Exercise Tips

Doing Push-ups

I’ve been following Rebecca J. Clark’s 30 Day Weight Loss Challenge on Facebook, and it is loaded with fabulous exercise tips.

Did you know that after just two weeks of being a couch potato you could lose 25 percent of your strength? That made me sit up and take notice, especially with winter on the way.

Exercise Tips
Elbow Planks

Rebecca said doing this circuit workout one to two times a week can maintain your strength.

Sit and stand from chair—20x
Jumping jacks—20-50x (if you can do 50, do 50)
Push-ups against the wall/counter/floor—15x
Step ups (up, up/down, down on step)—20 each leg
Elbow planks—hold as long as you can up to a minute

Another great fitness suggestion:

Use a hard back book and balance it on your head, then walk around for 30 seconds to a minute. Also try balancing while you’re sitting. It’s good for posture and your looks, energy levels, and back, shoulders and neck, Rebecca says.

Balancing a book on my head
Why Do You Exercise?

Diane Carbonell’s blog Is Exercise Enough? intrigued me. She asked the question, “Why do you exercise?”

In the past, I would have said to maintain my weight, but that’s not the only reason anymore. While it certainly has the added benefit of maintaining my weight and toning my body, my main motivation is that I feel better when I exercise—mentally and physically.

Diane also asked if it’s possible to lose weight without exercising, and while I think it’s possible, my goal is a lifestyle change, not just losing weight. For me, a healthy lifestyle includes exercise, diet, and managing stress. And exercise fills the bill on all counts.

Weight Loss Quest

When I started my weight loss quest, it was all about losing weight. But as the weight came off, it also became about changing my lifestyle, which also resulted in not only looking forward to working out, but missing it when I can’t exercise.

The wonderful thing about exercise is, it’s like Netflix. There are literally thousands of choices—dancing, skiing, walking, biking, the list goes on and on. All

Hiking Smith Rock in Oregon

you have to do is pick what you like and get moving.

What’s your favorite exercise?

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