Getting started with an action plan to exercise and/or get fit is sometimes the biggest hurdle in the entire ‘getting fit’ process. A good idea is to put pen to paper as you work out what your aims are and how you plan to achieve them. This will help to give focus to your plan and help you to commit to it.

Consider your aims for fitness

Believe it or not, but there are many different components to fitness and the type of fitness you aim for is a major part of your action plan, for many the very axis around which their programme revolves. So consider: do you want to build stamina, do you want to improve a certain skill, do you want to get supple, do you want to work on muscular strength, or do you want to improve muscular endurance? Or do you want to cover them all in your fitness regime? This will determine which type of activity will make up the core of your fitness routine.

Consider the available time

The average adult needs around one hour of exercise weekly but you do not have to do this all in one go. Experts in fitness believe 20-minute sessions three times a week is a very good fitness routine. A 20-minute session allows enough time to gain the necessary aerobic benefit of improving circulation and strengthening the heart. But you can do more than this if you wish.

Consider you vs. other people

For some getting fit with a friend or family member can serve as great motivation, especially if it is someone who won’t accept your excuses and encourage you when the going gets tough. Indeed, some people can only exercise if it involves some team sport that includes socialising during and after the game. For others, the exact opposite is true, as company might be the last thing you want as you work and focus on your goals. Consider what would suit your temperament and make this a very important component of planning as you set your goals.

Our Employee Wellbeing Programme (EAP) is available 24 hours a day if you wanted to know more about setting fitness goals.

Sources:
Davidson, Jeff. 1998. The Complete idiot’s Guide to Reaching Your Goals. Alpha Books
Reader’s Digest Good Health Fact Book. 1996. Reader’s Digest
Shields, Andrew. 2008. 365 Way to Get Fit. Collins & Brown