The right exercise for your personality type
exercise, motivation, personality type
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Common sense dictates that if you don't like a particular type of physical activity, you won't be motivated to stick with it. But have you given any consideration to why it doesn't appeal to you? Maybe it's a bad fit for your personality.
Before you beat yourself up about how you've only once visited the swanky gym you joined last year, think about whether you enjoy the exercise that you do there. If the idea that physical activity can instill anything other than dread seems shocking, it may be time to reconsider your exercise choices.
The most important thing about exercise is consistency, so you need to choose things that are realistic, comfortable and that are going to inspire you to keep coming back.
One of the best ways to figure out what kind of exercise is right for you is to try to match your activity with your personality. If you're loner you're probably not going to drag yourself to volleyball practice after a long day, but you'll show up if you're competitive or if you love the camaraderie of a team. A more contemplative or introverted person might have better luck with walks in the woods, tai chi or martial arts.
Likewise a goal-oriented personality is often drawn to a single activity. That way, they can train like an athlete and excel at their sport. But alternating between different activities might be a good choice for other people, especially older adults who don't want to overstress their joints, or those who are easily bored.
If I'm sort of a dilettante about exercise and on Monday, I'm swimming, and on Tuesday, I'm walking, and on Wednesday, I'm biking, then I'm probably not getting very good at one thing . But in terms of being active, that's perfect.
Even a coach potato can make a gradual transition to exerciser, as long as they begin with realistic goals such as opting for the stairs rather than the elevator when possible. Or people can make time to do hou... read entire entry
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on 5/2/2008
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9.8
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Building Your Best Body - The Intensity Factor
exercise, lifting, reps, effort, intensity
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Ever feel like all the work you put into attaining your 'best body' just is not cutting it? Here you are dragging yourself to the gym, running on the treadmill, slaving away with dumbbells, barbells and machines that resemble some sort of medieval torture device and none of it is working. You can't seem to lose any more body-fat, build any more muscle or increase your strength beyond what it's been for the past few years.
You ask yourself, "how could this be, I train hard...don't I?" How hard--or more appropriately--how intensely you exercise, is the biggest determinant of your success. If you are truly training hard (intensely) then you will, without question see some substantial improvements in your physique, your strength and the way you feel. The trouble is most people measure 'how hard' they are training by 'how much' work they are performing.
Just because you exercises 6 days a week for an hour and a half each time does not necessarily mean you are training hard. In fact if training this much or something close to this much you are probably not training hard at all.
Intensity (as defined by the International Association of Resistance Trainers) is" the possible percentage of momentary muscular and volitional effort exerted." Basically, intensity refers to how strenuous an exercise is at any given moment during a set.
The only problem is that a person's percentage of effort can only be measured accurately at two specific moments. When they are exerting no effort at all (zero) or when they are exerting all their effort (one-hundred percent). A person's intensity is at one-hundred percent when they've reached momentary muscular failure or fatigue. This is when another repetition can not be completed through its full range of motion and with good form despite all of the physical and mental effort the person puts forth.
It should be noted that it is not known precisely how much intensity is actually r... read entire entry
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on 3/29/2008
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8
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