THE FAT BLOCKER EXERCISE PROGRAM: THE ELEMENTS OF A GOOD EXERCISE PROGRAM
Probably the single most important factor in a successful exercise program is identifying the kind of activity that you’ll actually do. Joining a fancy gym or purchasing all the latest running gear isn’t going to do anything for you if you give up after 3 weeks and go back to being a couch potato. So, first find something that you love.
Now, of course, here’s the problem: Many of us simply don’t enjoy any form of exercise. Fine, if that’s you, you’ll have trouble with reaching an optimum exercise level. But, remember, it doesn’t matter. You will still lose weight and improve your health as long as you do a little more exercise than you did before.
On the other hand, many people who say they hate to exercise are casting their net too narrowly. Do you hate to ski, bicycle, run around playing touch football with your 10-year-old, play tag with your grandchildren or squash with a friend? Do you really hate walking briskly on the beach at sunset? Do you . . . well, you get the idea. Any of these activities, and dozens more, are an excellent way to reach the ideal training objective of at least half an hour a day, 4 days a week.
A 37-year-old patient of mine named Jeannine told me that
she had always been enamored of the ballet, even as a little girl. But it wasn’t until the age of 20 that she took her first lesson. “That first year of ballet lessons was hard. Even though I went to class 3 times a week, I always felt like such a klutz. I couldn’t do anything and everything hurt.” But one day, after about a year, the teacher asked Jeannine to demonstrate a certain step to a new student. “I was so shocked. I thought, ‘She thinks I can do this!’ ” After that, Jeannine was asked to join the intermediate ballet class. Today she has 17 years’ worth of ballet classes under her belt, and although she will never be a professional dancer, she has reaped tremendous rewards from her effort. She has the strong, firm body and the good health of someone 15 years her junior. She thinks of ballet class as “taking a break from the world.”
“Ballet has been so wonderful for me, physically, mentally, and even spiritually. And it doesn’t even feel like exercising. I spend so much time focusing on the artistic side of it, on doing a step perfectly and beautifully, that I don’t even think about the fact that I’m moving my muscles.” Jeannine plans to dance for the rest of her life. “I just can’t imagine giving it up,” she says.
Jeannine found the key to lifelong fitness: She fell in love with a form of exercise. She had to work at it, especially in the beginning, and she took a bit of a risk by starting that quickly. She might have given up before she ever really got going—beginning a bit more slowly would have worked just as well and wouldn’t have been as tough. But with perseverance she overcame her temporary stumbling block. And so can you.
Go to the gym, if that’s what you think you’ll enjoy. But if not, look for something else. Perhaps you’d enjoy country and western dancing. Try it once. Or maybe you’ll get an idea by watching the sports channels, reading fitness magazines, or talking to your friends. With luck, you’ll find an activity you love. It may be as common as jogging or as exciting as fencing, as beautiful as ballet or as warlike as karate. Or you may decide to indulge in a variety of different exercises: a tennis game on Monday, a brisk walk on Tuesday, a day off on Wednesday, chopping wood on Thursday, a workout at the gym on Friday, and romping with the kids on the weekend. There, that’s more exercise than you need!
Whatever you choose, if you decide to try for a full exercise program there are 3 things that need to be figured into your program: frequency, intensity, and time.
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