Q. I had lots of good intentions to exercise regularly in January but now I’m back on the sofa. Help!

Justin Edwards, ChampneysWellbeing and Fitness Manager, advises:

Start small and ease your way back into a regular routine, setting goals you know you can reach. Even if it's a 10-minute walk, it's a signal to yourself that you want to stay active and a reminder of your commitment to get healthy, lose weight, or whatever you’re aiming for.

Having everything you need to complete your workout is half the battle. If you have your clothes and gear ready to go, your workout planned, your bag packed and your snacks handy, you've taken away some of the reasons to skip your workout.

You need to get at least 30 minutes daily moderate physical activity that involves moving your whole body.

Try these tips:

1. Commit – When you fail to plan you plan to fail. To be successful, pencil in an exact appointment and consider it a mandatory meeting.

2. Break it up – Exercise does not have carried out in one session. You can split your exercise time in two by doing some exercise in the morning before work, then more later in the day. Research suggests that the fitness benefits of segmented exercise may be as great as one longer effort.

3. Recruit a friend for support.

4. Utilise the weekend – Your schedule is more flexible and under your control.

5. Be creative with exercise: Go up the stairs as often as possible. For variety, take the stairs two at a time, or step up the pace. Walk when you can. Park an extra block from your destination or at the rear of the car park. Look for the longest rather than the shortest route. Get up from your chair (permanently lose the TV remote). When unloading groceries from your car, carry one bag at a time into the house. View chores like lawn mowing, dusting and vacuuming as opportunities to exercise.

For more help, why not sign up for our 12 week body change challenge and get all the support and help you need to succeed? http://www.champneys.com/body-change-challenge/

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Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here