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Exercising in the morning energizes you for the day—not to mention that gratifying feeling of virtue you have knowing you’ve done something disciplined and good for you

Studies have shown that exercise significantly increases mental acuity—a benefit that lasts four to ten hours after your workout ends. Exercising in the a.m. means you get to harness that brainpower, instead of wasting it while you’re snoozing.

Assuming you make exercise a true priority, it shouldn’t be a major problem to get up 30 to 60 minutes earlier—especially since regular exercise generally means a higher quality of sleep, which in turn means you’ll probably require less sleep.

When you exercise at about the same time every morning—especially if you wake up regularly at about the same time—you’re regulating your body's endocrine system and circadian rhythms. Your body learns that you do the same thing just about every day, and it begins to prepare for waking and exercise several hours before you actually open your eyes. That’s beneficial because:  Your body’s not “confused” by wildly changing wake-up times, which means waking up is much less painful. (You may even find that you don’t need an alarm clock most days.) Hormones prepare your body for exercise by regulating blood pressure, heart rate, blood flow to muscles, etc. Your metabolism, along with all the hormones involved in activity and exercise, begin to elevate while you're sleeping. As a result, you’ll feel more alert, energized, and ready to exercise when you do wake up.  Many people find that morning exercise has a tendency to regulate their appetite for the rest of the day. Not only do they eat less (since activity causes the release of endorphins, which in turn diminishes appetite), they also choose healthier portions of healthier foods.  People who consistently exercise find, sometimes to their great surprise, that the appointed time every morning evolves into something they look forward to. Besides the satisfaction of taking care of themselves, they find it’s a great time to plan their day, pray, or just think more clearly—things most of us often don’t get to do otherwise.  Exercising first thing in the morning is the most foolproof way to ensure that other things don’t overtake your fitness commitment, particularly if you have a hectic family life. (It’s so easy to wimp out in the evening, when we’re tired or faced with such tasks as rustling up dinner and helping with homework.)  More than 90% of those who exercise consistently have a morning fitness routine. If you want to exercise on a regular basis, the odds are in your favor if you squeeze your workout into the a.m.  Non-morning people can always trick themselves in the a.m. Having trouble psyching yourself up for a sunrise jog? Do what I did—tell yourself that you’ll still be so fast asleep that you won’t even remember—much less mind!  

The same is true for exercise. Just working out because you think you should, won’t keep you going for long. Think about why it is important.

Whatever your reason for exercising, keep it in mind.

Communicate it to a friend.

Write it in a journal.

certainly worth the brief discomfort you may feel during your workout!

Set small goals and challenges

Since my goal was clear and could be achieved quickly, I was able to see it through.

it is fun to challenge yourself to do something new.

Along the same lines, it is nice to do a particular type of workout for a set amount of time. I like to do six or twelve week plans.

Vary your workouts.

It is also helpful to vary the type of exercise you do throughout the week

Remember: Find an exercise you enjoy.

Find something you enjoy and you will have the workout battle much less often.

Be consistent.

easier to exercise on a regular basis than haphazardly.

When you are consistent the body adapts and changes.

workout becomes less tiring and more enjoyable.

Don’t rely on motivation.

important not to fall into the motivation trap. We must be aware of the fact that we will not be motivated every day.

remember our why and choose to workout even when we really don’t feel like it.

encourage you to carve out a little time each day to really get moving.

Just find something you can do consistently and before long you’ll be feeling good!

Love your new body.

Adopt a "can do" philosophy.

Learn to say "Ahh," not "Oh, no."

Check the scales.

Find 8.5 minutes a day

Be active while watching TV.

Involve the whole family. Take group walks before or after dinner. Play catch. Ride your bikes.

Get your dog into the act. Take daily walks with Fido or Fluffy.

foods ranging from white rice to buckwheat.

whole grains are generally healthier because they offer more fiber

Examples of whole grains include barley, brown rice, oatmeal and whole-wheat bread.

Unsaturated Fats

Fat calories should make up about ¼ to 1/3 of the calories you eat.

saturated and trans fats can damage your cholesterol levels and increase your risk of heart disease

Swap these less healthy fat sources out for unsaturated fats, which are found mostly in nuts, seeds, plant oils and fish.

