Getting Started!

First and foremost, before entering any kind of workout program or taking any advice from a blogger such as myself, make sure you check with your physician first to make sure you are not in any sort of risk engaging in physical activity or changing your diet. I can only give you recommendations but as with anything you read on the Internet, take with a grain of salt and do your own research and try out what works best for you.

Second, because I think that seeing results is one of the most motivating reasons to workout, make sure to take some measurements the day you start. Usually, take note of the inches/cm around your chest/bust, waist (smallest part of your trunk), tummy (area around your belly button), hips, thighs (around the widest part), and arms.

Of course, take note of your weight as well BUT do not use this as a gauge for your progress or you will find yourself frustrated. Especially when beginning new workout programs and you are literally tearing down old muscle to make new, stronger muscle, you'll have a some swelling and fluid retention that almost always shows up as extra pounds. It is best to go by a pair of jeans and how they fit over time as you work out than consulting with a mocking scale, lol. When mine reads 3-5 pounds more than I know it should, I grab that pair that was snug when I first started working out and as long as it still feels lose and roomy, I just ignore the numbers and move on...

While getting these numbers, you can also figure out your BMI which is your Body Mass Index that determines your health risk although it may not be completely accurate if you are someone who is very muscular (like a football player). Here is a link where you just input the numbers and the charts on the right will tell you where you are at: BMI Calculator

Next, decide on what will be a realistic goal for the frequency and duration of your workouts. If you have NEVER worked out before, you might start slow at 10-15 minutes, three times a week working doing something low impact. You know your frustration level better than anyone so try to make it something that won't make you want to quit.

Once you have decided on that, write those days down with a PEN in your calendar and consider it "non-negotiable" as Chalene Johnson of TurboFire says. Again, make the time you perform the workouts at a realistic time. For most busy women, it is first thing in the morning before the rest of the family is up. And turn off the phone or any other distractions that might disrupt your time; if it's really important, they will call back!

Finally, decide on a workout! For many beginners, walking is the safest and easiest thing to start off with. The only thing I have to say about it though is make sure you walk fast enough that you are getting your heart rate up to a minimum of 60% of your maximum heart rate but, if your are capable and have permission from your physician, preferably at 70-80% of your maximum heart rate. (Calculate that HERE.) If your knees can handle it, try to add some hills for added intensity and involve a good arm swing (although it may look silly) to increase your heart rate even more.

I've known a lot of people that say they walk but are frustrated they don't lose any weight or notice a difference but those that do are usually going at a more leisurely pace than a "working" pace. For example, someone who is 150 pounds, you would burn about 144 calories walking for thirty minutes (3.5 mph/17 minutes per mile). But if this same person went faster, like going 4.5 mph/13 minutes per mile, they would burn 180 calories. So depending on what your goals are, calorie burning to lose weight or just to simply get active, think about what you want from the workout and adjust accordingly as your health permits.

Other options for beginners workouts:

*Basic strength training exercises; in the future, Graceful Coach will post one of our own, but for now, check out this link to get started: Easy Exercises You Can Do At Home

*Basic calisthenics like jumping jacks, lunges, push ups, crunches, & squats. Proceed with caution if you have joint issues especially with jacks, lunges, & squats. Start off doing each exercise ten times and work up to twenty-five, resting as needed.

*Elliptical machine; great for those who have joint issues but can burn a ton of calories. Find a gym that gives a two week free trial that has one you can try, just to see if you like it and then get one comparable--just make sure it is sturdy and will last you!

*Workout DVDs. As mentioned in a prior post, Jillian Michaels is probably my all time favorite as far as workouts go. Her 30 Day Shred is great for beginners because it is "doable" yet intense enough you get a good calorie burn, yet short enough to fit into a busy schedule (20-25 minutes from beginning to finish).

Also, being a Beachbody DVD addict & Beachbody Coach, I've tried a lot of their products and gotten familiar with the various trainers, so I would highly recommend some of their DVDs if you'd prefer to do a different video with each workout if you know you will get bored. I'll have a chart for you with my next post to help you decide a little better.

As a final word of encouragement, don't feel bad if this feels like a struggle. If you can stick with it long enough to get results and see the positive effects on you and your sphere of influence, it can become a habit that will follow you for the rest of your life. We get addicted to too many unhealthy things it seems, but how great it would be to fall in love with exercise?!? Too many benefits to even write down here--I'll have to save it for a future post! :)

Coming next: Recommended Beachbody DVDs for Beginners

My Workout History

First off, I was not physically active for the first 20 years of my life.

In high school, I was more academic and into Drama than sports or any kind of exercise. I remember struggling through P.E. classes not just with specific sports but with things like jogging--I could barely go 1/8 of a mile (imagine half of a football field track) without cramping and getting *totally* out of breath and just HATED the thought of sweat and getting my heart racing.

