Select an exercise regimen that is appropriate for you. Choose activities that you like, exercise at convenient times of the day, and have a variety of exercises to chose from to avoid getting bored. Familiarize yourself with the benefits and potential risks of the exercises you are considering. You will want to know approximately how many calories are being expended, what muscle groups are being used, and how long you should perform the exercises. Spend most of your time on aerobic exercises. Remember that aerobic exercises are best for weight loss and weight maintenance. You can burn many more calories in a span of time doing aerobic exercise than you can doing strength training exercises. Do include strength training exercise, as well. Building muscle mass is important - especially since dieting can cause loss of muscle mass. Muscles burn more calories than fat over the long term, so consider strength training to be an investment in long-term weight maintenance. Work up to exercising at least 30 to 45 minutes per day, 4 or 5 days per week. Depending on your level of fitness, you may want to work up to that gradually. Lesser amounts of exercise are adequate if your goal is longevity or a healthy body and mind. If your goal is to lose weight, you need to work towards exercising most days. Know approximately how many calories you are burning. Many exercise machines give approximations and you can find lists of estimates online. Those numbers are never going to be exactly correct, but you never really know how many calories you are consuming either. So consider it an estimate. Avoid eating extra snacks or treats and telling yourself it s ok, I exercised earlier if your goal is to lose weight. It is much easier to eat 200 calories than to burn it off with exercise. A small snack could negate the entire workout. Put your all into whatever exercises you choose. You can sluggishly make it through any exercise routine, but if you put a lot of energy into it you will burn a lot more calories. Continue to challenge yourself. If your exercise routine is feeling, well, routine, then it is time to shake it up a bit. Try increasing the intensity, duration or try some new exercises. Include more natural activity in your daily life. Walk a little extra; don t take the short cuts; find excuses to move. Fidget in your chair. Park further from the door. Take the stairs. Don t count this towards your total exercise time, but consider it little bonus fat blasts. Remember to stretch after your workout, and stop if you feel pain. Talk to your doctor if you have any reason to be concerned about exercising. [edit] TipsTry to exercise at the same time each day so that you make it a routine that will fit naturally into your lifestyle. Experience the feeling after you exercise and lose weight. If you are feeling lazy and are tempted to skip the exercise, try negotiating with yourself. Perhaps exercise for just 10 minutes. Once you start, you may want to continue and do the full routine. If you are a people person, join a gym or exercise club, exercise with friends, or find an exercise buddy. If you are independent and like doing things on your own, consider getting an exercise machine or participate in activities like running. If you are a competitive person, consider working up to races or other competitive sporting events. If you feel that you are too overweight to workout or are embarassed to exercise in public, please give yourself a break! There is absolutely no need to be embarassed about exercising. You do not have to wear skimpy aerobic outfits or tight shorts. Find clothes to exercise in that are comfortable. Force yourself to participate. Once you have done it several times you will realize that you deserve to be there as much as anyone else Try this as a rule of thumb. Quit drinking soda (regular and diet) alltogether. Eat right, and never eat past 7:00pm, not even a snack. Regular aerobic exercise 3 to 5 nights a week and the pounds will start shedding. The more overweight you are the more you will exert your energy, therefore the bigger you are the faster you will shed lbs. It can be difficult to get started with your exercise regime. Healthy Monday is a national non-profit public health campaign that encourages people to use Monday as the day to commit to a healthy habit, such as exercising. If you can t committ this Monday, you have another chance around the corner to get back on track.
Hi There -There is a community for teens on a healthy lifestyle and it has many helpful tools on there such as calorie counters, teen groups to join, exercises, workout programs, and weight loss experts. This site also has other people your age that are asking the same questions and facing the same challenges that you are experiencing.www.sparkteens.comHope this helps!w8losschick
