Last year, after going about trying to lose weight the lazy way (using toning lotions, and a few minutes of hula hooping) I had to come to terms with the fact that the only way I would ever lose the stubborn fat on my hips and thighs would be to diet and exercise. I know that this epiphany is pretty obvious, but I am a lover of food and I absolutely hate exercising (I was always the kid who was last in races and chosen last for teams). And because of this, I couldn't help but keep optimistic over the fact that there could be another way of losing weight without going down any drastic routes. But obviously I found there was not, and unfortunately for me I only came to this conclusion the day before I was due to go on holiday.
It wasn't until about a month ago I actually decided to give in and start a bit of exercising to try give these muffin tops a shove. The problem is that I am truly rubbish at exercising. I have no fitness whatsoever and that is no exaggeration. But because of this, the idea of heading to a gym full of pumped up fitties was my idea of hell. So the only thing that came to mind was to start jogging at nighttime. Luckily, I live on the outskirts of a small market town in South Wales, so I knew if I were to go for a jog in the darkness then it would be unlikely to bump into anyone whilst I was red faced and heavily breathing through exhaustion.
Now, I will admit that my first jog did not go exactly to plan. At 8pm I walked up my street to get away from any prying eyes, and then soon set into jogging mode . . . for all of thirty seconds. That's right, that is how unfit I am. I couldn't even run longer than half a minute until I was gasping for air. At this point I was just about to give up, but thought how about trying to power walk instead. So, that first jog ended up being a two mile power walk. I know that sounds pathetic to many of you who are fit but I do not care. This was the only way I was going to improve.
For that first week I continued to power walk two miles a day. Sometimes I'd even try and find alternative routes to make the walk even longer. I thought, if I wasn't jogging I might as well focus on the length of the walk. Because of these walks the first week my fitness was very slowly increasing. This meant that on week two I would find myself doing a minute burst of jogging every now and then. This increased even more week three, and on week four I can just manage to jog a whole mile. To me this is a big improvement from the girl who was struggling for air on that first day.
Now, I know that I am no jogging expert after a month, but I kinda thought it would be a good idea to give a few tips to others who are in the position I was a month ago. As I say, there is nothing better than getting tips from someone who actually has the experience.
- First off, buy yourself a new kit. This is what I did and it weirdly motivated myself to get out there and jog. Make sure you do buy proper trainers as I must admit they do make a huge difference to comfort. My ones are Nike Roshe Runs and they are brilliant.
- Make sure to warm up for about 5 minutes before. Google some ways on how to warm up before you set off.
- The first jog is all about finding out your limits. If you are like how I started then there is no shame with starting off power walking. But if you can cope, then do start with jogging.
- If you find yourself struggling during a session, then please stop and collect yourself. One time, I pushed myself too far and ended up going a bit dizzy. So know your limits!
- If you do power walk, try and push yourself to walk for a long duration, and maybe include some hills to climb every now and then. Remember this is exercise, so you should never be finding it easy. Your heart rate should increased, and if it's not, you need to push yourself to the next level.
- If you are embarrassed about jogging like I am, then try and find a route that is safe during the night time. I live near a river, but I definitely wouldn't go there to jog at night time. Try stick to neighbourhoods.
- Going out later will also provide you with cooler weather, so you are less likely to get too hot. But if it is too cold, try and take a hat to cover your ears and a scarf to cover your mouth (it can be harder to breath during colder weather).
- When you find yourself coping well with the power walk, try and sneak in a bit of jogging. Even if it's just for twenty seconds. Take breaks with power walking, and then try jogging again. Little spurts of jogging every now and then are a great way of increasing your fitness.
- Try and exercise as much as you can. I go out five times a week and no more than that as your body does need to rest. But remember, even going out once a week is better than nothing.
- Use an app on your phone to track how long, and how fast you exercised. This is a great way to spur you on to go out and exercise again. I use the Nike+ Running app.
- Maybe sign up for a 5k run. This will give you a goal, and it will also motivate you to carry on exercising. This is exactly what I did, and even though it was daunting at first it has actually motivated me to get fit in time for my first 5k of July this year.
- I know it's obvious, but always take a bottle of water out with you.
- Finish off with a cooling down. Normally, I just walk back home for the last two minutes of the jog and then stretch my leg muscles under my porch.
I hope this has helped you at least a little bit. Let me tell you now, if I managed to get this far then so can you! And if you are looking for a way to lose weight, then yes this is definitely one way to go. I admit I haven't lost an enormous amount of weight, but I can definitely see improvements over the month. Hopefully, in the near future I will be able to post some pictures of my weight loss to help motivate some of you even more.
Here's to getting that bikini body in time for this year's holiday.
x x
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