My New Goal For The Summer

[Drew Espinosa]

To begin, I have never been an "active" child. Playing outdoors? Enjoying gym class? An amazing athlete? Ha! I read a good book indoors. I despised gym class (especially when puberty hit). Lastly, I was never even close to being an athletic person. 

 

Now I am not facing any serious health risks, like morbid obesity, but I nevertheless not in shape. I want to change that, so for this summer, I have set myself a goal to exercise and be more active. Hopefully by summer's end, I will enjoy this lifestyle enough to continue when the next semester of college begins.

 

 

 

Well, I know the general things to do like jogging, but I need advice on what to do specifically. Your own experiences, activities, etc are most welcome.

 

note: I am not seeking to add muscle mass, but I want to lose some weight and tone up.

 

edit: TetRefine pointed out that toning up does add muscle mass, so I crossed out the first part.

Edited May 18, 2015 by Drew Espinosa

[Kitt]

Start by walking! Pick interesting places with pretty things to look at. Rainy day? Hit the mall and look into every shop on each side of every isle. We have walking trails in every park and along an old barge canal here. The beaches have boardwalks and paved walks. and starting about this time of the year eye candy too. Several old rail beds here have also been converted to walking paths. I can walk every day for more than a month and not do the same trail twice. Sometimes I need to drive to the walk, but that's worth it for the variety.

[Cia]

Swimming! It's an all over exercise and a great time to start since so many pools or natural swimming places are open. I'm looking forward to finally, after years, being able to get on a bike again too. Those are both good low-impact alternatives to walking and/or jogging. Look for little ways to work in muscle exercise in the day, or stand up after so long sitting and just do a few squats or lunges to get blood flowing. Yoga is a great way to start or end the day, too.

[TetRefine]

You say you want to tone up but don't want to "gain muscle". Since you said your out of shape and have never been one for athletic things, you probably don't have any significant muscle mass to speak of. If you were to just "tone up" and skipped any muscle building activity, you'd end up as skinny fat or just flabby. To tone up, you need to put on muscle mass, and to put on muscle mass you need to start weight lifting. One of the biggest misconceptions about weight lifting is that it only makes you big. Wrong. To tone up, you have to lift weights to build a better physique. 

 

My suggestion to you as someone who works out on the regular. Go onto http://www.bodybuilding.com and find a beginner workout that you think would suit you and that you could see yourself sticking to. Join a gym (most gyms have cheap discount rates for kids home from college over summer) and start. Gradually you'll start to see strength and physique gains, and when you start to see physical change you'll become addicted (or at least I did). 

 

Also, things like running outside or other physical activities work. For example, I play in a flag football league, and now that the weather is warm, like to go for jogs through the city. 

[Drew Espinosa]

Thank you all for these helpful tips!

 

 

You say you want to tone up but don't want to "gain muscle". Since you said your out of shape and have never been one for athletic things, you probably don't have any significant muscle mass to speak of. If you were to just "tone up" and skipped any muscle building activity, you'd end up as skinny fat or just flabby. To tone up, you need to put on muscle mass, and to put on muscle mass you need to start weight lifting. One of the biggest misconceptions about weight lifting is that it only makes you big. Wrong. To tone up, you have to lift weights to build a better physique. 

I should clarify, when I say "add muscle mass" I mean that I do not have a set goal of looking like a body builder or being buff in general when everything said and done. I always thought "adding muscle mass" and "toning up" as distinct. So thank you for this, I love learning something new

 

Edit: Currently I am kind of between thin and flabby.

Edited May 18, 2015 by Drew Espinosa

[TetRefine]

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/the-ultimate-beginners-full-body-workout.html

 

Here is a link to a really good beginner's workout. It has a lot of good advice, all the exercises are pretty basic, and it explains how to do each one. 

[Carlos Hazday]

Walking is the best start. EVERYWHERE. Take the stairs, not the elevator. If you drive somewhere, don't spend time looking for a close spot, park far away from the entrance. If you're within a 20 minutes walk from anywhere, leave the car at home (invest in a decent raincoat and learn how to be early). Every other day, keep the computer, tv, tablet, and game consoles turned off. If you have any friends nearby, go play frisbee., go bowling, go to a museum and walk through the entire place.

 

Exercising doesn't have to be a structured activity. Get out of the chair and move. You may never LOVE any of these things, but I guarantee you'll love looking at yourself naked in a mirror--do that often!

 

Don't forget sunscreen, bug repellent, and to look both way before crossing the street.

 

Best of luck, buddy!

[Sasha Distan]

you have to do something fun.

 

And also, from experience with dieting and other stuff, what you weigh, and your amount of muscle tone, does not dictate your health. get fit, get healthy (I got a horse and haul hay, but it doesn't mean I'm ripped like Carlos up there) but don't get sucked in to the thinking that looking good and being happy are ever the same thing.

 

Also, I was totally the sit inside and read a book kid too.

[DynoReads]

Walking, swimming, bicycling are all great exercise. As you find walking or biking easier to do, get some ankle weights or heavier shoes (my favorite ankle weights are my hiking/work boots).

 

Grab a basketball and head to the park. Even if you're bad at shooting hoops, someone will come along to play with and maybe help you improve.

 

Find a local dog rescue and volunteer to walk the dogs. You'll get exercise and happy companionship.

 

Keeping a journal helps too.

[TalonRider]

I agree with walking. I've been walking almost daily for the past year. Most days I've even gotten out and walked twice, winter included. I go to local park with a fitness trail. I walk a minimum of miles in my morning walk. I find it easier to walk to music that I like. The tempo helps set the pace for my walk. A fast pace for short periods of time is good for cardio and burning of fat calories. Since January I've lost 12 pounds.