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Having structure can give you something to aim for or a way to track your progress. If you try to get in shape and plan to exercise more, not having a structured plan of action can leave you feeling lost and questioning if you are doing the right thing. You might have a end goal in mind, but without an plan of action you are likely to get lost along the way.
Not to worry, we will go over the steps to creating your own training plan so you can get into shape faster then ever before. There are many pre-made training programs out there but those can be had to stick to. When you create your own plan you are more likely to reach your goals and by choosing workout styles you actually enjoy you are also much more likely to stick with it till the end!
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Step 1. What's your goal?
The first step to creating your own training program is figuring out what your primary goal is. Having one main goal can help you break your training into sections with smaller, more achievable goals. Reaching these smaller goals will keep you motivated to continue. As you workout, every workout should be getting you closer to your goal.
Step 2. Know your limits
To prevent yourself from going on a exercise binge and wearing yourself out, know your limits. Take into account your work and family commitments. What's your nutrition and sleep habits like? Think about the barriers that you've faced before. Knowing your past mistakes and the barriers that stand in your way can help you make realistic plans and avoid making the same mistakes you've made in the past. Be realistic and flexible, if you're not then you might not stick to your training plan.
Step 3. Your workout
This is where we get to determining what types of exercises will make up your training plan. What type of workouts do you plan on doing and what styles do you enjoy? Don't include workouts that you hate. If you want to lose weight but hate running than don't run, add a different type of cardio workout.
The question to ask is what type of workouts will work towards helping you reach your end goal. If you want to build up endurance than cardio will be a large part of your training. If you want to build strong and lean muscles than resistance and strength training will be important. If you goal if to burn fat and lose weight you should include cardio, resistance training, and HIIT workouts in your training plan.
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Since most of you will be looking to tone up or increase your fitness level I would recommend you have 2 days of cardio HIIT training, at least 3 days of bodyweight training, and at least 1 day of a yoga workout. Think about how much time you have to commit and how many days you can commit to working out. Remember to be realistic!
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Step 4. Track your progress
Sit down and schedule your workouts in your calendar to that you know exactly what you need to know and this way you will have a pre-planned time to workout. Now that you have your goal, and your workouts shceduled and planned we can get ready to start.
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Before you start your training program make sure you have a way to measure your progress. Take a front and side "before" photo and write down your hip, waist, and thigh measurements along with your weight. You might want to track how many reps you do or how fast you run. How and what you track should be related to your goal. At the end of every week, review how you did and reflect on your workouts. Make changes to your training plan if you need to! The goal is to be flexible so that we continue to stick to our plan.
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