A New Years Resolution to Lose Weight and Get in Shape

It's that time of year again when a lot people are thinking about their past and future new years resolutions. If your resolution involved losing weight, getting more toned or getting a more muscular physique then you're in luck. I'm here to help you that's the reason this site was created. I'm not going to give you some crazy advice; I'm going to give you advice that I have found works for many people. The results depend on your effort and determination. I'm here to supply you with some basic tools or ideas to point you in the right direction.

First, before even going to the gym it is important to give your body the energy it needs to complete your physical activities that you desire to do. Your car doesn't run without fuel, your body works the same way. A light meal of about 200 calories would be great to give your body enough energy to function properly. Eating more than 500 calories could cause digestive problems for many people while performing physical activity. Now you may be wondering what should I eat? It depends on what you are planning to do. I suggest drinking orange juice or eating fruits. Yogurt is another great pre workout food because it has carbohydrates and protein. The idea is to consume foods that keep your blood sugar up throughout your workout. Avoid energy drinks for workouts longer than 30 minutes because they may cause your blood sugar to go down quickly after a short time. Protein is helpful to give you energy when your blood sugar drops so consuming some milk or a few nuts would be wise before a workout. Foods with fats should be avoided before your workout because they can cause digestive problems. Water is also important for your pre-workout to avoid dehydration. Now that you have learned how to fuel your body for a great workout you are ready for the next step.

Now let's get to the fun stuff, the workout. Your workout depends highly on your goal. A marathon runner doesn't do the same workout a football player does. Considering most of you reading this are trying to lose fat and gain some degree of muscle throughout the body. I will give you some free general advice.
A good workout involves resistance exercises, cardio and stretching. Many guys avoid stretching due to pain and the thought that it isn't necessary. The reason it may be painful is because the muscle is tight. Loosing muscles should be done after the resistance exercises and cardio are both done. The reason for this is that over stretched muscles are more susceptible to injuries during both cardio and resistance training. Although, dynamic stretching is encouraged before both activities because it causes the muscles to increase blood flow (warm up) as well as lightly stretch the muscles. The recommendation for this warm up is about 50% of your max heart rate or a light set of 10-12 reps for the muscles being used. Following these guidelines will reduce the risk of injury. The choice to do resistance exercise or cardio first is up to you. Something to consider is the fact that your first activity or activities you will have the most energy and therefore be able to give a better effort. So I suggest doing what is most important to you first or switch off what you do first and last. Another thing to consider is you may be sweating or more tired from doing cardio than resistance exercises.

Here's some advice as to what activities are good to do. For cardio activities involving the whole body are great examples of these activities include walking/running and the elliptical. The reason I prefer whole body activities is because you are burning more calories if you use your whole body. You also will be gaining upper and lower body muscles. The same rule applies for resistance exercises. If you have limited time to spend on doing these exercises I suggest doing the bench press which uses your chest, triceps, shoulders and back. Squats are good because they involve your quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes. It is recommended to work each major muscle group. If you want to follow a good resistance training program then 2 or 3 exercises for each muscle would be ideal. Following these simple guild lines will allow you to start the year off with a great workout. Finally, remember this important point consistency is the key to a better body.