It can be difficult to create exercise goals that will bring you the results you’re looking for while also being safe and healthy. If you find yourself making one of these common mistakes, though, it might help to rethink your approach. No matter what your exercise goals are, you should always keep safety in mind. No matter how determined you are, pushing yourself too hard can lead to injury that will leave you out of commission for days, weeks or even months. If you want to reach your goals and keep yourself safe and healthy, consider these tips when creating your exercise plan.
Best Plans for creating safe exercise goals
-keep them fun
-keep them low intensity
-keep them realistic
-keep them high intensity
-keep them fun
Exercising should be fun and not feel like a chore. If you keep your goals simple and achievable, you will have more success and less frustration. Start by setting a goal to do something active for ten minutes three times a week. Next, set an intermediate goal of doing something active for thirty minutes three times a week. Once you are able to complete this goal, set another one that challenges you just enough to push yourself but not so much that it becomes overwhelming. For example, try walking briskly on the treadmill at high incline or riding your bike in hilly terrain. You can also switch up how you exercise each time so that you don’t get bored. You can go from running outside to biking outdoors or swimming indoors during bad weather. Mixing up what type of exercise you do and where helps prevent boredom. If you find the type of exercise to be too easy after achieving your intermediate goal, increase the frequency and/or duration; if it is too difficult, decrease them until it feels manageable again.
-keep them low intensity
Keeping your exercise intensity low makes it easier to reach your goals. Low intensity exercises are ones that make you feel warm and comfortable, like walking or light cardio. It’s important to be aware of how much time you spend doing low intensity workouts, as they should not exceed 30 minutes at a time.
-schedule them (four sentences)
It can be difficult to stay motivated when you’re exercising on your own. So we recommend scheduling time in your calendar for workout days and times. This way, you won’t have to worry about not meeting your goal because of lack of motivation or time!
-do them at home (eight sentences)
If working out at home is what works best for you then go ahead and start there! The easiest way to get started with this would be setting up a home gym. Get yourself some dumbbells, a bench and maybe even some resistance bands. For beginners who want to keep it simple, here’s an example of what your routine might look like: 3 sets of 10-12 reps with 15-20 pound dumbbells and 2 sets of 12-15 reps with 8-10 pound dumbbells per arm. Once you get stronger you can increase these weights gradually until you’re getting really strong!
-keep them realistic
To set realistic goals, start by writing down your current activity level. Next, write down your ideal activity level. The difference between the two numbers is how much you have to work on over time. For instance, if you are currently sedentary and want to increase that to two hours of light activity a day, then you need to do more than an hour of physical activity a day. Write down your new goal on paper and break it up into smaller pieces so that it’s easier to achieve (i.e. 15 minutes each day). Be sure to make your goals specific about what type of activity you will be doing (i.e. ‘jogging’ not ‘exercise’). Also, take care to include any restrictions or limitations you may have as well as any limitations in terms of equipment or other necessities (i.e. ‘I can only jog in my apartment building’).
-have them appropriate: .
-don’t punish yourself if you don’t reach them: feel like every missed workout means all progress is lost; that’s simply not true!
-keep them high intensity
In order to keep your heart rate up and burn more calories, you should try to maintain high intensity exercise. This can be difficult if you are just starting out because it means pushing yourself a little harder than usual. If that’s too challenging, then you might want to focus on keeping your heart rate up by doing exercises that are closer to your max. In either case, make sure to keep track of how many calories you burn so that you can judge whether or not your goal was met. -keep them achievable: Make sure to set reasonable goals for yourself. It is important not only to push yourself but also take care of your body by exercising within its limits. For example, if you’re feeling tired after 20 minutes then stop and come back tomorrow.
-set deadlines: Make sure that you have clear deadlines in mind when setting new fitness goals. Try using time markers like in two weeks I’ll do xyz. The deadline will give you something to work towards and may help motivate you as well!
Set yourself up for success
The final step to setting up a successful fitness routine is to identify what your goal will be. Once you know your goal, you can use that as a foundation to set yourself up for success. Think about what things make it easy or hard for you to accomplish your goal and set up barriers accordingly. For example, if you want to lose weight, one barrier could be cooking healthy meals ahead of time and storing them in airtight containers in the fridge or freezer so they’re available when hunger strikes. Another barrier could be setting an alarm on your phone or computer at night so that you don’t find yourself browsing Facebook after bedtime and before sleep because doing so can derail your diet and make it harder to get back into a routine. If you need some motivation to reach your fitness goals, try downloading some songs with a steady beat and fast tempo.
When we work out, our brains release endorphins which provide us with the natural high that people often crave from other addictive substances such as cocaine or heroin. According to science writer Michael Mosley in his book The Clever Guts Diet, the thing that really gets us going is not exercise itself but its ability to increase blood flow through the body.
So here’s how we put together this post: Identify obstacles Prevent obstacles Set out achievable yet challenging targets Take small steps (don’t overwhelm) Celebrate success (and help others!)
Final Thoughts
It’s easy to set and pursue unrealistic fitness goals, but in order to create a plan that works with your life and maintains safety, you need to be realistic. Whether you want to work on losing weight, becoming stronger or improving your health, there are a few key steps that can help make your long-term plans more achievable.
Set Specific Goals
The first step is identifying what you want to achieve by setting some specific goals. It may be better to focus on one goal at a time rather than trying to tackle everything at once. For example, if your ultimate goal is weight loss, you’ll need an end date in mind so it’s important that this goal has an end date. Setting goals without deadlines often causes people to lose motivation before they even get started. You’ll also want to figure out how much weight you want to lose, what types of food you’re willing to eat, and when you’re going to do things like eat breakfast or go for walks. Once you’ve written down all of these factors, then you’re ready for the next step: developing strategies that will actually help make these changes happen!
