What is physical fitness?
Physical fitness goes much beyond just being able to manage daily activities during the course of your work or personal life. The term implies the state when you can not only execute daily activities but also sports, your occupation, and other activities with optimal performance. Physical fitness also means that you are able to do all this while managing stress, diseases, stress, sedentary lifestyle, nutritional deficiencies, etc. It includes your endurance, muscular strength, and flexibility.
Since our bodies cannot function and perform in isolation, our physical fitness also depends on and includes our emotional state and alertness of the mind.
What is fitness training?
Fitness or physical training is a group of organized and coordinated workouts that help develop your muscular strength, balance & coordination, endurance, and improved functioning of your organs.
Fitness training is customised for beginners i.e. people who have never worked out or have stopped exercising. The first aim of workout routines for beginners is to condition their minds in adopting a healthy lifestyle through exercises and fitness. It also involves the development of form and the basic strength to start with a regular fitness routine customised according to their workout experience, age, and fitness levels.
How effectively can beginners do fitness training at home?
The best part about exercise is that it can be customised to suit your requirements of time, space, exercise experience, and level of fitness. Physical fitness for beginners needs no fancy workout studio space or equipment. Here is how you can kick start your beginners’ physical exercise routine:
You just need a plan to get started with physical fitness. Develop an achievable routine for yourself that’s not over-ambitious keeping in mind your time constraints, the current level of endurance, fitness, etc., and stick to it.
Find a space in your house that’s airy and well-lit for great workout energy and positivity.
The spot that you choose for your physical exercise should not be cluttered or unclean. It should be peaceful, clean, and without distractions.
Who can do fitness training?
You are a beginner if you have never exercised before or are re-starting your physical exercise routine after a long break. You can be a beginner at any stage due to reasons of your age, injury, or any medical condition.
Children as young as 5 years can start with a gentle physical fitness program.
Seniors can regain their flexibility and strength through physical training.
People who have suffered from an injury and are recuperating.
People who have undergone surgery and are healing.
People who suffer from health conditions like digestive disorders, muscular weaknesses, thyroid, etc.
Pregnant women can begin gentle workouts.
People falling under any of these categories must always consult with their doctor before beginning a physical training routine.
Who should avoid fitness training?
Regular
exercise and physical fitness have tremendous benefits for our mind and body and everyone should do some form of physical exercise every day. However, there are certain conditions that may render exercising ineffective or even risky for some people. These include:
People who have suffered from a recent injury must wait for the injury to heal before starting physical exercise.
Avoid exercising if you are experiencing extreme stress, anxiety or panic at the moment.
If you have fever, flu, or cold, avoid exercising till the time you have recovered.
Pregnant women must never start exercising without consulting their doctor.
Physical exercise is not recommended for people who have just suffered from a heart attack, a bout of asthma, injury in the spine, etc.
What is the list of best workouts for beginners?
Here is a list of some of the most effective workout routines for beginners from different types of exercise groups like
Online Yoga Classes , cardio,
beginner HIIT, etc.:
Jabs
Dead bug
Squats
Burpees HIIT
Beast walk
Jumping Jacks
Plank
Child’s pose (Balasana)
Workouts for beginners explained.
Here is a detailed step-by-step explanation of a routine of physical fitness for beginners:
Jabs: This is one of the most effective and fun ways to induce physical fitness for beginners. This is a great high-intensity cardio exercise that improves your strength, coordination, and mobility.
Stand tall with your back straight and shoulders relaxed. Your elbows should be bent and your feet hip-width apart.
Make fists with your hands and bring your hands up to your chin in a ‘defense pose’.
Inhale deeply and punch one arm straight without locking your elbow. Pull the arm back to the starting position.
Repeat on the other side. This is one rep.
Total sets: Do 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps
Hold: 1 second
Dead bug: This is a great exercise to build stability, balance, and strength. This exercise especially helps in strengthening your abs and spine while engaging your hips, lower back, shoulders, and arms.
Lie on a mat with your arms extended over your chest.
Bend your legs so that your knees are above your thighs and hips.
Slowly lift your feet off the floor at a 90-degree angle.
Keeping your abs engaged, lower your left arm and the opposite leg at the same time. Bring them both to the starting position.
Repeat on the other side. This is one rep.
Total sets: Do 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps
Hold: 3 seconds
Squats: One of the most effective exercises to induce physical fitness in beginners, squats help in strengthening your lower body by engaging all the major muscle groups.
Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
Shift your hips back while bending your knees slowly and pressing your knees to open.
Bend your knees slowly and lower down in a sitting position.
Hold the pose for a few seconds and come back up.
Total sets: Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Hold: 3-4 seconds
Burpees: Burpees are performed as a high-level intensity workout regime and are great for burning fat, strengthening your lungs and heart, and improving brain function.
Start by lowering yourself in a squat position with your back straight and knees bent. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart.
Lower your hands to the floor in front of you.
