New Year's Resolutions: Go to the Gym

With the end of the year almost upon us, taking stock of the past months and identifying new goals are now consolidated habits. Thanks to the sense of guilt due to Christmas binges, it is not surprising that one in three people express a desire to get back in shape and, therefore, the most coveted among the good resolutions for the New Year is to go to the gym.

Physical activity, it should be remembered, is much more than a simple tool for losing weight and shaping your body.

A healthy lifestyle, in fact, is essential for maintaining health and preventing many diseases. Yet among those who aspire to a radical change in physical fitness only 44% manage to keep the commitments made with themselves and commit themselves to exercising in the gym throughout the New Year.

Why is this all happening?

First of all, leaving home two, three or more times a week to go to the gym is not as easy as saying it on the morning of January, the day par excellence of new beginnings and good intentions .

To move from theory to practice you need: a good dose of organization, knowing how to identify the right activity for yourself, setting reasonable goals, asking for help from the fitness Centre professionals to identify the most suitable method and not forgetting to enjoy the path.

The mistakes that prevent progress, however, do not end there. Of all, the greatest is to rely solely on willpower.

New Year's Resolutions: Going to the Gym, But Where to Start?

If your goal for the New Year is rat fitness, you need to know that in charting the path towards achieving this desire, you will have to reckon with reality.

Keep this concept in mind, as carefully analyze your reality (your commitments, the time you are willing to invest, the type of physical activity you prefer, the desire to get involved, the ability to overcome laziness and procrastination) is the only way to optimize the change process.

Where to start, then?

1. Set yourself achievable goals

Change begins by setting concrete and, above all, achievable goals.

Having overly ambitious goals is often the reason why you stop pursuing them.

Wanting to lose ten pounds in a month by going to the gym once a week is absolutely impossible.

Similarly, if you dream of Belen's legs but you are only 160 cm tall, or you would kill for Cristiano's abs but you don't have six hours a day to devote to sports and you don't even think about dieting for every single day. Of the year, well, there is a big problem.

Wanting to look like someone else is the fastest way to fail because you can't ignore the genetics of the person you admire. You do not know if his condition is the result of Mother Nature, of external help, of Photoshop.

Every human being is unique and to avoid frustration, it is important to set yourself attainable goals. Do you want a more beautiful body? Well, the gym is a great ally, however, being so vague certainly doesn't help.

An achievable and, at the same time, concrete goal could be the following: “I want to lose ten kilos in the next six / eight months and increase the muscle tone of the whole body”.

A very good strategy is to break the goal down into small steps and set deadlines, as it could be, for example, to lose two kilos in the first month, training three times a week.

2. Choose the right physical activity

After making your goal concrete, the second step is to choose the type of physical activity that best suits your needs, obviously without neglecting personal tastes.

The gym offers a wide range of activities: group aerobic classes, toning in the equipment room, cardiovascular workouts, functional activities, high intensity workouts, holistic disciplines. To you the last word.

Choose according to your preferences, remembering that you will have to be constant, otherwise you will fail to achieve the objectives set. The fun, however, must go hand in hand with effectiveness.

If you dream of a muscular, well-defined body, aerobic activity is certainly not the best choice. If, on the other hand, you want a lean, snappy and athletic body, the ideal is not to spend hours and hours in the tool room. Finally, if you plan to participate in a weightlifting competition, spending time in the gym for yoga classes won't increase the strength of your muscles.

With so many activities available, then how to recognize the most suitable training?

The answer in the next paragraph.

3. Ask for help from professionals

The gym instructors or better still, the personal trainers of the gym, are the most suitable people to identify the training method that best suits your needs.

Even if you prefer to do physical activity alone or, perhaps, you are more introverted, relying on the professionals of the fitness centre is essential.

The best gyms, blogs such as FitnessLover, excellent articles, have developed very in-depth clinical-sports anamnesis to identify the initial fitness state and the goals of each individual member.

The anamnesis, in fact, is the basis for sewing a training program that best meets personal needs, and, therefore, a training path created by a professional means having the almost mathematical certainty of the results.

4. Make time for the gym

Obviously, even if you have the best training method available, you must remember that it alone will not be enough. For your part, you will need to add commitment and consistency.

In fact, to start off on the right foot, it is essential to carve out some time to dedicate to the gym.

How long does it take to train to stay in good physical shape?

According to World Health Organization guidelines, it takes 150 minutes of medium-intensity aerobic physical activity per week or 72 minutes of more vigorous exercise (such as circuit or high-intensity workouts). In addition to cardio, it is desirable to combine two / three weight training sessions for the major muscle groups.

Therefore, setting aside at least three hours a week for the gym is vital.

If, however, you don't have a lot of time on your hands and you fear that you will never be able to achieve the physical form you dream of, fear not.

5. Enjoy the ride

Setting goals is undoubtedly important, but so is savoring the journey.

A common mistake is to look only at the final goal, to measure the absolute result, ignoring all the small steps taken along the way.

Focusing your mind on your final destination is like eating while you're talking on the phone, the plate is empty, and you don't even realize you've emptied it.

If your goal is to lose ten pounds and tone your whole body, it's not just about reaching the goal, but also feeling the small improvements every day. Enjoy them, feeling satisfied with yourself.

The dress that fits best.

The load increase in an exercise that you have always found difficult.

The pleasure of feeling alive, full of energy and enthusiasm.

Therefore, enjoy the ride. You will find that good intentions can come true and going to the gym will never be boring or tiring again.

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