1. Track your workouts. Keep a daily or weekly log to track all of your workouts so that you can ensure that you are progressing in the right direction and keeping your body challenged. Track such things as frequency, duration, intensity, weight sizes, sets, reps and how you felt during and after your workouts.

2. Have back up plans for all of your workouts. For example, you may plan to workout for an hour after work by doing both cardio and strength training. Then your boss asks you to say late. Your workout time is now limited to 30 minutes. Know ahead of time exactly what workout you’ll do in that shortened time period so that you don’t waste precious workout time or worse decide to forego it all together.

3. Avoid highly processed foods whenever possible. Stick to whole foods. Complex carbohydrates are fine, just avoid the over-processed, simply carbs.

4. Choose exercises that you enjoy doing. You’ll be more inclined to stick with a fitness regimen when it includes things you like to do.

5. Change your fitness routine every 4-6 weeks to prevent a workout plateau.

6. Strive to include total body workouts. These include: cardiovascular exercises, strength training (both upper and lower body), core training and stretching/flexibility. Measure your exercise intensity. There are several methods: heart rate, rating of perceived exertion, talk test.

7. Whenever possible, take the stairs instead of an elevator.

8. Stretching and flexiblity are very important aspects of good physical fitness, so don’t overlook them. Ideally, you should stretch before each workout (both cardio and resistance exercises) and after each workout. If you can’t do both, then make the after stretching a priority.

 9. When stretching before a workout, it’s best to stretch after you’ve gotten warmed-up for about 5 minutes (your muscles will be looser).

10. When working out on cardio equipment (e.g. elliptical trainers), don’t lean heavily on the handrails. This will reduce the amount of calories you burn.

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