There’s a good chance that you’ve relied on a scale to tell you what kind of progress you’re making with your body.  Instead, go that extra mile and have a body-fat reading taken — it will give you a much better idea of what’s going on with your body composition.

No.2 - Keep a better workout journal

If you’re the type of person who goes by memory in terms of how much weight you’ve lifted and how many reps you’ve performed, start tracking this info more closely in a workout journal. A journal will give you a better indication of improvements you’ve made and help pinpoint weakness you may want to spend extra time on. Moreover, when looking back over the months, a journal can help you see how much progress you have made.

No.3 - Make stretching mandatory

Stretching is often the most neglected aspect of fitness. Insufficient stretching will put you at a higher risk for injury, so dedicate at least 10 minutes at the end of your workout to basic stretches.

No.4 - Move your workouts out of the gym

Always doing your workouts in the gym can add to the boredom you experience, and makes sticking with your workout program that much harder. To remedy this, consider taking your workouts out of the gym. Sign up for a recreational basketball or soccer team, try a new activity like jujitsu or take a couple wall-climbing sessions to enhance your upper body strength.

No.5 - Focus on functional fitness

When we work out, much of the time, we’re heavily focused on bringing our bench press up 10 pounds, squatting an insane amount of weight or just out-lifting our training partner. While these are fine goals to have, this year, spend some time focusing on functional fitness — increasing your strength in areas that will help you in everyday life. Perform resistance tubing exercises to strengthen the ligaments and joints, and focus on weight-training movements that resemble everyday activities.

No.6 - Resolution participate in a sport

Many of us talk about running a marathon, competing in bodybuilding or participating in the local triathlon, but few of us take action to pursue these goals. Make this the year that you finally do put those goals in place and get into the game — sign yourself up for a training group, get yourself onto a 16-week training plan or just find a buddy to do the event with you.

No.7 - Invest in proper running shoes (or insoles)

If you’ve been running all year in the same running shoes, it’s time to pay a visit to a local running store and get fitted for some new ones. Improperly fitting or worn-out runners are some of the top reasons behind running injuries, making this a resolution that cannot be overlooked.

No.8 - Commit to early morning workouts

If the primary reason you’re skipping out on your gym sessions is due to other things crowding your time, make the resolution to commit to early morning workouts. Initially, it will be hard getting yourself out of bed, but after you get into the habit of it, you’ll find you’re a great deal more consistent with your workouts than when you were doing them later on.

No.9 - Add interval training to your cardio workouts

If you aren’t already doing interval-style cardio workouts, now is the time to start. Not only does it help with muscle retention, but it also promotes a faster metabolic rate and enhances lipolysis, speeding up the rate at which you see fat loss.

No.10 - Include one new exercise each month

A lack of variety is one of the most common workout routine errors. Your body is going to stop responding unless you take steps to mix up your program. Make it a goal to add one new exercise to your program each month. Remember, this does not have to be an exercise using traditional weights and barbells. You can get a terrific workout by using your body weight, as demonstrated in Alwyn Cosgrove’s “Your Body is a Barbell” program.

Source: http://au.askmen.com/

Working out is about discipline, it’s about pushing yourself. To truly get in shape, you need to change your attitudes and beliefs. This is not just about being better looking, it’s about building the confidence and discipline you need to be a good Pick up Artist and an attractive man. Here are the tips that most other websites won’t tell you – I had to learn this myself.

1 – Play a sport. If you’re a typical guy with a competitive instinct, you’ll find that sports are much more motivating than exercise for it’s own sake or bodybuilding. They get your testosterone flowing, and help build functional strength. And if you suck at first – now you have a good reason to practice more.  At the gym, work out with your sport in mind – it’s motivating.

2 – Screw bodybuilding. Most of the workout advice on the internet comes from a bodybuilding perspective, ignore it.  Bodybuilding doesn’t build functional strength, it’s motivated by narcissism, it’s not healthy, and it doesn’t even make women attracted to you. Ask you female friends whether they’d rather date a 220lb bodybuilder or a 180lb soccer player. Women like strength, not muscle.

3 – Work out a lot. Bodybuilders are the only “athletes” that only  train three times a week. For every other sport,  5-6 workouts a week is the standard. If you’re not competing at a high level, you don’t NEED to work out 6 days a week – but try. That way, if you miss a few workouts a week (as we all do) you’ve still worked out 4 times. Once you start feeling the changes to your body and your energy levels, you will want to work out every day.

4 – Stop making excuses. I just worked out yesterday. I’ll work out tomorrow. I haven’t eaten recently. I just ate. My joint hurts. My muscles are sore. I used to have all these excuses.  JUST GO. If you haven’t eaten properly, chomp down something quick on your way out, if you just ate, walk slowly to the gym. Things don’t have to be perfect.

5 – Lift weights for strength. Weight training and bodybuilding aren’t the same thing. Lifting weights can help build functional strength for sport and is good for your joints and bones. Bodybuilding is focused on cosmetics, and can lead to muscle imbalances and joint pain. Embrace weight training, forget about bodybuilding. Stronglifts 5×5 has a great program for beginners to weight training. I try to lift weights 3x a week, and play sports 3x a week. This is what I do instead of watching TV.

6 – Weight lift with form to strengthen your joints. I used to have a sore back and knees that kept me from working out properly. I would baby them and avoid working them out too hard. But that just weakened the muscles around the joints, caused muscle imbalances and made my pain worse. Now I do weightlifting with proper form, and I’m strengthening my joints safely. Machine exercises don’t build strong joints. My sore knees feel 100x better since I started doing squats regularly. Stronglifts has great advice on how to lift weights with proper form.

7 – Forget gimmicks. There are a lot of gimmicky workout routines out there. Some are total crap, some work but are for pro bodybuilders. If you’re new, you don’t need gimmicks, you need a conservative, hard, kick your ass workout to give you basic fitness and to get used to the idea of pushing yourself. Most gimmicky workout routines tell you that you can get fit without pushing yourself or working hard, but you want to work hard; that’s how you grow mentally and physically.

8 – Stop making excuses. I’m saying this twice because it needs to be said. Don’t have enough money? Don’t have enough time? Take your plasma TV or your Xbox 360 and pawn them on Craigslist. Now you have the time and the money. I’ve found that a good ½ hour workout makes me more focused and productive all day giving me more productive time. Workout regularly for a few weeks and see how much more time it creates for you.

9 – Eat healthy. No workout regime is complete without a healthy diet. Especially if your goal is to lose weight, you’re going to need to watch your diet. Lots of protein, watch your carbs, eat whole grains and veggies. There are a lot of good diet plans out there on the internet. Avoid gimmicks.

10 – Exercise your willpower. The best part of working out for me is the way it strengthens my willpower as it strengthens my body. Growth requires pain and discomfort, growth is exhausting. When you push through a tough workout or give your all in a big game, you’re training your mind to push through the troubles and the pain of everyday life. You get stronger, more confident and the slings and arrows of everyday life hurt less. It changes your life.

Source: http://www.tenmagnet.com/