Always Make Time to Sweat


Sticking to Basic Habits

 

By Tom Bonanti

  

 

Maintaining a fitness lifestyle can be a daunting endeavor even for the most dedicated enthusiast. Adhering to a schedule of healthy eating, keeping up with regular medical check-ups, and getting enough sleep are simply a beginning. Sticking to these basic habits along with meeting the demands of work and a social life can be overwhelming. So how do you squeeze in a regular exercise program on top of everything else?

I say, you make time for the things that are important to you and there is nothing more vital than your own good health. Working out with weights and doing regular cardio, if you do them correctly, are draining and time consuming. Yet their benefits are infinite. You’ll not only look better, you’ll live longer and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in health care expenses. Doubt me? Just get sick, I mean really sick, like a week in the hospital and you’ll see what I mean.

Sometimes I get particularly annoyed looking around at the guys who put staying healthy and working out on the back burner. Aside from work and loved ones, these should be top priorities for everyone. Yet pampered expensive cruises and vacations, wild weekend partying and hours on Grindr and Scruff seem to take precedence as waistlines widen and butts grow lazier. Sure, there are short cuts available like plastic surgery and steroids, but these are quick patchy fixes compared to what discipline and hard work can achieve. A beautiful body, like any work of art, is the result of sacrifice, dedication and lots of labor.

Why not start today and design a winning strategy to get and stay healthy, fit and fabulous. Consider these three factors as you ponder a program: schedule flexibility, workout simplification, and diversification.

Schedule flexibility is crucial in these times of unplanned events, chaotic traffic and even more chaotic work schedules. A sharp guy begins the day with a plan so that he can accomplish everything that is important. Nothing is more important than your workout, so schedule a time and try to stick with it. Join a gym that is convenient, preferably located between work and home. Most gyms have extended hours, so if you get derailed don’t get flustered. Your body responds to exercise whether it’s 7 a.m. or 7 p.m. Make it happen.

Workout simplification and diversification allow you to train regardless of what you had planned and where you had planned it. If you were set to hit the weight room at 6 p.m., but had to work late, then pump-up at home. A few weights are inexpensive, but they can make a big difference on days you don’t get to the gym. And if you’re too tired to lift, then do some push-ups, crunches and stretches. Bike around the neighborhood. Take a swim. Do something, anything. Just put those muscles in motion, burn some calories and get that heart pumping!

Of all the investments you’ll make, a commitment to regular exercise will reap the greatest benefits. It’s spring, a time for new beginnings. Put down that phone, get off that lounge chair or bar stool, toss away the drink and schedule regular time at the gym. Life is too short to miss out on being all that you can be.

 

TOM BONANTI IS A CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER AND
OWNER OF PUMP’N INC GYM AT 1271 NE 9TH AVENUE
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33304, www.pumpnincgym.com.