Say no to excuses and yes to exercise

According to the recently revised Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture departments, two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese. They recommend that adults do between 30 and 90 minutes of exercise a day, depending on your individual health requirement. The guidelines also suggest that all Americans exercise moderately for 30 minutes a day simply to reduce the risk of chronic disease.

Those aiming to curb gradual weight gain need to work out on most days for about 60 minutes. For folks trying to sustain weight loss, 60-90 minutes of daily physical activity is recommended.

Many people may find the new recommendations to be unrealistic. After all, who has that much time to devote to exercise?

If you value your health, devote some time to exercise. The very first step to a healthier lifestyle is to stop making excuses about why you have no time to exercise. Procrastination gets you nowhere and keeps you overweight.

Finding time to make physical activity a priority in your life really isn't that difficult. Think about the minutes that turn into hours of TV watching. What about the time you spend on the Internet? That can be used for exercising.

Don't let the amount of time that the guidelines recommend scare you. Start by simply making a goal to get in 30 minutes of physical activity a day. The sky is the limit as to what you decide to do, but be sure to consult your doctor before beginning a physical routine.

Activities may include walking briskly, jogging, biking, stair climbing, dancing or even pacing back and forth while chatting on the phone with a friend. As long as it adds up to 30 minutes. Your activity of choice can also be broken up into 10- or 15-minute intervals.

As your tolerance builds, work at adding more time and activity to your routine. Try going for a walk or run first thing in the morning and while you're at the office use the stairs instead of the elevator.

A great way to keep track of your exercise goal is to wear a step counter. Fitness experts recommend trying to accumulate 10,000 steps a day, which is equivalent to approximately 5 miles.

If your old habits are too hard to break and you really have to watch television in your spare time, then go ahead. Just get an aerobic video or DVD to exercise to while you do it.