{"id":12277,"date":"2013-06-05T01:01:15","date_gmt":"2013-06-05T05:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/?p=12277"},"modified":"2013-06-04T23:54:15","modified_gmt":"2013-06-05T03:54:15","slug":"an-exercise-program-for-a-beginner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/2013\/06\/05\/an-exercise-program-for-a-beginner\/","title":{"rendered":"Guidelines for Beginning An Exercise Program"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/AskCrystal.jpg.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12069\" alt=\"AskCrystal.jpg\" src=\"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/AskCrystal.jpg.jpg\" width=\"450\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/AskCrystal.jpg.jpg 450w, https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/AskCrystal.jpg-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Dear Crystal,<\/p>\n<p>I am a 55 year old woman who is overweight by almost 100 pounds.\u00a0 I\u00a0currently get very little exercise. I <span class=\"GINGER_SOFATWARE_correct\">work<\/span> behind a computer for\u00a0several hours a day, and I want to get back into shape. I also have\u00a0lower back issues, and weak ankles. What is a good exercise routine for me\u00a0to get started with?<\/p>\n<p>Signed,<br \/>\nAnonymous<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Dear Anonymous,<\/p>\n<p>Congratulations on starting an exercise program. Getting started can sometimes be overwhelming but, with the right motivation, you can do it. There are certain guidelines for beginning an exercise program.\u00a0 Here are a couple before you get started.<\/p>\n<p><b>1. Receive<\/b> <b>clearance from your doctor with any specific guidelines.<\/b>\u00a0 American College of Sports Medicine, the largest sports medicine and exercise science organization in the world, recommends that all females over the age of 50 receive a physicians release before starting an exercise program.<\/p>\n<p><b>2. Invest in a few pieces of apparel<\/b>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A good pair of walking or running shoes.\u00a0 Walking in street shoes or thin sneakers could result in injury.\u00a0 Find a knowledgeable athletic shoe store and get a pair of name brand walking or running shoes that is best for you. Also, because our feet swell during exercise, buy a size bigger than your normal shoe size.<\/li>\n<li>Cool clothing.\u00a0 While many feel it is beneficial to wear extra clothing to sweat more, all those layers do not allow your body to cool and can lead to overheating and exhaustion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">WEIGHT LOSS<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p>For weight loss, calorie burn is a priority. My recommendation for a beginner exerciser is to start \u00a0a walking program. Walk at a brisk pace to increase heart rate, which is the key to burning more calories.\u00a0 While activities like Pilates and Yoga are awesome and provide many benefits, your primary focus should be cardiovascular exercise 3-5x a week.<\/p>\n<p>For your walking program, begin with a simple plan of 30 minutes a day in duration, even if it is 10 minute intervals at different times.\u00a0 Gradually build your times up to 30-60 continuous minutes.\u00a0 If time does not permit that duration, work on increasing the speed of your walk during the time you do have <span class=\"GINGER_SOFATWARE_correct\">for<\/span> exercise, which burns more calories too.\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 Be sure to end your workout by cooling down and stretching <span class=\"GINGER_SOFATWARE_correct\">your<\/span> hamstrings, quadriceps and calf muscles.<\/p>\n<p><b><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">LOWER BACK ISSUES\u00a0 <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p>Lower back issues can be the result of injury or a sedentary lifestyle.\u00a0 If <span class=\"GINGER_SOFATWARE_correct\">injury<\/span> is the culprit of your back problems, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">be sure to check with your doctor<\/span> for the type of rehabilitation or prevention exercises he recommends.<\/p>\n<p>Low back pain can occur many times, due to extra weight, sitting for long periods of time without stretching muscles or an accumulation of stress, which for many is carried in the back and shoulders.\u00a0 Taking about 10 minutes each day to stretch your low back and hamstrings when your muscles are warm (either after exercise or a hot shower) will eliminate a lot of stress and tension in your back.\u00a0 Yoga or light Pilates is also very beneficial is <span class=\"GINGER_SOFATWARE_correct\">eliminating<\/span> and preventing lower back pain.<\/p>\n<p><b><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">WEAK ANKLES <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p>Weak ankles could also be a result of extra weight and lack of exercise. By strengthening through exercise and a safe weight loss program, your ankles should be feeling stronger.\u00a0 Again, if problems persist, consult your doctor.<\/p>\n<p>In summary, as a beginner who wants to lose weight, I would say you are ready to begin a brisk walking program for 30-45 minutes 3-5 days a week followed by 10 minutes of stretching to eliminate any tightness or tension and the risk of pulling a muscle.<\/p>\n<p>You can do it!\u00a0 Take a deep breath, put on some great music with good tennis shoes and get to walking.<\/p>\n<p>To Your Health,<\/p>\n<p>Crystal<\/p>\n<p>Wellness Coach\/Fitness Designer<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">*****<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>If you have questions for Crystal, relating to health or exercise, please email them to: <\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"mailto:Crystal@girlfriendscoffeehour.com\">Crystal@girlfriendscoffeehour.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; Dear Crystal, I am a 55 year old woman who is overweight by almost 100 pounds.\u00a0 I\u00a0currently get very little exercise. I work behind a computer for\u00a0several hours a day, and I want to get back into shape. I also have\u00a0lower back issues, and weak ankles. What is a good exercise routine for me\u00a0to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":102,"featured_media":12069,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2399],"tags":[2616,2475,2619,2158,425,2617,2623,2618,2157],"class_list":["post-12277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-wellness-fitness","tag-beginner-exercise-program","tag-coaching-with-crystal","tag-exercise-for-weight-loss","tag-fitness-designer","tag-girlfriends-coffee-hour","tag-low-back-pain","tag-walking-plans","tag-weak-ankles","tag-wellness-coach","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/AskCrystal.jpg.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p39pHp-3c1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/102"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12277"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12291,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12277\/revisions\/12291"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}