Getting your fitness journey going can be absolutely overwhelming and with all of the information flying at you, you may be tempted to set some pretty unrealistic goals. Luckily, we have some top secret (not really secrets but downplayed) tips to get you in gear.
Be Patient: Your fitness journey should be a life-long journey and not a 4-6 week program. That said, you must be realistic with your expectations. Don't compare yourself or your progress to others. Many persons you see on social media are not telling the entire truth about their progress.
Know your why: Your reasons to commit to this lifestyle may evolve as you go and that is ok. Be as specific as possible with your reason/ reasons to stay committed. This helps you to identify realistic goals, which allow you to create and foster healthy habits
Start slowly: You should not go from being sedentary to suddenly pushing at all cylinders every day. Seek structure and a fitness professional can assist with that
Walking is underrated: Walking allows you to build cardiovascular resilience (good for heart and lung health) in a relatively low-impact manner
Ladies: Resistance training on its own will not make you huge. It'll make you strong and your bones and future self will thank you for that
Monitor your progress: Track your sets, reps, times & an estimation of your effort expenditure (eg. on a scale of 1-10) in order to gradually improve on these markers
Know how to properly use the equipment at your disposal: You want to know exactly what you are doing to get optimum use and focus on technique
Understand that weight loss is primarily driven by nutrition and assisted by exercise & recovery (including sleep and stress management)
Fitness includes many components: muscular endurance, muscular strength, cardiovascular endurance, mobility, flexibility, balance, agility, power, speed, coordination and body composition.
Something is better than nothing but listen to your body: Rest and recovery is important so never feel guilty about resting when you need to. In fact, rest/ active rest should be scheduled in your plan. You will learn to identify when you're genuinely tired and how that differs from lethargy.
Ladies: Track how your menstrual cycle affects your exercise routine and overall energy. Routines can be modified as needed. Definitely consider discussing this with your trainer.
Talk to a doctor and a fitness professional if there are underlying health issues. You may also require doctor's clearance in some cases. This will ensure you can exercise safely. It's also a good idea to be aware of the side-effects of your medications.