Jim asks: I’m about to start going to a gym in Austin. I weigh a little over 200 pounds and want to get back in shape. What workout should I do to do this for an hour, 4 days a week?

Pretty basic starting point for anyone who is trying to get into shape. Very important note. You need to be careful when you’re first starting out. For anyone who pretty much never had to worry about health or your body whenever you go out for athletic activities; consider the added weight and time spent out of a healthy lifestyle.  It would be in your best interest to start off slow. Even if your condition is really not that bad, if you were to go out and start doing 30 minutes of cardio followed by weight lifting and some other exercises, your body is not used to that type of action with the added body weight. Going all out right off the bat can cause injury and prevent you from accomplishing your goals sooner. Here’s a good plan of attack for starting out and getting back into a routine:

Day 1: 20 minutes cardio (run, elliptical, spin, bike, lessening the amount of impact on the knees is key because that is one of the more vulnerable areas for injuries when working out with added weight), followed by some core work (sit ups, planks, push ups, lunges, squats) and some very light lifting (no more than 25 pounds for curls or upper body work), ending with 5 to 10 minutes of cardio (walking) to cool the body down

Day 2: 15 minute cardio, 15 minute lifting (still light), 10 minute cardio

Day 3: 30 min cardio (total time…so take breaks if needed, encouraged actually), light core (3 sets of 10 push ups/pull ups/sit ups etc)

Day 4: 15 minute cardio, 45 minute lifting session (still light for starting out), 5 cardio cool down

Rest days in between (but make sure to listen to your body). That’s just a basic breakdown for a beginner getting back into working out. Attacking one particular activity or part of the body can be very risky and sometimes dangerous. Much better to have a much wider range of focus and work on all areas of the body.

Today I ran 3 miles in the morning and 7 miles at practice with an 8 mile bike ride and both body clinics. We Are One 365.

AR. NF. NR.

Nick