If it’s been a while since you last exercised or you haven’t ever done anything stressing us before, getting into exercise can feel overwhelming. It can also feel overwhelming if you’re simply lazy enough not to bother with exercise in the first place, but it comes to a point where you feel like you need to move your body if you hope to feel anything less than back pain ever again. 

If you have health issues right now, you should get medical clearance first because while you can look at websites such as http://www.muscleandmotion.com/ to get an idea of how the body works, a website is no substitute for a physician’s sign-off. Exercise is supposed to be fun while doing it, so getting the proper sign-off from your physician is an intelligent decision to make so that you can exercise comfortably. So, if you need help getting into exercise, here are our tips to get you started. 

• Never work out without a warm-up. A warm-up is the most tedious part of the workout, but without one and those dynamic stretches, your body will feel it, not positively. You want your muscles to be limber before you work out, not ripping afterward.
• Never go out of the gym without a cooldown. Similarly, you must ensure you are cooling down within a few minutes after your workout. You have to allow your heart to return to its resting rate. A good cold down can help you do this, but usually, a workout program offers some gentle stretches to help you at the end. This will also help the oxygen to get to those muscles that you’ve just been working out and help them with repair.
• Stay hydrated. When you work out, and afterward, your body will perform much better when it’s significantly hydrated. If you fail to drink enough water when you push yourself, you’ll feel that, and it won’t help your muscle repair. Working out without a drink in hot conditions is also dangerous. Nobody needs to be fainting on the gym floor.
• Don’t push past the pain. Believe it or not, it is not supposed to be painful. It will be uncomfortable, especially afterward, but it shouldn’t be painful while doing it. Your body is not supposed to play through the pain. Make sure you rest briefly and slowly and gently resume your workout when necessary.
• Do something for accountability. Most people go in heavy with a workout plan and end up quitting as far as fast as they can. Doing this is going to help only some of you. If you make sure that you have something to motivate you to continue to work out, such as your health or even a countdown calendar, you will feel far more accountable as you do it.