Fitness tips of the week

Tips of the Week

Three American Council on Exercise-certified personal trainers who are students at Rowan and group-exercise instructors give advice on what to do to get in shape.

Consult a physician before beginning any fitness program.

If you work a 9-to-5 job, it's difficult to get to the gym early in the morning and it's hard to get there after work. Don't give yourself excuses. Here are some tips to get to the gym after a long work day:

Always have an extra set of workout clothes in your car.

Plan your workouts on your lunch break. Make yourself a workout that you are excited to do. Think about it all day and it will be hard to find an excuse to not go.

Pack your favorite snack for before your workout. Also, keep some snacks in your car in case you forget to pack one. Fuel up on something delicious that will give you a good amount of energy to work out with.

If you plan on having a delicious dinner, you'll be more inclined to work out.

Set a reminder on your phone that tells you to leave the office. Many times we get stuck at work trying to catch up and we don't leave any time for ourselves.

- Kimmi Sterner

Looking for a workout for a new beach body? Try HIIT. That is, High Intensity Interval Training. It involves switching between short periods of high intensity exercises and short periods of recovery/rest time.

The key is to pick high-intensity exercises that use the major muscle groups - such as squats, dead lifts, or plyometrics. The first benefit of this workout is that it needs to be only 20 minutes long. Get a fast workout in the morning and you'll be feeling great all day.

With HIIT you'll be burning calories and fat even after you've finished your workout.

- Chrissy Strow

With the improving weather, instead of going to a gym or down in the basement to work out, go outside and just run around and have fun. It will allow your body to experience something new and will allow your body to get an extra day of rest from lifting.

- Scott Baron