Fitness Friday: Music to exercise by in 2012

*Editor's note: Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske, Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction Blog. He gives you a health and fitness tip or an exercise or stretch to get your body warmed up for the weekend. This week, he gives you some advice for sticking to your workout regimen--including the right music playlist--so you can play your best golf ever in the New Year. Look for Saturday Morning Tip tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman**.

Roger Schiffman

Managing Editor

Golf Digest*

__Here's Ron:__If you're a gym rat, then you probably dread January and February when your training center is overrun with newbies trying to keep to their New Year's resolution fitness commitment. Of course, by spring, many of those people begin to vanish and the gym returns to normal. A recent poll showed that less than 35 percent of the people who make fitness or weight-loss oriented resolutions actually reach their goals.

It would be easy to say those people who gave up are lazy and never truly intended to stick with the plan. But I don't think that's always the case. More often than not, the reason they give up, I believe, is they make unrealistic goals, and then get frustrated. If you ever watch the New York or Boston Marathon on TV, you probably have seen a few runners dash out to a big lead early in the race. They are running at a frantic pace, one that they will never be able to maintain for 26.2 miles. Sure enough, sometime in the middle of the race, they fade and are passed by runners who maintained a steady and realistic pace. The tortoise can beat the hare.

So my advice for you is that if you're contemplating a workout/weight-loss plan for 2012, make your goals "realistic." Don't pledge to workout for an hour six days a week. Pledge to workout for 20-30 minutes three or four days a week. Don't pledge to stop eating french fries forever (scientists say that's impossible in our culture). Instead, limit your fast-food stops to only a couple of times a month. If you easily fulfill your resolution, then you can make a new, harder goal.

This past year, I worked out 312 times (26 a month, six times a week). But to reach that level, I started about seven years ago with a goal of working out three times a week. Then it became every other day. Then it became four times a week and so on. If you're ready to workout, see if you get into one of my clubs: Club 52 (one workout a week); Club 104 (two); Club 156; Club 208; Club 260; or Club 312. I don't have a Club 365 because I don't believe anyone should workout every day. The body needs rest. Keep me posted on your progress in 2012, and I'll do the same.

BONUS TIP:

To help you reach your goal, I asked my Twitter followers to come up with the ultimate workout playlist. The response was pretty impressive. Studies have shown that the duration of your workout and level of intensity dramatically increases if you listen to music. So in that spirit, I'm giving you two playlists. The first is the "best of" from my Twitter followers. I tried to make it as diverse as my followers, so understand that each song isn't for everyone. The second is my personal picks. Enjoy and remember by motto: "Keep moving."

*Ron Kaspriske

Fitness Editor

Golf Digest*

ULTIMATE WORKOUT PLAYLIST (Twitter followers)

L'Estasi Dell Oro (remix), by Ennio Morricone (@amolyajnik)

Teeth, by Lady Gaga (@laurenwald)

Connected, by Stereo MC's (@alliparker1)

Wolf Like Me, by TV on the Radio (@ronster221)

Girlfriend is Better by Talking Heads (@Ben_Shear)

Higher Ground, by Red Hot Chili Peppers (@marionshoward)

Cochise, by Audioslave (@b_upton)

Lovething, by ZZ Top (@silverstargolf)

Good Feeling, by Flo Rida (@NinaJBosse)

Bring the Noise, by Public Enemy vs. Benny Benassi (remix) (@s_hennessey)

RON'S ULTIMATE WORKOUT (I cheated and picked 15)

The Hand that Feeds, by Nine Inch Nails

Thunderstruck, by AC/DC

I Like the Way, by Bodyrockers

Feelin Hypnotized, by DJ Colette

mOBSCENE, by Marilyn Manson

The Way I Are, by Timbaland

The One Thing, by INXS

I Will Follow, by U2

She Sells Sanctuary, by The Cult

You've Got Another Thing Comin', by Judas Priest

The One, by Sharam

Discipline, by Nine Inch Nails

Magnificent, by U2 (Dave Aude' Club Remix)

Shot Down in Flames, by AC/DC

Sex Type Thing, by Stone Temple Pilots