Tara Zimliki, fitness expert, 19 time marathoner, local mom and founder of Tara’s Boot Camp in Flemington and Branchburg, New Jersey, teaches people every day how to maintain healthier lifestyles and lose weight, no matter what their age or fitness level. She has taught people how to fit fitness into their busy lives. “By making healthy food choices and doing quality workouts weight loss will come much easier than you expect and you will learn to balance all aspects of your life” says Tara. She has learned what works to lose pounds and kick them to the curb for good in a time efficient way!
The number one excuse for people not exercising is lack of time. However this seems to be only an excuse as studies show that people that regularly exercise are just as busy with work, family and friends. Does this mean people are just making excuses to avoid exercise? Not necessarily some people have not been taught the best way to prioritize their busy lives to fit fitness in.
Try these strategies to lose weight, get fit and balance your busy schedule:
Prioritize your life
We are all busy but we always fit our priorities into our schedule. Access your weekly tasks and activities. Maybe you can give up your book club meetings or swap with your partner so they can take your kids to their evening activities twice a week. You may find that waking up an hour earlier will be the best and only way you will be able to get your fitness in. Assess your priorities and put your personal health and fitness at the top of the list. If you are unhealthy you would be unable to perform all your priorities so be proactive.
Organize for Time Efficiency
Set out a goal to organize your home. Make sure all your paperwork is organized. Organize your closet and drawers. If you spent the 20 minutes it takes you to get ready into your workout you will have managed to become more efficient with your time. Preplanned meals can occur on Sunday so you will be set for the week. If you don’t have time for fitness, make time!
Create a weekly schedule
Carve out time of 3-5 days a week with 40 minutes to one hour of fitness to burn calories, get healthy and get in fat burning mode. If you find it difficult sparing one hour of your time then break up your workout into two 20 minute workouts. Write this time into your schedule as non negotiable time just like brushing your teeth or taking a shower. If you achieve this mentality you will stay focused.
Focus on Quality not Quantity
Most exercise programs can be enhanced to focus on higher calorie burning, more intense fitness. The level of intensity is far more important than the amount of time you are exercising. If you find yourself walking for an hour and barely breaking a sweat step up your workout to a speed walk with some hills. You can also focus on interval training and alternate running and walking. Whatever fitness you choose just make sure to focus on high quality workouts to gain the maximum health and weight loss benefits.
Little Changes Can Make a Big Difference
By making little changes in your daily choices you can make a big difference in your health. First make sure drink 8-12 glasses of water. This will help eliminate bloating, suppress your appetite and increase metabolic functioning. Note: Water consumption should be increased in hot climates or during vigorous exercise.
Bonus Tip: Drink cold water throughout the day, research shows by drinking 8 glasses of cold water a day you will burn an additional 70 calories (because your body has to use energy to heat up water throughout day).
Second, eat all your Greens. Mom’s advice holds up well with plenty of benefits. By eating raw vegetables you will be more satisfied as there is plenty of fiber and water and you will be eating to assist in preventative health of cancers and other illnesses. This will also help you to eat less calories in the day by keeping you full and push you along to reach your weight loss goals.
Bonus Tip: Make vegetables the main focus of every meal so you will not forget to eat the broccoli left in the steamer. By making vegetables the star of every meal and you find getting 5 servings in daily is a cinch!
Lastly, remember to stay Positive. Research shows that by maintaining a positive attitude you are more likely to reach and surpass all goals (and this includes weight loss). If you are watching the scale creep down pound by pound be proud of your accomplishment not dwell on where you want to be. By keeping your chin up and staying positive you will stay on the healthy road to weight loss success!
Bonus Tip: Write a positive note at the start of every day on a post it on your computer (or somewhere you will look at during the day) and be reminding all day of your goals. An example is “Love yourself today and treat your body with this love today by nourishing it with fruits, vegetables and fitness. You deserve it!”
Preventing Diabetes
Moderate activity has been shown to lower the risk of developing diabetes even in women of normal weight. The 2007 Diabetes Journal discussed a 16 year study of 68,907 initially healthy female nurses found that those who were sedentary had twice the risk of developing diabetes, and those who were both sedentary and obese had 16 times the risk when compared with normal-weight women who were active.
According to a 2002 New England Journal of Medicine study that randomly assigned 3,234 prediabetic men and women to modest physical activity (at least 150 minutes a week) found exercise to be more effective than the drug metformin at preventing full-blown diabetes.
Preventing Cardiovascular Disease
According to a New York Times 2010 article, “Aerobic exercise has long been established as an invaluable protector of the heart and blood vessels. It increases the heart’s ability to work hard, lowers blood pressure and raises blood levels of HDL–cholesterol, which acts as a cleansing agent in arteries. As a result, active individuals of all ages have lower rates of heart attacks and strokes. Though early studies were conducted only among men, in a 2002 study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. JoAnn E. Manson and colleagues found that among 73,743 initially healthy women ages 50 to 79, walking briskly for 30 minutes a day five days a week, as well as more vigorous exercise, substantially reduced the risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular events”.
According to The Journal of the American Medical Association, women who walked at least one hour a day were 40 percent less likely to suffer a stroke than women who walked less than an hour a week.
If the research based evidence does not motivate you what’s more people that exercise achieve more in all aspects of their live in both work and family life. With balance you will be more successful. Find balance in your life and include fitness in your repertoire. Have a balanced, happy, healthy and fit new year!