You are going to work today. Really.\u00a0 You walk over to your treadmill and unload it.\u00a0 You hang up all the\u00a0 clothes and move the pile of papers to another place.\u00a0 By now you have used up most of your exercise time and the phone is ringing, so you decide to start your exercise routine tomorrow.<\/p>\n
The next day you actually start but spend the first five minutes wondering how long you have to do it. You decide that ten minutes is enough.\u00a0 You stop at seven minutes.<\/p>\n
Sound familiar?\u00a0 I think most of us have that experience.\u00a0 We buy equipment, use it enthusiastically for a day or two — then life gets in the way and our workout machines become expensive clothes racks.\u00a0 An honest salesman once told me that the type of treadmills most companies sell have a very low-performing motor, because no one uses them long enough to make the poor performance noticeable.<\/p>\n
Are you doomed to failure?\u00a0 No, you just need to use part two of our \u201cPlan to Win\u201d program.<\/p>\n
Plan out exactly what your exercise routine will be — ahead of time.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Here\u2019s how:<\/p>\n Make it reasonable<\/em>.\u00a0 \u00a0 The trouble with overly ambitious plans is that you can\u2019t keep them up.\u00a0 You will be sore the next day and even more sore the day after. It\u2019s a fact. People won\u2019t do painful things for the long haul.\u00a0 So make a plan that is doable for you. \u00a0That\u2019s why the step program is a winner for life.\u00a0 Start where you are and add to your average step total each week.\u00a0 You may not be able to go to the gym every day, but you can take steps. \u00a0 Dig out your pedometer from the junk drawer and put it on.\u00a0 How many steps are you going to take each day this week?\u00a0 Write it down.<\/p>\n Make it enjoyable.<\/em>\u00a0 Look for active things you enjoy and set a time to do it.\u00a0 Why not make a date to go bowling?\u00a0 Decide on some time to work in your garden or flower bed. \u00a0 Arrange to go for a walk with a friend. If you schedule some fun, active things into your week, it will happen.\u00a0 If you have a vague idea that you will exercise this week — it probably won\u2019t.<\/p>\n Make it fit your schedule<\/em>.\u00a0 If you have only an hour to get ready for work in the morning, the chances of an early morning workout are slim.\u00a0 (And that\u2019s probably the only thing that is slim!)\u00a0 Write out your daily schedule. Where will some exercise fit?\u00a0 Do you need to get up earlier?\u00a0 Work out at lunch?\u00a0 Add exercises to your daily routine. (More on that in a series coming up soon.) \u00a0How much time will spend exercising? Figure it out ahead of time and prepare for it — and you can do it.<\/p>\n Plan for interruptions<\/em>.\u00a0 The phone always rings when I start to workout.\u00a0 There are two options here. Either let the caller leave a message, or talk through your workout.\u00a0 I have had many a pleasant chat while I am busy adding steps to my daily total.\u00a0 I can also talk easily on my whole body vibration machine.\u00a0 Some things, though, require concentration.\u00a0 Plan on how you will handle the unexpected.\u00a0 Young moms may want to set out cups of water, take toddlers to the bathroom, and settle the kids with puzzles or blocks so that those most common interruptions can be avoided.<\/p>\n The biggest factor in success for your workout is to plan what you will do, when you will do it, and how you will handle the distractions.\u00a0 Then do it!<\/p>\n Eating to live and living for Christ,<\/p>\n Susan Jordan Brown<\/p>\n You are going to work today. Really.\u00a0 You walk over to your treadmill and unload it.\u00a0 You hang up all the\u00a0 clothes and move the pile of papers to another place.\u00a0 By now you have used up most of your exercise time and the phone is ringing, so you decide to start your exercise routine…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":423,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,26],"tags":[13,499,177,65],"class_list":["post-1687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-exercise-2","category-helpful-tips","tag-exercise","tag-plan-to-win","tag-schedule","tag-workouts"],"yoast_head":"\n