If you’re reading this, you know how important exercise is.

However, there are right ways to exercise and there are wrong ways. In order to get the greatest benefit from your workout and prevent possible injury, you’ve got to do it the right way.

What is the right way? You’re about to find out.

No Pain, No Gain? You’ve heard the phrase “No pain, no gain.” But this isn’t exactly true for exercise. Actually, exercising doesn’t have to cause pain in order to get you in shape.

If you are just beginning to exercise, a little muscle soreness is to be expected. But don’t give up. Work through it, stick with your exercise routine, and in few days the soreness should be gone for good.

If you ever do experience severe pain while exercising, stop until it goes away. If it lasts for more than a few days, see your doctor.

Three Parts. What does a balanced exercise plan look like to you? Is walking 30 minutes four days a week enough? Lifting weights four times a week? In a word, no.

There are actually three components of a balanced workout routine: aerobic, strength-training, and flexibility exercises.

Aerobic or cardio exercises strengthen your lungs and heart. Examples include running, walking, swimming, cycling, and basketball.

Strength or resistance training exercises keep your bones and muscles strong and help with coordination and balance. Strength training refers to weight lifting, weight machines, resistance bands, and body-weight exercises.

The third part of a balanced exercise routine includes flexibility exercises to reduce your risk of injury and improve your body’s range of motion. Examples include stretching, yoga, and tai chi.

It doesn’t matter what order you perform your aerobic and strength-training exercises, unless you have specific goals. Working on endurance? Go cardio first. Trying to get stronger or burn calories? Hit the weights first. Just be sure to incorporate all three types of exercise each week.

Warm Up and Cool Down. If you don’t warm up before or cool down after exercising you could harm your muscles. (more…)

Unfortunately, trying to speed up your metabolism will likely have little effect on weight loss. Therefore, be skeptical of products, foods, and drinks that claim to do such a thing. They may have dangerous or undesirable side effects.

If a magic pill is what you’re waiting for, you may be waiting a long time. If you want to lose weight, nothing will get you there faster than a healthy diet and a consistent, challenging exercise program. Call or email me to get started on your own effective exercise plan.

Mark Sisson, an athlete, coach, and student on a lifelong quest for exceptional health, happiness, and peak performance in his book, “The Primal Blueprint” purports that grains contain a protein that is unfamiliar to our biology, making it inappropriate for human consumption. This flies in the face of everything we have been taught about the essential need for whole grains as a staple in our modern diet.

My advice: Do what a true caveman would do – decide for yourself. Take a week away from grains and see how you feel. If you are losing weight and gaining energy then stick with it.