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There is a lot of emphasis placed on fitness these days, and with good reason. Regular exercise can be very beneficial health wise for a variety of reasons. Regular exercise has been shown to lower blood pressure or even prevent developing high blood pressure. The same can be said about diabetes and even heart disease. Then there is the obvious fact that it's a main component of maintaining a health weight, and also there are benefits of stress reduction. The list seems almost endless.
In addition to the well documented health benefits of regular exercise there are the emotional benefits also. When we exercise we feel good. Partly because of our body's release of certain "feel good" hormones and chemicals, but there is a deeper psychological component to exercise also.
When we work our bodies out, going through the physical demands of exercise, this increases our confidence in our own abilities to control our lives. When our confidence is increased, our whole physical presentation changes. People actually sit up and take notice. Anyone who has experienced this knows exactly what I am talking about.
For this reason, in addition to the physical health advantages, if you are not currently participating in a regular exercise program, you should. This is something that is in your power to control. It truly is free health insurance.
Starting a regular workout routine is not as hard as one might think. Unfortunately many people equate a regular exercise routine with having to join a health club or buy expensive exercise equipment, but this isn't the case. You can effectively exercise without joining a gym and even effectively do workouts without weights and get excellent results. The problem is that most people don't know where to start.
I teach my clients that a good place to start (or start back) is with a walking program. You can walk at your own pace and make it as rigorous as you want. You can walk on the sidewalks, or you can find a staircase to use and walk the stairs. If you think that you need something a little more challenging, then you can do something like jump rope. Many people would be surprised just how demanding a jump rope exercise routine is. There is a good reason why it is an essential part of any good boxer's exercise routine.
For those who would prefer to build strength in addition to cardio endurance, then you can add to your fitness routine "the mountain climber" or "burpee" exercise. Both of these movements will build strength as well as endurance and they are both body weight exercises. They don't require any more space than a 10 x 10 foot space, if that much. You can do these in any living room or bedroom and get a good workout.
There are many different ways to do workouts without weights. There is no need to spend a lot of time going to and from the gym. Nor, is there any need to spend a lot of money on fitness. You will find that there are lots of ways to get in shape, lose weight, and build strength, right in your own living room.
About this Author
Bryan W. is a physical therapist and fitness professional. With over 16 years experience he teaches his clients how to maximize their fitness level using simple and effective training strategies. In addition he teaches his clients extremely powerful Workouts Without Weights and maintains a blog at http://www.workoutswithoutweights.net
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