Improving your body means improving your body's ability to move and function. Its not easy thing to do at first, but it will get easier. Our overall plan to improving your body's fitness level is through exercise, coupled with the other fitness elements later throughout this book.

Exercise is something that people hate, but remember your body is built to be used, not to sit in a chair at a desk all day. It is estimated that most people don't get the exercise that they need and that leads to all types of health problems.

Again, even if you aren't overweight, chances are good that you aren't getting enough exercise and fitness into your life anyway. Using your muscles and strengthening them are vital to improving health and fitness.

Aerobic Training

Movement is important for your body. Exercise is the best route to take to gain that health. Aerobic training is the best way to improve your overall exercise tolerance and therefore to improve your muscles.

Aerobic training helps to increase your heart's ability to pump and therefore to get oxygen throughout your body faster. In this type of training, your body will work to improve its function by improving how much work your heart can do.

To find out if you have any limitations, talk to your doctor. If not, then start with a basic program. Here are some tips for you to get in aerobic training.

• Start with basic aerobics and work up as your tolerance increases. Walking is a great place to start.

• Increase your resistance by taking trails that offer hills or speeding up your walk as you improve.

• Move on to more aerobic style exercises. Swimming, bike riding, playing your favorite sport, running, elliptical machines, and other physical activities are perfect for aerobics.

Your goal is to start with 10 minutes of continuous aerobics three times a week. You should try to increase this to 30 minutes three times per week, though, as soon as your body allows for it. The guidelines of your doctor are a must to follow!

Strength Training

Along with aerobic training, you also need to consider adding strength training to your workout. Now, you don't have to be a body builder here. You don't have to have bulging muscles. But, you do want to develop lean muscles that are strong and therefore healthy.

If you need to lose some weight, strength training is a very essential aspect of making sure that happens. With strength training, you will be able to move flabby muscles and fat into lean muscles. Muscle burns through fat faster, allowing you to lose weight faster.

Strength training is essential because it allows you to improve the way that your body works, too. Muscles that are strong are less likely to become injured. They are able to be used easier, with less likelihood of being strained or hurt through your daily exercises, movements or even in accidents.

Here are some tips for exercising through strength training.

• Work with a low amount of weight first. Never increase the weight you are doing unless you are okayed to do so by your doctor.

• Consider working with a physical trainer. This small investment of time and money will allow you to improve your overall muscle mass faster, and more effectively.

• Change up the exercises that you do so that the process is easy and fun. You'll enjoy it and you'll see improvement in the tone of your body quickly.

With strength training, you should add in ten minutes per day three times per week at least. Again, you'll want to increase this number over time to at least 30 minutes per day three times per week. Remember to include ten minutes before and after your workouts for warm up and cool downs!