Lean Proteins

Protein should make up about 10 to 35 percent of your total calories

Fish, seeds and nuts also happen to be high in protein.

choose skinless chicken breast over fried dark chicken meat, replace whole milk with low-fat or skim milk, and choose beans over red meat in tacos, for example.

Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

get about 1½ to 2 cups of fruit per day and 2 to 3 cups of vegetables per day

a glass of 100 percent fruit juice can equal one serving of fruit but you shouldn't fill up on juice because it doesn't contain any fiber.

canned and frozen fruits and vegetables can be healthy alternatives when you don't have access to fresh produce, but avoid the ones that have been doused in salt, sugar, syrup and creamy sauces.

fresh fruits and vegetables can become less healthy if you prepare them in unhealthy ways

On the other hand some teens will find it too difficult to have a job and go to school and they will cut corners, skip their homework and eventually their academic achievements will drop.

You also need to consider if this will influence the extracurricular activities of your teenage

If your teen can’t handle both it doesn’t mean that your teen should only focus on school and skip having a job, just encourage him to look around and find a more appropriate job position.

Juggling two great responsibilities is hard work for adults, let alone teens.

A healthy diet must include carbohydrates, which are broken down into glucose that the body's cells use as energy

Consume Enough Protein "I eat enough protein. I probably ate around 50 grams today." Now if this sounds like you, we are in some serious trouble. That is unless you are a 60-pound child whose major energy expenditure for the day is playing with your Tonka Trucks. Ok, down to the serious stuff here. If you don't eat optimal amounts of protein, you will never put on the muscle mass that you so much desire. You are also hindering your strength gains as well. If you are going up a weight class and you aren't eating the proper amount of protein, guess what?

have some of my athletes consume between 1.25-1.5 grams of protein per pound when trying to pack on size.

# 5 Maximize Your Carbohydrate Intake

# 6 Bump Up Your Fat Intake

Milk…It does a body good! You should have known this would be on the list. Milk is the drink of all strength champions throughout history.

I knew you would like this one. What true powerlifter wouldn't? Now again, don't get me wrong here. The point is that you should increase you lean meat consumption during a mass phase. Note I said lean meat consumption. This doesn't include bacon, ham, sausage, deli meats, beef jerky, or pepperoni sticks.

Feed him high portions of low-fat, healthy foods. Muscle mass cannot be gained without the fuel provided by food. To gain weight, he will need to consume more calories than he burns. To gain half a pound of muscle per week, he will need to eat 250 more calories more per day than he has been eating, according to exercise physiologist Joseph A. Chromiak.

Add protein to his diet. Select protein sources that are relatively non-fatty, such as baked fish and poultry, advises the Harvard School of Public Health.

Provide a dark and quiet sleep environment for him, and make sure he gets eight hours of sleep every night. It is during sleep that the body repairs damaged muscle tissue and builds muscle mass.

Nuts will help you get the abs you want by keeping you fuller longer. A study at Purdue University showed those who ate nuts felt fuller for longer periods than those who ate rice cakes, Quick & Simple reports. Don't overindulge with nuts, though, because they are high in calories and fat. The U.S. Department of Agriculture also instructs you to avoid salted nuts, because they exceed the agency's recommendations for daily sodium intake.

Take a few minutes here and there for some stair-climbing or speed walking.

Pay someone to make you exercise. Finding a good personal trainer can make a difference when it comes to motivation and reaching your goals.

Do something...anything. If you think 5 minutes isn't enough time to workout, you couldn't be more wrong. Whether it's 5 minutes, 10 minutes or 60 minutes, every single minute counts.

Keep in mind that doing too much cardio is a no-no as well and can actually backfire. There is a point of diminishing returns, so keep it reasonable (3-6 days a week, depending on your fitness level), vary your intensityf and don't forget to take rest days when needed.

For health and endurance: 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps using enough weight that you can ONLY complete the desired reps.

Finally, depletion of muscle glycogen may lead to muscle loss as there is not enough proper fuel to maintain them.

f you feel weak, nauseous, or light-headed during your exercise, stop and rest. Drink some water. If the feelings persist, see your doctor.

After you hit your ideal weight, you can raise your carb intake slightly to keep your body out of ketosis and to prevent muscle wasting.