- 1. Assess your health
- 2. Choosing suitable clothes and shoes
- 3. Heat and cool
- 4. Choose the location
- 5. Training intensity, time and frequency
- 6. Posture
- 7. Be aware of pain
Regular physical exercise has several health benefits, such as controlling weight, lowering blood glucose, preventing cardiovascular disease, preventing osteoporosis and controlling cholesterol.
Ideally, physical activity should be guided and supervised by a physical educator, but it is also possible to start the exercises on your own, as long as you follow important precautions to avoid injuries and improve physical fitness without risking health risks.
Here are 7 tips for exercising alone.
1. Assess your health
Before beginning any physical activity, even with professional guidance, it is important to go to the doctor to assess health and identify joint problems and or diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
In case health problems are present, the ideal is for the exercise to be supervised by a professional, who will indicate the type and intensity of training appropriate, according to the health status and goals of each one.
2. Choosing suitable clothes and shoes
You should choose light and comfortable clothes to exercise, that allow the free movement of the limbs and joints and that allow the sweat to evaporate, important to maintain an adequate body temperature.
It is important to remember that wearing many layers of clothing to perspire more does not help you lose weight, it only dehydrates your body and decreases training performance. In addition, the weight lost in sweat is quickly regained afterwards, with normal fluid and food intake.
Footwear should be chosen according to the activity to be done, and should preferably be light, with shock absorbers to absorb impacts and made according to the type of step, which depends on the shape of the foot and how it touches the floor. See How to choose the best shoes.
3. Heat and cool
Warm up before starting training is important to prepare your muscles for more intense activity, by increasing body temperature and blood circulation, avoiding injuries and increasing training performance.
The warm-up should last between 5 and 10 minutes, and some examples of activities that can be done to activate the whole body are walking, cycling, jumping rope or making slipper dust, it is important to start the most intense exercise right after, without letting the body cool down again.
After finishing the whole workout, you should stretch to reduce cramps and pain after exercise. Thus, you should stretch the entire body, especially arms, legs, shoulders and neck to end the day of physical activity. See Stretching exercises to do before and after your walk.
4. Choose the location
For beginners who will exercise on the street and do activities such as walking or running, the ideal is to look for flat and regular terrains, which allow a good step to avoid injuries to the heel and knees.
For those who want to do weight lifting activities, the ideal is to have quality equipment and be attentive to posture and joint movement.
5. Training intensity, time and frequency
It is important that in the first days the activity is of light intensity, which should gradually increase according to the resistance gain. Starting with using your own body weight in strength exercises or brisk walking helps to strengthen your muscles and prepare your body to gradually increase the intensity.
In addition, the start of training should be about 20 to 30 minutes, 3 times a week, on alternate days so that the muscle has time to recover. Each week, you should increase the time until you reach workouts of at least 30 minutes, 5 times a week, or 50 minutes training, 3 times a week.
6. Posture
Being attentive to posture helps to avoid injuries, especially in the ankles and knees, it is important to keep the spine straight, especially during weight lifting exercises.
In running and walking, you should pass by touching the ground with your heel and moving your foot towards your toes, while your back should be upright, but slightly inclined forward.
7. Be aware of pain
Paying attention to pain is important to avoid serious injuries, and you should reduce the pace or load of the exercises and see if the pain goes away. If there is no relief, you should stop the activity and see the doctor to assess if there is any injury and its severity.
In addition, attention should be paid to the heart and breathing rhythm, and in cases of shortness of breath or very strong heart palpitations, it is recommended to stop the activity. Some mobile apps have the technology to assess your heart rate and give you tips for maintaining regular training, which are good alternatives to help a good exercise practice.
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