Tips for getting into a sport you can try
Those of you who have exercised infrequently or for a long time may not know where to start. Whatever your reason for leading a more active life, you shouldn’t immediately engage in high-intensity, strenuous exercise if you haven’t exercised for a long time.
Remember the saying “a little bit later becomes a hill”, right? You can start with light exercises and then gradually increase the intensity. In order not to make a wrong move, consider the following guide to starting a good sport.
When beginning an exercise, the most important step is to establish a routine so that your body adapts to intense physical activity. Here are tips you can do.
1. First, build your motivation
You must first commit to setting goals for the sport you are going to start. Movement motivation with realistic goals and supported by the right movement planning will help you to exercise more regularly. You can write out an activity plan for the next four weeks, starting with physical activity, duration, and ending. This activity plan explains what you should be doing. You also analyze the progress of your training performance after starting the exercise.
2. Start daily activities that move the body
If you’re having trouble or don’t know where to start, talk to your doctor or nurse about your exercise plans. After that, start adding more daily activities. Before you start the actual workout, you can do the following daily physical activities.
- Take the stairs instead of taking the elevator or escalator.
- Stop at a bus stop or terminal that is a bit far from the office so you can walk further.
- Take a walk before and after lunch or just go up and down the stairs.
Instead of just watching TV all day, you can do some physical activity on vacation, like walking in the park, swimming, or just jogging in the morning. Sometimes small changes in your daily routine can help you make your workouts more active.
Instead of heading straight to the gym or just going on the treadmill, try going for a leisurely walk or jogging around the neighborhood first. Gradually, the body will also adapt to the activities carried out. After that, you can move on to more vigorous exercise like weight lifting or even Freeletics.
3. Do mobility sports
When you return to exercise after a long time, you need to stretch so that the body’s muscles become more flexible and blood circulation becomes more even. Flexibility exercises are useful as an initial stretch. It is also important to improve overall physical performance and reduce the risk of sports injuries.
First, try to do stretching movements like lunges every time you start exercising. In addition, you can choose yoga for beginners. You can start the exercise with 10-15 stretching movements with a duration of 1 minute per movement.
4. Focus on one sport first
First, focus on the type or type of movement that you want to perform. Don’t be discouraged by goals you can’t achieve. As your fitness improves, you will be able to successfully perform various movements that you were previously unable to do. After that, you can do different types of exercises and different movements. You can add weight training and aerobics. Exercise is good for getting more benefits while reducing boredom.
5. Learn from the previous session
Get every move right, no matter how simple it is.
Think about which muscles contract, which areas hurt, and how comfortable you feel when you perform the movement correctly. This is useful to avoid movement errors that can affect health.
6. Do a routine for a month
It’s okay to set long-term goals at the beginning of your workout. However, try to fulfill this obligation for at least a month first. You can divide the goal into smaller parts. This is useful so you don’t get overwhelmed during it. Once you can stick to this routine for a month, continue with the same goal.
7. Do moderate-intensity cardio
After doing flexibility exercises, you can try cardio. Try light cardio, like walking, jogging, or biking.
You can rest for 10 minutes in the middle of the session and then start again. Over time you get used to it and you can do it for 20-30 minutes without a break.
8. Train muscle strength
After you’ve started exercising and become accustomed to aerobics and flexibility training, it’s time to start working on the muscles in the body that are rarely actively used.
Yes, you can do that with muscle strength training. You can try squats, lunges, hamstring curls, or any other exercise that engages all the muscles in your body. You can also practice the following sports if you have adequate facilities.
Total Body TRX Workout: Perform athletic moves with the help of a rubber band attached to the ceiling
9 Minute Power Plank Workout: A variety of plank moves performed for 9 minutes.
In addition to your main workout, do strength and flexibility training two to three days a week.
9. Invite friends or family to join the sport
Sometimes it is exhausting and depressing to exercise alone. To keep the spirit alive since the beginning of the sport, invite friends or family members to train together. Having a partner to train with allows you to be more enthusiastic and trigger a competitive nature within yourself so you don’t lose.
If it is difficult to cope on your own, use the services of a trainer or personal trainer who can help you perform regular exercises. Get rid of the thought of a scale. You need to remember that it’s not about how bad your scale is, it’s about taking care of your overall health.
How Long Should You Exercise?
It’s important to start with an exercise, but if you do it for the right amount of time, you can get the most out of it. According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), you are advised to do this physical activity with moderate activity for 150 minutes per week.
However, if you want to exercise vigorously, you can only do it for 75 minutes a week. During exercise time, you don’t have to force yourself to exercise continuously. You can try to break up multiple sessions in one day. Below are the American Heart Association (AHA) recommended duration and intensity of exercise. 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, or just 30 minutes per day, like cycling or brisk walking. Vigorous exercise for just 25 minutes a day, like swimming, Muaythai, or even playing soccer. Deciding to return to exercise after a long break may not be as easy as you might think, but it’s not impossible either.
The key is commitment, a routine, and no need to force yourself into strenuous exercise right away.