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Excercise Options and Regimes

Excercise regimes will be as different and unique as each individual person who begins one. Everyone decides to excercise for a personal reason. Some want to improve their fitness and health overall with no other specific goal. Others want to lose weight. Still others want to bulk up or tone their muscles. And then there are those competitive athletes who excercise to win. The goal that you have in mind when you begin your excercise routine will ultimately dictate what kind of regime you follow because there are many different parts of the body on which excercise can focus and many possible results. In addition, even two people with the same fitness goals will likely have different excercise regimes because what works for one person is not guaranteed to work for the next.

Components of Excercise Regimes

Although there are many components of excercise regimes that will vary from person to person, there are also a few that will remain the same. Anyone who has any experience with experience with excercise will tell you that proper and extensive stretching is key to preventing injuries and maximizing your excercise effort. Stretching better prepares your muscles for the strain of the excercise and improves flexibility, which results in better overall health. Additionally, when stretching is done after excercise, it aids in quicker recovery and helps prevent muscle soreness and stiffness.

Even though stretching is an essential beginning component of excercise regimes, it is not the first step. Stretching cold muscles that are tight and stiff is a good way to become injured, so it is important to do a short warm-up at the beginning of each workout. This can consist of walking for about five to eight minutes, doing some jumping jacks, or some other gentle activity to get your muscles moving and warm. After the warm-up is the perfect time to stretch because your muscles are now more elastic and pliable and this initial stretching prepares them for the more strenuous activity that will follow.

After the warm-up and initial stretching comes the primary component of your excercise regime. As stated earlier, what you do really depends on what you decide your goals are and what activities work for you. After completing this portion of your workout, though, it is important not to forget the cool-down. After pushing yourself and your muscles to a point of fatigue, you need to cool-down to give yourself a chance to slow your heartrate and gradually recover from the exertion. As part of your cool-down, which can be very similar to the warm-up (walking, etc.), do not forget your final stretching. This will relax both your body and mind and help work out of your system the lactic acid that causes muscle soreness.

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