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Stuck in a Fitness Rut Why it’s bad for you: If you never vary your fitness routine, your body adapts to it after time, and muscle will stop growing, says Pamela Peeke, MD, author of Fit to Live and Prevention’s medical advisor. You’re likely to get bored with your workout if you’re doing the same thing every time, making it easier to find excuses to skip the gym altogether. A University of Florida study found that exercisers who varied the type of exercise were 15% more likely to work out regularly than those sticking to the same routine and 63% more likely than people who had no set schedule or rules.

Your short-term action plan: Even something as simple as changing the route of your morning walk or creating a new workout sound track can add some oomph to your present routine. Visit musicworkout.com and download music in genres you like that are tailored to 30- and 60-minute workouts; also find music preselected for different types of exercise, such as elliptical, jogging, walking, and yoga. The key is to have some good old distracting fun, and “fun comes from your ability to make it different” or more challenging, Peeke says. For example, if you’re a walker, try going up hills or interspersing spurts of jogging: “You may be shocked to find you’re short of breath,” she says. Take an adventure vacation and incorporate activities such as kayaking, hiking, or biking. “You can tailor your training to the kind of vacation you’re taking, and that’s a great motivator.” Or use charity to inspire you: Sign up for the 5-K Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure or the Avon 3-Day Walk for Breast Cancer.

Your long-term action plan: Always have a fitness goal in mind — whether it’s walking a mile in 15 minutes instead of 20 or completing a Team Prevention marathon, you’ll have something to keep you driven, and you’ll be able to assess your performance, Peeke says. “The key is to check yourself at the beginning,” she says, evaluating how well you perform when you first start working toward your goal so you have something to compare.

Peeke recommends Healing Moves by Carol Krucoff for exercises that may treat or prevent common ailments. Whatever you do, add some variety — not only will your performance continue to improve but you’ll also be more mentally engaged, which Peeke says is crucial to improvement, enjoyment, and injury prevention. Keep up the variety as you get older to protect your mental health as well as your physical health: A 2005 study found that dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease) occurred less frequently in people 65 and older who participated in a greater variety of physical activities.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22287910/?pg=6#TDY_6Habits