You decided to get started in the new year on an excercise program in earnest? OK!

When embarking on any strenuous excercise program, if you have not participated in one before, you may want to get a physical so you have medical clearance to do so. This is especially important. If you are otherwise healthy and without pain or discomfort, this program is gentle enough for just about anyone to start it, but its always best to be sure. The simplest way to start moving is to find an activity you think you will enjoy, so you will be more likely to stick with it. For everyone over the age of two with normal use of the legs, walking is likely to be the very best place to start, as it is accesible to everyone.Be sure you have comfortable footwear that provides adequate support to arches and ankles.

The first thing to add to an excercis program is aerobic activity such as walking,biking,roller-blading,snowshoeing,swimming, or hiking. These activities are very low-impact, meaning they are fairly gentle on the body(unless you fall down) and participants in general tend to experience fewer joint injuries from repetive pounding than may be the case in activities such as high-impact aerobics, stair-climbing or running. All of these cardiovascular(utilizing heart and lungs) activities require that your body perform a repitive activity for somewhat extended periods of time.

When starting out, be realistic about what you try to do.If you enjoy shopping an can regulary go to the mall and stand for a few hours at a time, then you may find that adding several brisk 30-45 minute "power walks" is appropriate. If you spend most of your days sitting and get winded going up a single set of stairs, or you have a lot of extra body weight that makes any exertion a challenge, you may decide that starting with a 12-15 minute walk more frequently during the week is a good target. And if you walk but like to move to jogging, try alternating between 2-5 minutes of jogging and 1-2 minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

The next time you work out, add a minute to each jogging section until you can do three cycles x (jog 5 minutes + walk 1 minute); the very next workout, see if you can slowly jog the entire 20 minutes. Always include a gentle warm up(walk or easy jog) for a few minutes an then increase the pace.This will give you a chance to see how your feet, caqlves, hips,back, and the rest of you are feeling.

As a rule of thumb, try to increase weekly mileage no more than 10% at any time. If your goal is to jog 2 miles 3 times a week(6 miles) one week, and 3 miles 4 times a week the next(12 miles, double the mileage from the previous week) youre setting yourself up for overuse injuries including achilles problems,plantar fasciitis,stress fractures, or knee discomfort, to mention just a few. Keep the following in mind:

• 1.)stick to your excercise schedule and dont let anything interfere with your workouts
• 2.)Listen to your body. If youre sick, you may need to take a day or more off.
• 3.)Pay attention to what area of the body feel stiff, sore or tight. If you spend a lot of time sitting, the stretches we suggest below will be perfect for you.
• 4.)Gradually build to the point whre you can sustain your aerobic activity for at least 30 minutes 3-5 times a week, and maintain that habit for at least a month.
• 5.)After two weeks of consistent aerobic activity, add a few bodyweight resistance strength excercises to increase lean muscles mass and help burn off unwanted body fat

  Strength training

  Include strenght training every other day. You can put strenght training on the same days as aerobic training, or on alternate days. Keep 48 hours between strenght workouts, and start with light weights until you can comfortably complete 1-3 sets of 10-15 repititions each.Include a warmup(5 minutes of walking) before doing your streches and strenght activities.

  Standing Stationary lunges

  Works: Whole leg(quadriceps,glutes,hamstrings).Position feet wide apart, a light weight in each hand held at your waist.Lower the torso until both knees are at right angles,keeping your torso vertical, but do not let back knee touch the floor, and keep front knee behind shoelaces. Press through the heel of the front foot to engage the glutes(buttocks). Youll feel a good stretch in the hip and quadriceps of the leg that is back behind you. Exhale as you press away from the floor.

  Bridges

  Works: Legs,lower back(hamstrings,glutes, erector spinaes).Lie flat on your back with feet flat on the floor directly under your knees, and raise your hips as you exhale. Goal is to form a straight line from your knees down to the shoulders when youre at the top of the motion.Exhale as you lift, inhale and lower butt to the floor but dont let it touch. Perform under control and really squeeze the hips at the top. Prevent the back from hyperextending(over-arching)

  Iron Cross Superman

  Works: Lower Back (erector spinaes, hamstrings). Lie flat on your stomach, with arms out to your sides as though your torso forms a cross. With thumbs up to ceiling, exhale as you raise your torso and legs up several inches off the floor, squeezing your shoulder blades together and squeezing glutes. Control as your lower slowly to the floor. Keep a neutral neck(stay looking down on the floor) and exhale as you raise off the floor.

  Modified Pushups

  Works: Chest and Arms(pectorals, deltoids, triceps). For many people this might be the most difficult excercise, so were introducing two easier modification from the toes or knee-on-the-floor versions: the wall pushup and the step pushup. The wall pushup especially appropriate for senior women, anyone with a high percentage of bodyfat, or anyone who lacks strenght in the upper body. Stand with your feet 1-2 feet awax from the wall, just far enough so that when your arms extended straight, you can place your palm flat on the wall. Slowly bend your elbows ao that your body approaches the wall, exhale as you straighten the arms and push back. Once that is easy,place your hands on a bench or low step, knees on a floor, and repeat the excercise, always keeping abs tight so the back does not sway as you dip your nose to the wall or step. 1 arm-row

  Works: Back and Arms(lats,deltoids,biceps).Place your left knee and hand on a bench, step or couch, and hold a gallon jug or light dumbbell in your right hand. Think of your back as a table, and try to hold your torso still.Reach down to the floor and slightly forward with your right hand, then pull the weight up along a slight diagonal as though youre pulling the weight to your hip. Keep the elbow in close to the body.Repeat to the other side for the same number of repititions and sets.

  Triceps Kickbacks

  Works: Arms(triceps). Start in the end(top) position as for the 1-arm row, but use a lighter weight than you used on the rows. keep the upper arm tight to the ribs and parallel to the ground, and back nice and flat. Exhale and extend the lower arm until the entire arm is parallel to the floor, then slowly let the forearm return to the starting position. Be sure to relax your grip on the weight.Repeat other side.

  Standing Shoulder Presses

  Works: Shoulders(deltoids, triceps,abdominals)Take a seat and press the shoulder.Youll get more work from this abdominals and lower back if you perform this standing.Hold a dumbbell in each hand, keep abdominals tight to support the back, and exhale as you press the weight straight up over your head. Imagine drawing the letter A with your hands, so the arms come wide in front of the shoulders, and narrow above you; avoid clincking the weights together over your head.

  Biceps Curls

  Works: Arms(biceps). Stand with feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, a dumbbell in each hand or ankle weight strapped to each wrist. Keep palms facing the midline of your body(i.e. neutral position)throughout. Keep the elbows back against your body as you lift the weight up to your shoulders. Do not let the elbows come forward or the shoulders will do more of the work. Inhale as you lower the weight, exhale as you lift.

  Torso Curls

  Works: Abdominals Lie on your back, feet flat on the floor and hands either across the chest(on opposites shoulders)or behind the head. Initiate the movement by pressing the small of the back into the floor, then slowly curl the head and shoulders up off the floor on an exhale, and lift as high as comfortable.Return to the floor. Keep the movement smooth and controlled and as your increase your strenght, try adding a pause at the top or hold a weight at your chest or behind your head.

  Remember, as with any program, once your body has adapted to it(in about 4-8 weeks for new excercisers)and you feel like youre "stuck", maybee you have to change something in your program. With consistent effort you should see progress in as little as a month.