Everybody knows that exercise benefits both the body and the mind, but it can feel so intimidating to head to a gym and workout in front of other people. It is especially intimidating if you are a gym newbie and you have never gone before. It doesn’t matter whether you are new to fitness or you like fitness but you haven’t worked out in a while.

You know that you’ll need to buy some new workout clothes, a new bag for the gym, you can even buy sneakers online ready to go and you are good at dashing so now what? Getting back into exercise takes some time and it takes some confidence, so don’t be afraid because in this article we’re going to talk about kicking off a new exercise routine that will fit your needs.

• Make a list. What is it that you like to do to exercise? Do you prefer to dance or do you prefer to run? Are you averse to using weights or would you prefer to use your own body weight to help you? These are questions that you should be asking yourself because if you’re going to head out to exercise you should be paying for something you enjoy. It’s not supposed to feel like a chore to move your body and feel good about yourself. You should also make a list of the activities that you don’t like as much as the ones that you do, because if you don’t like to be in a studio with strangers cycling as fast as you can, then you need to consider that a cycling class probably won’t be the thing for you. You might be surprised with how much you like something new, so make sure that you look at the activities as a whole and then choose something that you want.
• Start slowly. You really do have to be realistic about your exercise goals. You are not going to be able to bench 100 kilos at a time at first, nor are you going to necessarily be able to keep up with the Zumba class if you’ve never been to one before. Don’t leap into the advanced classes if you haven’t been to the gym for awhile, so stick to the beginner friendly workouts two to three times a week. Remember, pushing past your limits is going to send you into an injury and that’s something that’s going to put you back off of exercise for a long time. Don’t worry if it takes time to get to where you want to be, because you can work your way up and add some more intense workouts as time goes on.
• Get into the groove with it. Making time for exercise is not easy. If you have work and you have kids and you have a life, the last thing you want to do is fill your spare time with anything other than rest and scrolling through Netflix. You can keep it chilled out by adding just a couple of workouts to your week and then decide what time would work best for you. This will help you to make a healthy habit out of it, and it doesn’t have to be a major time commitment. Starting off with a 20 minute walk on your lunch break can be your very beginning step back into exercise. Remember it doesn’t have to be a gym session with a personal trainer that looks like they’ve been on steroids!
• Get to know your fitness levels. Before you head out into the fitness world you need to figure out just how fit you actually are. You have to consider any health conditions and injuries you might have, lifestyle factors that create a new activity plan for you that will fit your life. Remember we all have to start somewhere so you can increase your strength and stamina overtime and just stick to your suspected fitness level, not the one where you expect to be.

• Make sure that you have a good cheer squad. It can be very hard to start a new exercise routine by yourself, but if you’ve got people around you who make you feel good about it then make sure that you have a crew around you to workout with. It could often be much more fun to workout with a friend or some family than it is to go alone. You can meet up for walks and hikes or even go to exercise classes as a group. There’s a very good chance that at least one of your friends or family members will want to go with you and get more active as well.
• Do it because you want to. Don’t go to the gym because Instagram is telling you to, do it because it will help you to improve your health and if you have weight you’d like to lose it will help that too. Physical gym work will help you to improve your mental health, your mood and your confidence and it’s also going to have a physical impact in a positive way. This will help you with your heart health with lowering your cholesterol and with reducing your cancer risk.
• Be realistic. It’s not going to be 100% easy to exercise if you haven’t done it for a while. Being realistic and gentle with yourself is just plain intelligent. Even though working out might feel quite uncomfortable it should never be hugely painful. Try to remember that it can also be very rewarding. You want to feel strong and empowered, not injured and hurt.
• Give yourself some rewards. It takes time to get into the habit of working out, so reward yourself along the way. Whenever you hit new personal bests or new goals, make sure that you take yourself out shopping and treat yourself to something nice. You could also treat yourself to a new trainer or a personal training session or two. The idea is to give yourself something to look forward to.

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