work-life balance: 30/5/30 challenge part 1.

I've embarked on a new personal challenge to exercise for 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. I've also promised to share what I've done each week with all my readers. For the week of July 23, here's what I did:

Monday: Tennis
Tuesday: Long walk with the dog
Wednesday: Aerobics/Kickboxing Exercise Video
Thursday: Long walk with the dog
Friday: Break
Saturday: Long walk around the East Mall of Washington, DC
Sunday: Break

My first week went pretty well. I learned two important things: (1) I can do this! and (2) I need to listen to my body and know my limits. Thursday, i decided to do an advanced version of an exercise video, and found myself almost collapsing after the first 15 minutes. So I'm going to take it slow this week to avoid burning out.

Readers: How do you plan on staying active this week?

work-life balance: 30/5/30 exercise challenge.

For a long time I've struggled with my workout schedule. I'm sure many of you are like me where I come up with this great, extremely detailed plan of how, when, and where I'm going to workout for the next million years. Then, the follow through just isn't as great.

My main issues: time and motivation. Who has the time or the energy to exercise after a long, hard day at work?

Well, I've come up with a plan for myself. For the next 30 days, I will challenge myself to spend 5 days a week doing 30 minutes of exercise.  These workouts aren't restricted by how many calories I should be burning or how strenuous they should be. Instead, I'm just promising myself to be active in some way, shape, or form for 30 minutes, 5 days a week. And I hope to do one (optional) fun, active, outdoor exercise during the weekend like tennis, running, swimming, etc.

At the end of the week, I'll post a report on what I've accomplished and my progress thus far.

I hope you all will enjoy following my progress and even become inspired to set out just 30 minutes a day for some fun, active exercise. If so, please share your experience with me in the comment box below.