If you’re deciding to make a commitment to exercise and change your body, you have to make sure you have the right game plan. It’s easy to get really excited about changing your body and getting fitter, but it’s even easier to lose focus and get off course.

Your workouts should be challenging, but they need to be fun as well! There are so many activities you can do outside that will interest you far more than spending labor some hours in a sweaty gym. For example: Running on trails, swimming in a lake, skiing, mountain bike riding, walking, hiking, climbing, playing sports etc. Some of the most fun workouts I have are outside, on the track. Also, you need to make sure you are changing up the modes of exercising that you do (as I have provided in the 7 Day Layouts). For example: Monday you do a land workout, Tuesday and swim workout, and Wednesday you take off. This will allow your body to recover properly, which will ultimately get you fitter faster, burn more body fat and will prevent injury, sickness or burnout.

If you are just getting back into exercise, or if you’re starting your program for the first time, you need to remember that your body isn’t going to feel good when you first start. Your body is addicted to poor habits such as having a sedentary lifestyle, eating crappy food, not exercising etc. It won’t feel good to do anything else because it’s foreign and because your body is completely toxic and out of shape. With my clients I have noticed it takes about 2-3 months (if they have been sedentary) for their bodies to start working efficiently. Think of it as a broken down car that has been sitting in the junk yard for month; it’s no where near being able to run as it should, a fully equipped performance car. Your bodies take time to clean themselves out, depending on how much damage you’ve done… they need to be cleaned from the inside out. That’s why it’s so important you are eating good, quality foods, Healthy Tart style.

If you are just starting out, or have not been exercising regularly for the past month, year or so, I have designed workouts in my book and on this website to make sure you progress safely, effectively and efficiently. It is vital that you assess your Risk Factors and discern if you need a THRZ or HRR. Once you get to a better state of health and fitness, it’s not as necessary to be constantly checking your heart rate, and if you have questions, check with your doctor. I would recommend you get tri-monthly check ups on your cholesterol, blood pressure, body fat and blood sugars to track your progress and make sure you are adjusting your heart rate as necessary. Your body will naturally want to slow down if you’re going to fast, so just make sure you working out at a comfortable pace. Eventually, you will need to start incorporating more difficult workouts, and will need to increase your THRZ (Target Heart Rate Zone) or HRR (Heart Rate Reserve), that is why I have made progressive workouts:

1. Severely Overweight or Inactive
2. Beginner or Overweight
3. Intermediate
4. Advanced

I have provided you the correct 7 Day Layouts associated with each level of difficultly, with the right amount of total exercise time. If you feel it’s too much or too little, listen to your body and adjust it appropriately. You body will be the best indicator of what you are ready to do!

For further information and questions, please use Healthy Fitness Central as a guide for your body! It has all the information, in detail, you need to know about properly progressing and training your body to be in the best shape it can be! You can also contact me with any questions and I will get back to you!

Good luck and go Change Your Body For Life!

Running is a great way to get in shape FAST.  Personally, I don’t think there’s any way to lose weight faster.  If you’re an avid runner, great, if you’re not, that’s ok!  I’ve got a ton of workouts in my book Healthy Fitness Central, that will help you get going no matter your experience level, age, gender or medical history.  I offer progressive workouts that also take your posture and body mechanics into consideration as well.

Find a Local Track

Personally, I run about twice a week. I use my local highschool football field. Why?  Because cement and pavement running kills your joints!  Running on a track is good, but running on the green inside is even better!  Here is my favorite workout you can do in about 45 min that will really get you in good shape, that’s fun to do, and quick to finish!  Everyone can do this workout, and how fast you want to go is up to you! I like to keep my speed about 80% with limited rest… that way I can workout the next day without burning my legs out, which is essential if you’re trying to lose weight or bmx! =)

A side note about soreness and weight loss:

