How to Start Working Out

Hey -

Fitness is something that everybody could use. It not only prolongs your life, but it also simply makes you feel better about yourself. I’m been lifting for more than 2 years now and I’d say that I’ve built a physique that I’m impressed with. It’s become more and more apparent to others that I lift, so much so that others ask me for fitness tips.

Often times my siblings express their interests about fitness to me and I promise you, my enthusiasm spikes. I enjoy speaking about working out because it’s something that I’ve spent a considerate amount of time learning about out of my pure leisure. I love it.

So I’ll cut to the chase; how do you start working out? Simple: drop and do ten pushups, then try doing ten sit-ups. After that, hit ten squats. There, you just worked out. Now do the same routine tomorrow, but add 5 reps to each exercise. So tomorrow you’d do 15 pushups, 15 setups, and 15 squats. Is it optimal? Definitely not, but it’s a lot simpler than most people tend to put it.

The thing that makes working out seem like such a grueling task is how discouraging it can seem at the start. When you try to pump out a solid workout and you look in the mirror only to see no results, that’s when your motivation fades away. People want fast results, but that isn’t possible. It takes time and effort to build the physique you want, and that applies for all goals in life.

There are obviously other aspects to working out, such as dieting and a proper program, but that’s a discussion for another day. The key is to simply begin, and that’s surprisingly the hardest step to make: the very first step. I have a friend who I’ve been coaching for a couple of months now. He often asks me for advice and what to do to optimize his sessions. This is where a lot of people tend to get stuck. Ask too many questions, and you don’t get anywhere.

This was something I also fell victim to in the beginning. I spent so much time trying to optimize my workouts that I didn’t have any time getting the fundamentals down. This is why I mentioned the simple 3 exercise plan; this doesn’t produce the most results, but it does produce results. Doing something is better than doing nothing at all, and that’s what we’re after to sustain this habit.

Just commit to it, and figure it out on the way. Find what you do and don’t like, then adjust accordingly. I’ve learned that it’s more about the journey that’s worthwhile, not the destination. Learn to enjoy the sight in the mirror, the muscle soreness, the compliments, the encouragement, the lessons; learn to enjoy everything.

That’s what will make working out stick: when you enjoy it.

Begin today, and keep doing it for the rest of your life.

See you then -

Ethan