Flourish Health & Wellbeing eMag - Latest Edition - Flipbook - Page 39
How hard should it feel?
Beginners often assume a
workout must leave them
exhausted to be effective. It
does not. During moderate
aerobic activity, you should
generally be breathing
faster while still able to
speak in short sentences.
During strength exercises,
the 昀椀nal repetitions should
feel challenging, but
your technique should
remain controlled.
Delayed muscle soreness
can occur when you try
unfamiliar exercise. Mild
stiffness that improves
over a few days is
different from sudden,
severe or worsening pain.
More soreness does not
mean more progress.
YOUR
FIRST-MONTH
MINDSET
Learn before
you load. Finish
with something
left in the tank.
Record what you
did. Increase one
element at a time.
Ask for help when
you need it.
Gym etiquette without
the mystery
• Return weights and
equipment after use.
• Wipe down equipment
according to the
gym’s policy.
• Avoid occupying
several pieces of
equipment at once
when the gym is busy.
• Give others enough
space to exercise safely.
• Ask before sharing
equipment or working
between another
person’s sets.
Consistency beats the
perfect program
Australia’s movement
guidelines encourage
adults to be active on
most days and include
muscle-strengthening
activity on at least two
days each week. That is a
direction to build towards,
not a requirement to
achieve in your 昀椀rst week.
Begin with a schedule you
can realistically repeat.
Two gym visits each week
may be a stronger starting
point than planning six
and abandoning the
routine after a fortnight.
Leave room for walking,
recreational activity,
recovery and sleep.
Fitness is not created by
one punishing workout.
It develops through
manageable effort
repeated over time.