So what changed? Well, I got to college, and like so many other students, started having late nights of eating pizza and other fattening snacks to get through long and boring study sessions. (I kept a suitcase full of junk food under my bed!) I didn't quite gain the Freshmen 15, but maybe the Freshmen 5 and thought I really need to do something about this before it got out of hand so my relationship with working out started! (I could not give up the junk food, lol, but did become a vegetarian in the last two years of college in hopes of being healthier, fyi.)

My mother got me a Step Aerobics workout system by Brenda Dykgraaf which helped me get started and also started walking. I also got a slide board that simulated skating that I *LOVED* and remember rocking out to it with my InXS "Kick" album a few years later after I got bored with the Step Aerobics.

When I went went off to OT school in my very early twenties, they offered free personal training to the students so I got set up on a program to do some weight training and this is where I finally fell in love with lifting and have since made a commitment to doing it.

Of course, I fell off the wagon after I had a bilateral inguinal hernia repair (not from lifting, it was a genetic issue) since I was not allowed to lift for a few months after that so I did get out of the habit then but as soon as I was healed up and ready to go again, I not only went back to working out at a gym but I also got involved doing the then very popular Tae Bo by Billy Blanks.

Anyway, Tae Bo started me on my love for workout videos. (I'd say DVDs but I am so "old" it was VHS tapes at the time!!!) I like the structure of video workouts, and I am really independent and disciplined to stick with it, so it works out great for me.

About two years after I got married, we ended up living in apartments that were very small for about a year or so and I had NO room to workout to my usual Tae Bo so I invested in the Windsor Pilates since I could do those on the bed, and it helped me to maintain the tone I did have. I also had a manual fold-up treadmill I worked out for about twenty minutes but I did not like quite as much as it was hard to get it going being completely manual--NO electricity to help me along and fighting friction all the way!!!

Well, once we moved from that place and into a slightly roomier house, I was back at it with the DVDs. Besides my usual Tae Bo, I also did some lesser known workouts that I don't even remember the names or people anymore, but the ones I loved best were Jillian Michaels' first set that she came out with called The Biggest Winner, a set of five DVDs that are *still* some of my favorites when I want to do a little extra.

Then, I went on to buy a very basic Elliptical Trainer from my local Sam's Club and a mini-trampoline and did that along with some 5 & 8 pound hand weights for my arms. By this time, I was getting closer to my mid-thirties and noticed the metabolism was slowing down even more, and I had to start working out longer to maintain the weight I needed as I realized the pounds beginning to creep up.

That is when I rediscovered Jillian Michael's and her most recent DVDs: 30 Day Shred, Burn Fat Boost Metabolism, & No More Trouble Zones. Wow! Especially with 30 Day Shred, I noticed the level of intensity and appreciated the short 20-25 minutes it took to complete the workouts for my busy schedule. To this day, I tell people to start off with the 30 Day Shred as the price is great and you get three different workouts--a lot of bang for your buck!

But like with any addiction (lol) I had to have something harder--and wanted more. My husband actually told me about the P90x infomercials he had seen and many guys on some of the forums he frequented really recommended it. So I thought, "Why not?" and ordered it this past September 2009. Since then, I've moved on to Insanity, Cathe Friedrich (not found at BeachBody though) ChaLEAN Extreme, & TurboFire--with the latter two being my current programs--and now have decided to become a Beachbody Coach because I know I will be buying even more programs from them in the future (like the P90x & Insanity sequels!) and also eying a few others like the Brazil Butt Lift & Rev Abs.

Now that I am becoming more familiar with the various exercises out there, I've also been doing a lot of research especially checking out tutorial videos on the Internet (man, there is a lot out there!) and doing some workouts I have found on other people's fitness blogs that are just as good as some of the DVDs I've been doing. I admit, I miss someone like Shaun T or Jillian who cue me to "dig deeper" or "finish strong" but I can still get a great sweat and pump from them as long as I work hard--which I like to think I do. ;)

So why am I sharing this with you on my Fitness Blog? Well, I think it is important that you know a little bit about me and where I've been as you note products I review; I am not a beginner but not really quite advanced yet where I feel like an athlete or even semi-athlete. But also, you can see I have a pretty big range of programs I've done and I can help others gauge what program might work best for them at their fitness level whether they are starting from never exercising at all to being a hardcore disciplined exerciser like me.

But you'll also know that I am open to trying sensible workouts and are not loyal to one particular set of workouts. I think it is actually pretty cool that we are all unique and that different things appeal to different people! I just want to facilitate others to help them figure out what will motivate and work for them and get them to do things that will change their life permanently for the better. :) 

**To buy the Beachbody DVDs listed here (P90x, Insanity, ChaLEAN Extreme, TurboFire, Rev Abs, & Brazil Butt Lift) go to our site at Graceful Coach/Beachbody. Sign up under "Graceful Coach" for free coaching and advice from me!