Today I went to a new hair stylist. As you know, there is always a lot of social chitchat when you are having your hair cut and colored. This was no exception with my new friend Amy, who like me is passionate about every day exercise.

We have both recently decided to lose weight through starting a new healthy diet and a more consistent exercise program. We have been working at this for roughly the same time and were interested in ‘what worked’ for each other.

Amy is overweight and she needs to lose around 20 pounds. As a mom with two teenage kids she has a busy schedule. She says that her first goal was to set and maintain a regular every day exercise routine.

Amy works long hours but she is so committed to her better health that she has negotiated different start and finish times at her work place. This means that she can workout on her every day exercise routines daily. She has come to enjoy these over recent weeks and would not miss.

The most interesting aspect of our discussion was the portable heart rate monitor that Amy wears when she exercises. She tells me that they are not expensive so I have decided to get one to measure when my heart-rate gets to 1.3 its regular rate. I know that I need to include this level of cardiac fitness in my fitness program.

To develop a normal heart rate of 70 beats per minute, you need to increase this to around 90-100 beats per minute. This elevates your heart rate sufficiently to increase you are your cardio- vascular fitness and helps you lose weight. Both of us were aiming for this as part of our every day exercise.

Amy says that she is keeping her program running regularly despite her full lifestyle because she is staying motivated. One of the keys to this for Amy is her ‘Fitness Friend’ who exercises with her. They both enjoy progress rewards as they reach goals along the path of their every day exercise and have a group of family and friends who actively support them.

To stay committed despite her busy schedule, Amy records all aspects of her improving body shape and form, the result of her every day exercise. This includes her weight loss as well as the improvements to her body shape around her stomach, hips and chest. Even when her weight loss slows, her body keeps changing and she has these details to prove it and spur her on.

The danger with charting is that some people do it too frequently and become discouraged when they do not make sufficient gains. Another danger is that some people chart at the wrong time. Always measure your weight at the same time each morning not in the afternoon or evening when there is greater fluid retention or when you have been eating.

So now, like busy Amy, I am using different instruments to objectively monitor the impact of my exercise. I regularly chart of all aspects of my progress, include suitable rewards for each goal I reach and I have others in my life who my encourage my every day exercise while I move towards a healthier body and happier life.