Channel: Lee Health

Category: Education

Tags: lose fatexercise routinemotivationscalelogging workoutswaterless stressfitness journeymuscle masshappiertrack how you lookinflammationfitnessmuscletrack how you feelwellness and program managertracking body compositionincreased libidohealth goalsmeasuring your progressgoalsprogress picturesbody fat

Description: What's your goal and what's your motivation? Two questions health experts say are important to answer at the beginning of your fitness journey. "There are a bunch of different ways to measure your progress. I do recommend making it individualized to what you want to see," said Lee Health wellness and program manager Mathieu Knapp. He says things like tracking body composition, taking progress pictures, and logging your workouts can help to keep you on track. "You can track how your clothes fit. If your goal is to lose fat they could be fitting loose, or if your goal is to put on muscle mass they could be fitting tighter. I don't know if I would recommend checking the scale every day just because there is going to be such a fluctuation with multiple different things—body fat, muscle, water, inflammation." He recommends being patient with your body and having a plan when you start your exercise routine. "First assess when you begin, give it probably at least a month and then reassess and see where you're at and then you can make changes to your program and progress accordingly," said Knapp. In addition to tracking how you look, also keep track of how you feel before and after exercise. "As they get better and see results, obviously they are happier, typically they have less stress, they could have more libido, which is sex drive, they could have less pain in their joints, they could be more active with their family," he said. Staying consistent and finding positive ways to keep you focused and motivated can help you reach your health goals. View More Health Matters video segments at LeeHealth.org/Healthmatters Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries. Lee Health - Caring People. Inspiring Care. Visit LeeHealth.org