If you think weight training is a great way to lose weight, and you’re a woman, think again.  If you’re too sore to move the next day, yet your main goal is weight loss, movement=caloric expenditure, what good are you doing?  Making your muscles bigger?  How many calories are you burning weight training, vs. running or swimming? You can’t even compare the two… AND if you’re overweight, you’re already carrying around enough mass to equate to a lifting session a day. Yes, your resting metabolic rate goes up, but how much more does it go up after an intense running workout? Your metabolism is in full gear all day long!  Use your body weight for starters, swim for your upper body “weight training” and bike for your lower body “weight  training”.  I’ve had tremendous success with my female clients using this philosophy, and I know it would work for you!  After you drop your first 10-15 lbs, then you can slowly integrate weight training, maybe 1x every other week or so. But, if you’re doing enough of the other kind of exercise, you won’t need to because your muscles are already working hard enough.  I’ll write an article on this a bit later, but if you have any questions, please email me or pick up a copy of my book, it’s all in there.

Get on the track

Here’s the Football Field workout!

1. Warm up, 3 laps around the green and stretch in between each if you need to
2. 3-4 ‘Slow fast’  Jog slowly the width of the field, sprint the length (sprinting or 80%)
3. 4 Diagonals with limited rest, about 27 seconds: Jog slow the length of the field, sprint diagonally across, 4 total back to back, 27 sec rest in-between, or however long it takes you to slowly jog the length. (Or run with a partner and go 1 at a time)
4. 2 200’s: jog slowly across the field, sprint a 200min run on the track (which is 1/2 length of a full lap on the track).
5. Full sit ups when your done, some close grip push ups and triceps dips as well if you like. 2×20 reps.

If you want to do more, and don’t are about saving your legs, do your laps on the track and do 4 slow fasts, 4 diagonals, 2 across the field 200’s and 2 regular 200’s. Then do 2 100 yard runs, slow down the field, fast back! (This is the workout we do for my summer bootcamp, at 6:30 in the morning!)

The next day, swim or bike! take a day off, then do one more of these workouts in a few days.

Have fun!

Some important tips you must consider to be successful:

1. Clean out your intestines by eating Healthy Tart Style
2. Train to BURN fat! This means less weight training and more holistic movement! Use My Workouts as your Guide!
3. STICK to your 7 Day Training Program
4. Change the way you do Cardio
5. Drink a lot of water
6. Don’t be constantly Sore!!
7. Train for your Body Type

My Fat Loss Workout Programs are specifically designed to make you burn fat. Not gain a whole bunch of muscle, but to BURN FAT. My years in personal and professional experience have enabled me to see a huge and widespread mistake in training for body fat loss with women.

You gotta work to get in shape!

If you want to workout to burn fat, then work to burn fat!

This means NOT sitting down riding a stationary bike, doing funky balance tricks on a physio or bosu ball, THIS MEANS: Running, Swimming, Sprinting- the major BASIC exercise modes (which don’t involve spending lots of money) that make your heart really work, and force your body to start shedding massive amounts of fat!

In today’s world, or in yours, you might find it hard to find time for anything, and it’s hard enough to make time for your workouts, especially if you a full time mom and employee! With that said, you must maximize the time you have for your workouts. This means that you must MOVE. Standing still or doing isolated weight training exercises like the leg extension do nothing. How many calories do you think you burn from doing exercises like that? Hardly Any! Oh wait, what the leg extension does do is make you really sore so you CAN’T move the next day, so in actuality, it is counterproductive.

Barbell Ab Hold

To burn body fat, you must move. You can’t get fitter and burn a load of fat if you aren’t moving! Sure weight training can build muscle, but so can running, swimming, high impact dancing etc.! Your muscles are always working during cardio; in fact, a whole lot more muscles are being activated and involved during cardio than weight training!

Use my Fat Loss Workouts to Minimize body fat and Maximize fitness!

Remember, before you start any exercise program, make sure you first have:

1. Assessed your Risk Factors
2. Get your Heart Rate “Prescription”