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7 Attainable Fitness Goals You Can Easily Achieve

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Looking to support your heart health journey with approachable fitness goals? We partnered with Honey Nut Cheerios to help you jumpstart your exercise routine.

All images: D’Ara Nazaryan

Engaging in regular physical activity is an essential part of a healthy heart, but sometimes overly ambitious routines can be more discouraging than inspiring. One way to make getting in great shape more enjoyable is by setting realistic, yet still challenging, milestones for yourself. Having specific, measurable goals makes tracking your progress easier and can help you stay on track. Plus, it’s just more fun. Try reaching these attainable (and rewarding!) goals—and don’t be surprised if the fitness successes keep coming.

Wake up a few minutes earlier for a daily meditation session

Don’t overlook the mental side of your fitness regimen. Morning meditation is a great way to help calibrate your mind for the day to come, and you don’t need any special training or big commitment. Even as little as five minutes of meditation each day can make a difference in your mental health, which in turn can impact the quality of your physical fitness. Just find a comfortable seated position, and focus on taking deep, full breaths in and out.

Eat an energizing, heart-healthy breakfast each morning

A consistent morning meal can give you the fuel you need to keep your fitness journey on track, and a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios is an excellent choice. Three grams of soluble fiber daily from whole grain oat foods, like Honey Nut Cheerios cereal, in a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. Honey Nut Cheerios cereal provides .75 grams per serving. Top it all off with slices of fresh fruit for an added flavor boost

Walk a mile further than you usually do

Walking is a great low-impact exercise. You’d be surprised how quickly you can cover a mile: at a moderate-intensity walking speed, it takes about 20 minutes. That means no matter how busy your schedule, you should be able to squeeze in an additional mile of walking at some point during the day—and it doesn’t have to be all at once. Try parking at the far end of the parking lot, getting off the bus a couple of stops early, or setting up a regular walking date to connect with friends.

Exercise for 20 more minutes a day

If you don’t have a workout routine already, this can be your starter step. 20 minutes of heart-pumping exercise, either in the morning or the evening when you have time, is a solid foundation. If you’re already doing 20 minutes a day, consider adding on a second workout and doubling your gains.

Drink an extra eight ounces of water each day

Each person’s individual water requirements are different, but if you find yourself feeling thirsty multiple times throughout the day, try drinking an extra cup of water. Staying sufficiently hydrated can help keep your energy levels up and prevent muscle cramps, both of which are important for maintaining your physical fitness.

Try a new exercise each week

Sick of sit-ups? Inject a little variety into your routine by expanding your workout playbook to include a brand-new exercise every week. There are so many exercises out there to keep things exciting. From Mountain Climbers and Plank Rotations to Turkish Get-ups and to Renegade Rows, you can learn a lot and feel great simply by attempting them.

Hold a plank for a full minute

The starting position of a pushup at its… core, planks build core strength and can be deceptively difficult to hold for a long period of time. That said, working your way up to a full minute plank is easier than you might think. Start by holding the position for a length of time that’s manageable for you—even if it’s just 5 seconds!—and gradually increase it by additional 5 second increments over the course of a month. You’ll be a planking pro before long.

Fuel your fitness journey with a heart-healthy bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios!

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