Proper diet and exercise are extremely important to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Unfortunately, many Americans turn to costly fad diets and exercise programs that fail to provide weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. The basic principles to gradual weight loss and good health include developing healthy eating habits and increasing your daily physical activity. This can include walking to the supermarket instead of driving, and taking more trips up and down your stairs.

There are a few guidelines that you should consider before undergoing any form of exercise program. First, start out slowly and build up activity gradually over a period of months. This will help your muscles adapt to the new stress and prevent soreness and injury. Next, try to incorporate at least 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity cardiovascular activity each day. You can do all 30 minutes together or through short bouts of intermittent activity.