The Best Fat-Burning Exercise for Couch Potatoes

If you’re a committed couch potato, it’s no good pretending you
are going to get yourself to the gym five days a week starting
from Monday.

As much as I would like to give you a whole gym routine to
perform – a balanced blend of cardio, strength training and
stretches – I know that this is too much for most people to cope
with in one fell swoop.

The amount of effort involved may be so alien and overwhelming
that you would not begin at all or you might very well follow
the routine this week or this month then quit defeated and
retire to your couch vowing never to exercise again. To go from
couch potato to regular gym-goer overnight takes a will of iron
(or a personal trainer on hand to keep you hard at work for
every session).

Instead, I advise baby steps for couch potatoes – literally -
because the very best fat burning exercise for beginners is to
put one foot in front of the other – it’s walking.

You can start at any level. You can walk anywhere (even around
your home). You can walk with anyone – take your dog, your
partner, your kids or go it alone (as long as you keep to safe
places). You need no special equipment other than your normal
clothes and a comfortable pair of shoes. You don’t have to get
to the gym, get changed and showered afterwards. You can fit it
into your day easily even during your lunch break. Check with
your doctor if there’s any doubt about your health but there are
very few who would not benefit from walking.

Start with as little as 10 minutes (or even 5) a day. It doesn’t
matter – everyone has to start somewhere. Make it easy for
yourself to get the walking habit by starting gently then very
gradually increase your distance and your speed. You’ll feel the
benefit in your fitness levels very quickly as you do so.

Right from the start you’ll be burning additional calories every
minute you walk and you’ll gradually reach the optimum level of
exercise for fat burning too – it only takes walking at a
moderate to brisk pace for 25 to 30 minutes or so to be in the
right range for burning fat.

You’ll be amazed at how good a few minutes walking makes you
feel about yourself if you don’t usually exercise. And it’s a
very simple way to get the exercise bug. Who knows – before long
you may be hankering to try the gym too!

Copyright 2005, Janice Elizabeth Small

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