Ignore every fad diet and every workout routine that you see advertised on the checkout counter. Anything that says you can lose weight quickly is probably lying, because the key to what it takes to get into shape is consistency and the willingness to stick it out over the long run. There are no secrets, only one rule: burn off more calories than you take in.

Americans eat far more calories than is necessary for a standard day. We see the nutritional information on the back of our food and think that twenty-five hundred calories is ideal for a day. This is true, if the man is getting around two hours of exercise per day. In reality, if you have a sedentary lifestyle (such as that of an office worker who gets no exercise and watches television at home), you should not be eating more than about fifteen hundred to eighteen hundred calories. Cut out the “three daily meals” idea and eat five or six snacks each day, replacing junk food with vegetables, white grains with whole grains, and animal products with nuts, beans, or fish.

Once you lower your calorie intake, start burning the excess calories off. Start by parking farther from your car to work, taking stairs instead of an elevator, and going for a 30-minute walk instead of watching a TV show. Build this up until you are getting an hour a day of high-intensity cardiovascular exercise, such as running, biking, or swimming. You can do simple conditioning routines, like push-ups and sit-ups, without a gym membership, but if you want big muscles you will have to start lifting weights. The good news is that lifting weights actually burns more fat than cardio exercise and need only be done 2-3 times per week. Eat more protein when you lift weights.

• Thu, 29 Sep 2011 21:24:01 +0000: How To Dress For The Gym - Continuous City » Getting Into Shape
  For those wondering how to dress for the gym, there are a few general tips to follow. Different activities and exercises call for different attire. An exerciser’s personal preferences must be taken into account too. Fortunately, it is not that hard to figure out what to put on when heading out to the gym for [...]