people find that they need an ongoing class, but a short-term class can act as a jump-start to your personal program. People who do well with this plan know that once they get in the groove, they can continue without external motivation.
The Best Idea: Find a class doing something active that you enjoy and enroll for a long-term program. This will set your habit and keep your motivation up. Most of us have a hard time keeping time carved out for exercise without enrolling in something with a set schedule. What's the best activity? The one you will do!
Main Ideas:
Plan to exercise with a group. There's strength and group energy in numbers, and it's more fun.
Pay for a class. You don't have to pay an arm and a leg, but paying something will help you show up consistently. Also, having an instructor lead you through a good plan for the hour you've committed keeps you going when you're tired and brain-dead.
Keep your time commitment reasonable. If you sign up for a four-hour session five times a week, you are less likely to follow through when you get busy. About 45 minutes or an hour three times a week is feasible, and is probably enough.
Find something that keeps your interest. You won't stick to it if you don't like it.
Class Ideas:
Yoga. Find a yoga class that offers strengthening and toning as well as stretching, balance, breathing and a peaceful routine. If your only goals are flexibility and stress relief, traditional Hatha might be enough. But most of us want to tone up too. Ask the right questions that get you what you want. THEN enroll.
Kickboxing. Many of us are trying to keep a resolution of losing weight and helping our hearts and lungs stay healthy. A kickboxing class should offer aerobic exercise, which is useful for both goals. It can also help you get "buff"! Like the jump-start class mentioned next, the better classes also teach you useful fighting skills, and the bag work and weight-bearing exercise help strengthen your bones, too.
Kickboxing Boot Camp. This kind of class would serve as a jump-start to your own program. A good class of this type should offer nutrition information, goal setting and assessment, and a good kickboxing aerobic/toning routine. It will also teach you real fighting skills and show you how to get tough.
Kung Fu or Other Martial Art. These classes are usually active and by their very nature make you tougher while getting you some good exercise. Find a school that teaches a philosophy of peace and self-discipline while it teaches you solid self-defense and training techniques. Forms/katas may seem superfluous to someone who just wants to fight, but they are good, stylized sets of real fighting maneuvers, and serve as good take-aways from your studies. You can practice these at home without a training partner and get good exercise and training benefits.
Tai Chi. This comes in many shapes and sizes. The best classes will teach you self-defense applications while helping you get consistent, low-impact exercise. They will also offer smaller classes and a well rounded curriculum, probably including more than one form and qigong (breathing exercises). Proper oxygenation helps cells to stay cleaner, muscles to get stronger, and fat to be more efficiently metabolized.
Whatever you choose, the main thing is to do SOMETHING! TV and beer will not help you keep your resolutions - a good class will.
For more information visit texasholistics.com texasholistics.com
Copyright © Juli Hartmann 2009
Juli Hartmann is the owner and chief instructor at Texas Holistic Arts Center in Leander, Texas. She has been studying martial arts for over 20 years, and healing arts for nearly 20 years.
texasholisticartscenter.com texasholisticartscenter.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment