Whenever I speak with people about fitness programs or working out regularly, a lot of them tell me that they do wish to exercise but somehow can’t manage to find the time! Most of us are too busy in the rat race to reach the top! So busy that sometimes we steal family time or friend’s time to work! Here are a few ideas for making working out a reality for busy people rather than just a dream. Will look forward to your feedback!

Before I make life easy for you by giving you ideas for incorporating exercise in your busy schedule, I would like to stress on the fact that it would be much better if you slowed down a little and set aside time for family, friends and health! It is as if we are juggling all these things along with career. Remember if all these were balls which we are juggling then except career all are made of glass! If the career goes to zero we can begin again and reach the top; but if any of the others are affected recreating the same situation might not be possible! So, give this some serious thought.

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Beginning an exercise program can be at times very overwhelming and challenging! Thousands of questions can arise and you may feel it is too much of an effort or that it is beyond your capacity. Here, I have tried to simplify the process of embarking on a new exercise program.

The first step is to make up your mind. Decide that you want to do it and that you can do it easily. Once that is done, visualize yourself exercising regularly and getting the desired result from your exercise program. Do this visualization regularly and often during the day. It will create the same feeling in your body as actually exercising and motivate you.

Before you get started, check with your doctor to make sure you don’t have any health or medical problems. If you are suffering from an illness or condition, do get a fitness certificate from your treating physician. Make sure that your exercise routine does not have any harmful effects on your condition. Consult a certified fitness trainer before you begin your program.

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Flabby thighs! This is a problem faced by many women and quite a few men. Most people will struggle with weight gain in their thighs, because that is where their body stores fat. But if you start a weight loss exercise program and watch your diet, you can lose weight from the thighs.

I can hear a lot of people say “Oh yeah! Easier said than done!” Yes, you are right; it is indeed difficult to get rid of the lump of lard around the thighs!

VISUALIZE! Visualize the way you want your body to look. Get this one right because this is where you start. This is the foundation of all your efforts. If the foundation is not strong, we all know what happens to the building.

BELIEVE! Believe in your ability to achieve the end result that you are looking for. Unless your belief is strong the goal will always remain that one inch away from your reach.

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This question has been asked to me at least a thousand times, if not more. I want to reach out to as many people and share my “Six Secrets” to achieve this with them. First of all, let me tell you that it can be done. I can almost guarantee the shedding of stubborn weight if you are otherwise healthy and all your parameters are normal.

That brings me to a very important point: Please do the following before you begin my program:

• Consult your family physician and get a fitness certificate from him
• Get all the basic tests done to rule out any underlying disease or condition like diabetes or hypertension
• Make sure you do not take any food stuff that you are allergic to

Here come the Six Secrets:

1. Exercise. Yes, quite simple that was, wasn’t it? No, not quite. It’s not just exercise, but it is exercise twice a day and that too for one hour in the morning and one and half hours in the evening. These exercises should be of the aerobic kind and must be learnt from a certified instructor. If you could exercise under the supervision of a certified trainer, it would give you the best results.

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At that time it seems okay to take a sip from your friend’s glass of alcohol. It is party time after all and everyone is drinking! To the youngster just out of his teenage, it seems really cool to be a part of the gang and hold a glass in hand. This is how a youngster is introduced to alcohol most of the times. Parents keep telling their kids to stay away from alcohol and tobacco. The age is such that the youngsters feel that they know the best; after all, the entire world is their oyster! Nothing can go wrong with the young can it? Well it can!

The youngsters do need counseling, but before that I would like to say that the parents or the guardians need to understand a few things. There is this line, which is always there at the back of my mind; it is: “The more you resist the more it persists!” When you tell the youth not to do something, be sure that they will do it! So I suggest that rather than telling them what to do or what not to do, it would help to just lay the pros and cons of the act in front of them. Show them examples of alcohol spoiling health, careers and relationships. Do not conclude the good or the bad of it – just give them the facts and let them infer.

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‘All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast’, said John Gunther

Though we all know the importance of this statement, most of us rush through breakfast and many of us even skip it. How we envy those people who are able to sit at the table and have a long leisurely breakfast with their family!

Why is this meal called breakfast? It is so called because we fast all through the night and what we eat in the morning ‘breaks’ the ‘fast’. And another thing, never gobble your breakfast up ‘fast’. I feel it is the most important meal of the day which sets the trend of the day for you. Better treat it with respect!

This is probably the easiest way to maintain your health and prevent illness. Then again many of us would vouch for the feel good factor that is created at the breakfast table when the whole family is together at the beginning of the day! This feel-good factor is another easy way to maintain good health and good relationships.

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If one word was to be used to describe this era, I would use “INSTANT”! Everything has got to be instant, be it food, communication or weight loss! Weight loss is not coffee or fast food to be attained in an instant; it is to be earned, cherished and must linger on!

The consequences of excess weight are horrendous. Diabetes, coronary artery disease, hypertension, degenerative arthritis and obstructive sleep apnea incidences are at an all-time high today. Besides these, incidences of cancer, depression, humiliation and loss of love have increased as well. Thus, the problem of excess weight is a clear and present danger for the individual and society at large.

So, how do you lose weight? – Instantly with bouts of excessive exercising and dieting or steadily with regular exercises, and proper eating habits? Rome wasn’t built in a day and no one ever lost a lot of body fat and kept it off without patience, perseverance and consistency.

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Most of us are victims of a myth that, when we want to lose a lot of weight, we should cut calories for long periods of time. But you need to understand that cutting calories brings about nutrient deficiencies in your body. This in turn, results in severe cravings as your brain sends emergency “low nutrient indicators” to your stomach and forces you to eat more food.

When you are starving for nutrients you invariably end up eating more “nutrient-numb food” which causes cravings to completely spiral out of control (If you are one of those who feels hungry all the time, now you know why).

Besides, after few days of this kind of dieting your metabolism and the flow of hunger hormones slows down, thus stopping fat loss in its path. At this point, to keep burning fat you’ll be unwillingly forced to reduce your calories even lower, and/or do more exercise, and believe me you it’s no fun problem to have, if you know what I mean.

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Want to meet a man with courage? He’s the one who stopped with one chip.

If craving makes you eat more than you need to, leading to weight gain, you’re on the right page.

There is no end to craving for your favourite food or addiction in search of happiness. Contentment is the best way to happiness. Some people are able to change the object of their craving. While they may have desired alcohol and cigarettes yesterday, today they desire appreciation and approval.

The idea is not to change the focus of your craving but to do away with it all together. If you binge eat instead of smoking that is not gaining victory over a vice! ‘What if you conquer the world but lose yourself?’

To overcome anything that you set your mind on, first observe; become aware of the issue. Whenever you get a craving to smoke, or to eat unhealthy food, deliberate and meditate on it. Take deep breaths and see it fade away. As you practice this you will have a 100% success rate.

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