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There are a lot of great places where you can exercise in Dallas. I prefer to work out in the fresh air and to be able to see some nature. There are many great parks in Dallas for walking or jogging. Try to find one for you that has a good trail. White Rock Lake is a paradise for people who like to ride their bike. It has a ten mile loop around the lake. I like to go for a walk at Valley Creek Park in Mesquite. It has a small, beautiful man-made lake with a 1.14 mile concrete trail around it. You can also try one of the many fitness clubs in Dallas such as 24 Hour Fitness, L.A. Fitness etc. These places have lots of great amenities such as pools, stationary bikes, racket-ball, weight sets etc. Many time you can get coupons for these places which give you a free trial period to see if you like it and want to get a membership.
I would suggest that you work-out in the early morning or in the evening as these are the times when the oxygen is the freshest and the level of car emissions in the air is the lowest. Also it’s not near as hot during these times of the day. Too much heat sucks the life out of me and makes me lethargic. Nobody wants to work out when they feel like that.
Another good tip for weight loss and exercise is to identify the people in your life who can help you reach your goal. My family was very supportive of me and helped and encouraged me in making the right decisions. They made things a lot easier for me. Some people really benefit from a kind of support group full of people who really understand where they’re coming from and can share there journey. You might want to check out some of these places in Dallas like Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig’s etc. if you feel they would be helpful. I like to exercise alone. It gives me time to think and also to listen to my body and pay attention to how hard I can push myself that day. But a lot of people like to have a work-out partner. Sometimes that other person is just what you need to motivate you to keep working out. If you’ve got the money you might even want to check into a personal trainer at one of Dallas’s fitness centers.
Here is another option for you to consider in your weight loss plan. I used to not eat any food and just drink water once a week (usually Wednesdays). Of course eating less helped burn fat, but it’s also good for getting rid of toxins. Fasting is definitely not for everyone though, especially that often. I think this time around I will probably fast a couple of dinners a week rather than one whole day. Some say it is terrible to “skip meals,” but I find that it works well for me, especially if the skipped meal is the evening meal.
When I don’t eat well and exercise, I feel awful. At my heaviest weight, I would often get sick. I felt nauseous and had a horrible headache if I didn’t get my lunch on time. I think my blood-sugar was really screwed up and I may have been borderline Type II diabetic. I’m not sure. But within a week of eating right and exercising, all that was gone. I felt so much better. I had more energy (though never as much as I would like). And I felt more confident about myself. I always hated shopping for and trying on clothes in stores because they never fit good and I always had fat bulging out all over the place. But the more weight I lost the more I enjoyed shopping for clothes. Clothes now fit well and I looked good and I could pick out cool outfits which I could never dream of wearing before. There’s so many great clothing shops in Dallas. It would be a shame to spend the rest of your life shopping at the Big and Tall shop or the XXL section of Wal-Mart.
One of the most important pieces of advice I can give you is this – 1: you will screw up and 2: that’s OK. You will make mistakes along the way. You will overeat sometimes. You will binge on junk food occasionally. You will skip your exercise some days. It’s OK. Remember this is a journey. You are trying to change your whole lifestyle not just temporarily reduce your waistline. So don’t beat yourself up. Don’t get discouraged. Just get back to doing what you know is right. Start eating the right foods in the right amounts again. Start exercising again. And give yourself a treat sometimes. Maybe go out for ice cream once a week. Maybe eat a small piece or two of chocolate once in awhile. Treats aren’t bad in moderation, when you are in control of them and not the other way around.
I hope this article helps you and gives you some ideas that will work for you and provide you with some motivation. I know it’s not easy to get in shape but it definitely is worth it. That’s why I keep at it and don’t give up. I hope you will keep at it too. Remember to take plenty of before, during, and after pictures to keep track of your journey and see how far you’ve come.
