Will You Be A Consistent Exerciser in 2019?

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with January!

I love that people are setting new intentions for 2019 and getting after the things that matter to them. The hate part of the relationship is that a lot of people are pushing themselves really hard at this time of year and often it's not sustainable.

Any new client in January progresses exactly the same as a client I start working with in July. That means they increase their activity level to an amount which is sustainable for the long term, not just a few weeks.

We don't do challenging exercise every day for the first month we start working together. The body needs time to adapt and progressively get stronger. If you try to make it happen sooner than your genetics/strength allow you may run into a few issues.

How do we start? I suggest that the minimum amount of activity is something 3 times per week. So for most of my clients that's 1 session with me and 2 that we decide are going to work for you. For some that is going to a class, zumba, yoga, bodypump, whatever you enjoy doing. Having a session in the good old outdoors, either a long walk or start a 0 to 5k run programme. It's good to feel the fresh air on your face, especially if you sit inside working all day!

I honestly believe if anyone can find enjoyable exercise and do it 3 times a week and be consistent, you will see a huge improvement in your fitness level. Once it becomes just a natural part of your life, or you really start to love it :) then you can add in an extra session.

A note on 3 times a week is that it does not have to be 1hr of exercise either. If you are not active at the moment then 3 hours is probably going to feel like a mahoosive jump! So, maybe it's only 20-30 minutes to start with, that's just fine :)

It's not particularly magical to tell clients to have patience and allow their body to get stronger at a sensible pace but it definitely works.

Wishing you a healthy, happy and patient start to 2019 x