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How Do I Choose the Best Men's Fitness Plan?

Dan Cavallari
Dan Cavallari

The best men's fitness plan can vary significantly based on your current fitness level, fitness goals, schedule, and any medical conditions that may otherwise affect your ability to perform exercises. A good way to determine the best men's fitness plan for you is to visit with a professional trainer who will be able to assess your skills, fitness levels, and goals. If you cannot afford such a visit, you can do this assessment yourself, though you will not have the benefit of a professional's advice. Remember that adjusting your diet may also be necessary to make the most of the fitness plan.

If you are starting your men's fitness plan from a stall, meaning you have not been working out in any way previously, you will need to design a plan that eases you into the exercises. Starting too quickly or too strenuously can lead to injury, and the soreness from exercising suddenly can discourage you from continuing with the plan. You should start by assessing your daily schedule and figuring out which times of day work best for a workout. Some people are more comfortable with a morning workout, while others prefer an afternoon or evening workout. This is largely a matter of preference and scheduling.

The best men's fitness plans include both strength and aerobic training.
The best men's fitness plans include both strength and aerobic training.

Develop or find a men's fitness plan that allows for adequate rest between workouts, especially toward the beginning of the schedule. Rest is important to allow muscle tissue to repair itself; otherwise, your muscles will be more susceptible to injuries as well as soreness or other discomfort. As you progress in your men's fitness plan, your muscles will be able to handle more and more prolonged stress, but this does not mean rest is any less valuable. It may, in fact, be even more crucial as your workouts intensify.

A nutritious diet packed with vitamins and antioxidants can help improve any man's level of fitness.
A nutritious diet packed with vitamins and antioxidants can help improve any man's level of fitness.

It may be possible to find a plan that is tailored to your overall fitness goals. If, for example, you want to simply lose weight, you can participate in activities that are designed to burn calories. If you want to build muscle, however, you may end up lifting weights rather than riding a bike. The best men's fitness plan, however, will be the one that combines muscle growth with weight loss; muscle tends to burn more calories than fat, which means the more muscle you build, the easier it will be for you to lose weight. Try to ensure your workout includes both strength training and aerobic training to get the best results .

Discussion Comments

KoiwiGal

I think it's really important to focus on core fitness. Don't do it to the exclusion of everything else (although there are worse things you could do!) but also don't make the mistake of focusing on your six pack rather than your core.

Sure, the six pack looks good, but real strength comes from the muscles around it, since they support your organs and your back more than the six pack muscles do.

And don't just do weights. Try to mix in some cardio exercises as well. Men and women both tend to stick to a particular type of exercise, but a wide variety is much better for you and will help you to feel better in yourself in the long run.

lluviaporos

@pleonasm - I've never found that original consultation to tell me anything much I couldn't learn online and with a pair of scales and a tape measure.

All the fitness tests they use are online if you have a look for them. You usually don't even have to sign up for a site. They are just sitting there, with full calculators, waiting for you to punch in the numbers.

If you do a bunch of research over their suggestions, you will also be able to tailor a fitness plan that will suit your needs. Although if you are doing something like training for a particular sport, you still might appreciate having the input of a proper trainer.

But, yeah, I don't think you are missing much if you don't have a free consultation. Just figure it out by yourself.

pleonasm

If you can't afford a consultation with a personal trainer, I would look around to see if you can get a free one.

Whenever you join a gym or a swimming pool, they'll often offer you a free consult when you are starting out to assess what your fitness is. Often personal trainers will give you one free session to see if you are a good match as well. And I've seen sessions on those group coupon sites for next to nothing as well.

They really don't mind you having the first one free because the idea is to get you to come back regularly in order to make their money. So, take advantage of that in order to get your consultation and get an idea of how fit you are.

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    • The best men's fitness plans include both strength and aerobic training.
      By: Diego Barbieri
      The best men's fitness plans include both strength and aerobic training.
    • A nutritious diet packed with vitamins and antioxidants can help improve any man's level of fitness.
      By: Halfpoint
      A nutritious diet packed with vitamins and antioxidants can help improve any man's level of fitness.
    • A man's current fitness level should be considered when determining the best fitness plan.
      By: gekaskr
      A man's current fitness level should be considered when determining the best fitness plan.