I am constantly being asked how I exercise regularly when its so boring. I hear you and I know how it is like, especially when you are starting out. Just to help all those who are facing this issue, I decided to discuss this matter here and how you can overcome it.

Imagine getting up in the morning in the weekend and then you suddenly remember that it is gym day! Do you fall back on that ever so soft pillow and doze off to sleep? Don’t feel guilty; you are not alone and I suppose most do this.

The gym is hardly the place you want to be on your day off. it is not just the gym – it can even be daunting to think of the home treadmill.

Most of the time, getting and staying motivated to exercise on a regular basis can be a challenge. I cannot deny that exercise can be boring and tiresome.

So, I hear you asking, how do I get motivated to exercise that you really need. Well, I do believe that if you make exercise more fun, it’s a starting point. How do you do that? Below you will some suggestions that you may find helpful and add a little spice to exercising.

1. Exercise with a friend. This not only adds the solidarity aspect of your goals, but it also removes the boredom away instantly. Try challenging each other, cheer on each other, keep each other inspired, make it a competition or some kind of a game. Get a got of laughs out of it. Wear outrageous exercise outfits that makes the other laugh. Oh my God, I can already feel the excitement!

2. Change the type of exercise, the venue, equipments, change the order of routines, even change the gym if that is possible. If you jogging, take another path. Change even the exercise mat!

3. At times, visit the park and fool around on the slides, the monkey bars, hang upside down – just have fun. Why not have a game of “catch” with your friend in the park. What’s wrong with that? All in the name of a good exercise. Go biking around your neighborhood.

4. Pick up a sports that you love or find challenging and competitive. Joining some sports club will not only help you with good exercise but also to meet new people who maybe facing same problems. Creating a network is really helpful.

5. It always helps to visualize yourself getting better and better. Picture yourself in a good figure that you would want to be or wearing the clothes you would like to see yourself in. Studies have shown that focusing on areas that one wants to improve, those areas of the body will respond better. So focus on your belly or your muscles if those are the areas you want to improve.

6. I left my own secret to the last for a reason! Well it is a SECRET and I am going to expose it. What I do is, I reward myself if I go through the entire program. This way, I push myself. Yes it is the carrot in front of me!

So you see, there are many ways you can make exercise more fun and interesting. Keep changing. Variety is the spice of life. Try to incorporate exercise in your daily life and make it a habit that will last a very long time.

You can get more ideas and suggestions in Motivational Guide – Weight Loss.

It’s a fact, America, is becoming FAT at a scary rate and the rest of the world is not behind.

We are eating more (and more of the wrong stuff) and exercising less or getting no exercise at all. We eat all the time, whether it is out of stress, enjoyment, having fun with friends or out of sheer boredom. Our health is in steep decline and doctor and hospital visits are at all time highs.

But all is not lost, guys – there is good news. The solution just may be a brisk 30-minute walk a day.

We are suffering from all kinds of ailments and we hear ever of often that it is getting worse. Heart and cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, stroke, out of control blood sugar levels, diabetes, obesity, and more. The U.S. Surgeon General advises getting at least 20-30 minutes of moderate activity each day and many of us are falling far short of even that.

Studies show the average person takes about 3000 to 5000 steps a day, and some even much less….screech to a halt!!! …. Wait … what? Seriously?

Truth be told, we just do not get the exercise our ancestors did a hundred or so years ago and we tend to eat more refined foods or junk, frozen, inorganic foods. For some of us, most of steps we take are from the easy chair in front of the TV to the fridge so we can fill up on snacks. Hmmmm. For others, its sitting at a computer all day as part of our jobs.

Many fitness experts recommend we walk 10,000 steps a day to maintain our weight and overall good health. 10,000 steps are approximately 5 miles, give or take depending on the length of your pace. It would be good if you purchase and wear a pedometer to count how many steps you take each day. Follow the directions that usually come with the pedometer. Do this for a week or two and you will get a good average step count. Your goal is to reach 10,000 or more steps each day. There is nothing magical about 10,000, but it will put you in the right count.

Generally, a person will burn about 100 calories walking a mile, depending on age, size, and fitness level. The heavier you are, the more calories you will burn.

You can be creative and come up with different ways to increase your steps daily. At work, take the stairs instead of the elevator, go for walks at lunchtime. Go for walks with your spouse or children. Walk the dog. Walk to the store instead of driving, or park at the far end of the parking lot, walk for fun, walk, walk, walk and walk!

For me, I take brisk 2-mile walks around the neighborhood twice a day everyday (aerobic walking), I walk to the mall in the weekends which is about 25 minutes away ( cover up the week’s walking, I guess!). Just do whatever works best for you, but do it! You will need good walking shoes and socks to prevent injury when walking for exercise (like aerobic walking). Hey, walking bare foot on the grass is just as good and very enjoyable.

Since I cannot stress enough about walking for health, I feel I need to write more on this. Look out for it, friends. Until then – keep walking!

Sarah

Nas M is our guest writer. She loves to experiment with healthy food and here she is talking about this fabulous drink. Try it … its almost addicitve! – Sarah Johansen

I do not travel a lot but when I visited Hyderabad about three years ago, I was mesmerized by the sheer exotic monsoon rains. I love rain so I was in the right place at the right time.

While there, I had the urge to drink something refreshing and different. So into the kitchen I went and made Limada – the lime drink. This is really one healthy and refreshing drink. It is very easy to make. Yes it is my own recipe and the name just came to me… I never knew there is a similar drink called Limeata or something like that.

I am going to share with you the recipe here. It is very versatile and you can add or reduce according to your taste.

Living a healthy life style is not all that difficult. We are now all used to fast food and fizzy drinks but once we tune ourselves to healthy food, we will wonder how we managed without it.

There is nothing like a refreshing drink on a hot day. Limada is delicious, aromatic and healthy drink. It’s called a spa drink because you feel luxurious and exotic drinking this.

Additionally not only do lemons or limes help to detoxify your body but you can use the lemon on your face as astringent. Ginger is good for digestion and mint acts as a stomach soother and an aid to digestion also.

Here is how to make Limada. Try it, it’s really good.

Things You’ll Need:

• 2 limes per person
• Chopped ginger
• Chopped mint
• Finely grated lime zest (optional)
• Salt or sugar to taste. I like it with salt.
• Water
• Crushed ice or ice cubes with lemon floats and a mint leave inside.

· Squeeze the limes into a container. Remember to keep the floats in but remove the seeds. Take some of the floats and keep them in ice tray with a mint leave or chopped mint and freeze the water. You can also add lime zests.

Now, add water to dilute the lime juice. Add enough water as per your taste. If you like it light then add more.

Pour into serving glass or a drinking bottle and add salt or sugar as per your liking and taste.

The reason you add ginger and mint after pouring into the serving glass is because if you add these to the mixture in the preparation container, then ginger will settle down and mint will float. So when you are pouring into the serving glass, the mint/ginger pieces would all flow out while ginger will be left behind.

Now add some chopped ginger and mint and mix well. If you have used a bottle, then close the cap and shake the bottle.

Add the crushed ice or the ice cubes with mint, floats or rind pieces in them … and ENJOY! It’s a wonderful thing!

Mmmmm … refeshing! Enjoy in the rain.

Nas M