With your weight on your hands, kick your feet back so that you are on your hands in a pushup position.
Keeping your body straight, do one pushup.
Stand and take your arms over your head.
Jump into the air and land back to the starting position with bent knees. This is one rep.
Total sets: Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Hold: 3-4 seconds
Jumping Jacks: This is a great full-body physical training routine for beginners. Jumping Jacks is one of the best types of physical fitness exercises that improve your metabolic rate, strength, and endurance.
Stand straight with your feet together and hands by your side.
Jump up and spread your feet while bringing your hands above your head.
Jump again and return to the starting position. This is one set.
Total sets: Do 4-5 sets of 15-20 reps
Hold: 3-4 seconds
Plank: This is one of the most effective types of physical fitness routines that help develop a strong core. It also builds and maintains your strength and helps in losing weight.
Lie on the floor with your face down and forearms and toes on the floor.
Your elbows should be under your shoulders and forearms facing forward.
Lift your body while engaging your abdominal muscles. Keep your body straight and hold the position.
Total sets: Do 3 sets of 10 reps
Hold: Start with 3-4 seconds and gradually increase to 30-60 seconds
Child’s pose (Balasana): This is one of the easiest physical exercises for beginners that help in giving your hips and thighs a good stretch. It also helps relieve you of stress, fatigue, and back pain.
Kneel on the floor and sit on your heels.
Slowly bend forward as you lower your forehead to touch the floor with it.
Keep your arms alongside your body.
Gently press your chest on the thighs and hold the pose.
Pull your navel towards your spine.
Exhale and softly release your body.
Slowly raise your body to the starting position.
Total sets: Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Hold: 7-8 seconds
What are the benefits of fitness training for beginners?
The benefits of starting your physical fitness routine cannot be stressed enough. Here are some of its most important benefits:
A routine of physical fitness for beginners helps in inducing a health-seeking mindset that spans your lifestyle including eating habits, activity levels, etc. This helps in preventing several diseases and letting you enjoy a longer and healthier life.
Regular physical activity helps in building the strength in your muscles, essential for doing even the smallest activity and preventing frequent muscle pains and injuries.
A physical fitness routine helps in improving your bone density, which is extremely essential as you age. This prevents conditions like osteoporosis, frequent fractures, etc.
A physical fitness routine helps in losing visceral fat. This in turn reduces your risk of getting heart diseases, cancer, diabetes, etc.
Physical exercises for beginners help in releasing endorphins that reduce stress and depression and lend a happier and more positive disposition.
Your flexibility and mobility improves and helps in letting you perform daily tasks and activities better.
Since you lose weight and are more flexible, it helps in improving your self-image and confidence.
Physical fitness improves your energy levels. This helps in not only working out better and more but also improves your performance at work.
Physical fitness reflects not only in how toned your body is but also in the health of your skin and hair. Regular exercise prevents premature signs of ageing.
Exercising every day improves your blood circulation. This has a huge impact on improving your immunity essential for fighting off infections and diseases.
A regular physical fitness regime helps in lowering your cholesterol levels and regulating blood sugar levels.
It helps in improving the circulation of blood to your brain. This helps in bettering your cognitive functioning and preventing memory loss, dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc.
What are the disadvantages of fitness training for beginners?
There are no intrinsic disadvantages of a physical fitness routine for beginners, just some risks that occur by not following the proper techniques of exercising. These include:
Any form of physical exercise, be it aerobics, yoga, or strength training, requires precision and techniques. Not learning these from experienced trainers may lead to injuries.
Doing high volumes of high-intensity exercises may result in palpitations, injuries, arthritis, fatigue, etc.
Neglecting your exercises or taking long breaks may leave you feeling weak and dehydrated.
What are the dos and don’ts for fitness training for beginners?
Since beginners are not used to physical exertion and activity levels as much as an experienced person, there are some things that need to be kept in mind before starting a fitness regime. These include:
Dos:
Warm-up and cool-down sessions are critical for avoiding fatigue and injuries.
Start in moderation. Doing too much exercise too frequently will result in extreme fatigue and even serious injuries.
Be consistent with your physical fitness routine to get the expected results.
Always experiment and keep trying newer forms of exercise to keep your mind and body interested and engaged.
Keep a track of your hydration and nutrition for the exercise to impact your better.
Don’ts:
Never start a physical fitness regime without guidance from an expert trainer.
Never exercise when you are injured, fatigued, or have body pain to avoid problems in the long run.
Never have unrealistic expectations or set unrealistic goals. You should not be obsessed with things like six-pack abs or a size-zero figure but build fitness into your lifestyle.
What are the things required for fitness training if you are at home or the gym?
Here are the things required for a physical fitness routine at the gym:
Dumbbells
A pull-up bar
A kettlebell
Workout bench
Here are the things that will enhance your
home workout :
A yoga mat
Resistance bands
Jumping rope
Balance ball