First, congratulations on choosing to make your health a priority by incorporating exercise into your lifestyle.    If you are new to Venice Nutrition, it’s important to understand that optimal Sleep and the right Nutrition are responsible for creating balance within your body and allowing it to release stored fat.  The right exercise routine will accelerate your fat burning power and help you to build lean muscle mass to boost your metabolism and achieve your goals at a faster pace.  Not to mention regular exercise improves the health of your heart, bones and joints and overall mood.

So where should you begin?  If you’ve never exercised before or consider yourself a “beginner”, the first step is to schedule a check-up with your physician to get the “okay” before performing any exercise routine and to make sure that there are no underlying medical conditions you may not have been aware of.    Though no one likes to go to the doctor; this step is critical in your success.  If you dive into an exercise program and are unaware of any problems that do exist, it’s likely that you could get hurt….and that will prevent you from exercising at all.  A quick check-up can save you a lot of time and aggravation down the road.

What’s next?  Perhaps the most important step of all.  As a nutrition and fitness professional for many years, I highly recommend that you work with a Certified Personal Trainer or a Physical Therapist.  A trained professional will evaluate your goals, lifestyle, health issues, physical limitations and even important aspects that will greatly affect your routine such as flexibility, muscle imbalances, gait, range of motion and more.  All too often, we try to dive right into a routine without really knowing our bodies or physical limitations, and injury follows.  Play it safe, and get a much better workout (read: faster results!) with a routine designed just for you by a professional who understands your body and goals.

After you’ve consulted your doctor and have a custom routine designed for you by a trained professional, the next step is to learn to listen to your body.  Often in our quest to get lean, healthy and fit, we ignore pain or “over-do” it at the gym, and again this can lead to injury and a long vacation from your workout.   If something doesn’t feel right, stop and talk to your PT about making some adjustments.

A few pointers that will help you along the way:

-Make sure to warm up properly before jumping into your routine; even five minutes of walking will warm your muscles and help to prevent injury.
-Ask your physical therapist or personal trainer to custom design a stretching routine aimed to create more balance in your body and relieve muscle tension. 
-What you eat before working out is just as important as the workout itself.  A balanced meal will keep blood sugar stable and allow you to protect and build lean muscle while burning body fat.  Working out on an empty stomach is never a good idea!
-Stay hydrated for optimal performance

And lastly, we invite you to learn how your body really works.  Did you know you have two different muscle fibers that need to be trained?  Or that it’s possible to “over-do” it during cardio and break down muscle instead of fat?  At Venice Nutrition we know that your time is valuable and that is why we provide you with the guidance, tools, education and customized fitness routine to help you to use your time most efficiently and get the best results possible.  Log in to your online program today and don’t forget to visit the new Exercise Tab!

My best,

Valerie Cogswell
Certified Venice Nutrition Coach and Head Chef