Happy New Year!
Let me guess, many of you made a New Year’s resolution to start exercising on a regular basis. We’ve all been there, you want a new year to bring new, healthy habits.However, before you jump right in to an exercise program, you need to think about a few things.
- Do you have any pre-existing health conditions that you should take into consideration?
- Is this the first time you’ve exercised or the first time in quite a while that you’ve worked out?
- Do you have the correct equipment, such as proper fitting and sturdy workout shoes?
Before you start, make sure you’ve checked with your healthcare provider, and that you know you are in good health. Often times, people dive right into an exercise program and soon find out they are short of breath or they get pains in both knees or have other symptoms that are not considered normal.Start slowly! Don’t start training for a marathon if this is the first time you’ve worked out at all or in a while. Start with short, easy walks outside or on the treadmill. Work your way up to more.Think about being fitted for the right kind of shoe for your workout. Without good shoes, the likelihood increases of developing knee pain, shin splints, fallen arches or other lower body problems.To many of you these things might seem like common sense, because, well, they are. But you would be surprised at the number of injuries I see this time of year from people who decided they wanted to start a new exercise program!I am a proponent of exercise, kudos to you for wanting to start a healthy activity. Just make sure you consider the above before doing so.Here’s to a healthy and happy 2014!