It is generally accepted nowadays that maintaining our fitness can lead to better health, both physically and psychologically. It is important to find the time to exercise regularly. Here are some tips for beginners...

CARDIO EXERCISE

Cardio exercise is important for a healthy heart and weight loss.

How to Begin

1. Choose an activity that you enjoy. The best exercise for you is the one you'll actually do, not the one you think you should do. Walking is a great place to start since it doesn't require special equipment and you can do it anywhere, but you can try any activity that involves some type of continuous movement like cycling, swimming, running, aerobics, rowing, stair-climbing, etc.

2. Start with 2 or 3 days of your chosen activity a week with a rest day between workouts.

3. Begin with a 5-10 minute warm up of light cardio to gradually increase heart rate.

4. Increase your pace and intensity to slightly harder than comfortable (about a Level 5 or 6 on the Perceived Exertion Scale or you can use Target Heart Rate to monitor intensity) and go as long as you comfortably can. Begin where you ARE, not where you want to be. You may only be able to exercise for a few minutes at a time, but that will change quickly if you're consistent.

5. End each workout with a cool down of light cardio and stretch the muscles you've worked to relax and keep your muscles flexible.

6. Each week, increase your workout time by a few minutes until you can work continuously for 30 minutes a session.

7. Don't worry about distance or pace. For the first few weeks, focus on showing up for your workouts and building time. You have plenty of time to work on your speed and distance.

8. After 4-6 weeks, change your routine by adding another day of exercise, increasing your pace/intensity, adding a new activity and/or increasing the amount of time you exercise.

Tips for Better Workouts

• Make sure you have quality shoes for your chosen activity.

• Start slowly. Doing too much too soon can lead to injuries and misery.

• Try new activities. Doing the same thing can lead to plateaus, boredom and injuries.

• Be ready for exercise by feeding your body regularly throughout the day and by staying hydrated.

• If you're sore or tired, give yourself extra recovery days if needed.

How Hard Should You Work?

When doing cardio, you should learn how to monitor your intensity to make sure you're working effectively. One way to do this is to make sure you're working within your target heart rate (THR) zone. This target heart rate calculator helps you determine your THR or keep track of how you feel with a perceived exertion chart. Always be aware of how you feel when you exercise. If you feel dizzy or light-headed, stop immediately and rest or call your doctor. If you're not breaking a sweat, speed it up.

Variety will keep your body and your mind challenged, so after the initial conditioning period (about 6 weeks of consistent workouts), vary your workout intensity and time. Each week, do a long, slow workout--45-60 minutes at the lower end of your THR and one short one--20-30 minutes at the higher end of your THR. Your other workouts can be between 30-45 minutes, in the middle of your THR.

For more information, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/healthy_living/fitness/index.shtml

 

NUTRITION

You are what you eat

A good diet is central to overall good health, but which are the best foods to include in your meals, and which ones are best avoided? This section looks at the facts, to help you make realistic, informed choices.

Whatever your goal is, nutrition is a big part of it. You need a healthy diet to help you lose weight and keep your body in top shape to perform all the things you do in a day. So, how do you know if your diet is healthy? You should take a look at the USDA's Food Guide Pyramid to figure out if you're getting the recommended number of servings of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, protein, dairy, etc.

Your first step is to determine if your diet is healthy and figure out how many calories you need each day. You can use a calorie calculator to get an estimate your daily calorie needs. You can also compare your diet to the USDA's recommended diet to identify any changes you need to make. Rather than trying a trendy diet that might not be safe, try to make small changes in your diet each day. For example, if you usually skip breakfast, make it your goal to eat something every morning. Skipping breakfast can actually slow your metabolism down, which won't help if you're trying to lose weight.

Here are easy ways to Cut 100 or More Calories each day:

Here's the bottom line: one pound is equivalent to 3,500 calories. Whether by making slight changes to your diet like the ones listed below or exercising, a deficit of 500 calories a day will lead to the loss of a pound a week! Remember, it's the small changes we make every single day that make a big difference in the long run!

1. Switch to water first thing in the morning instead of fruit juice. Fruit juice is high in sugar. Since most of us are dehydrated in the morning, water's the best thing to do the trick anyway.

2. Switch to sugar-free yoghurt instead of eating regular yoghurt.

3. Switch to a low-fat store-bought bagel instead of a bakery bagel.

4. Save even more -- use all-fruit instead of flavoured cream cheese on that low-fat bagel.

5. Replace bacon at breakfast with reduced-fat turkey bacon or Canadian bacon.

6. Steam veggies instead of sautéing them in butter or oil.

7. If you drink a lot of soda, switching to diet soda will probably save you hundreds of calories a day.

8. Switch to boiled shrimp instead of steak on shish kebabs.

9. Replace 1 tablespoon of regular mayo on your turkey sandwich with 1 ½ tablespoons of reduced fat mayo.

10. Indulge in Sunday-morning French toast... modified. Use non-fat milk and egg whites instead of whole milk and eggs.

• Keep track of what you're eating to avoid mindless munching that can pack on the calories.

• Be aware of emotional eating or nibbling out of boredom. Find out what triggers this type of eating and keep yourself busy during those urges to munch.

• Stay hydrated. Often a feeling of hunger is actually your body telling you it's thirsty.

• Eat lots of fruits and veggies...the fibre will help you feel full and your body will thank for all the vitamins and minerals.

• If you're starving, eat something. When you wait to long, you may end up eating more food to satisfy that gnawing hunger.

For more information go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/healthy_living/nutrition/

STRESS AND YOUR HEALTH

Stress in itself isn't necessarily harmful. Everyone needs goals and challenges. But too much can be damaging.

Types of Stress

Stress can be defined as any type of change that causes physical, emotional or psychological strain. However, not all types of stress are harmful or even negative. There are a few different types of stress that we encounter:

• Eustress, a type of stress that is fun and exciting, and keeps us vital (e.g. skiing down a slope or racing to meet a deadline)

• Acute Stress, a very short-term type of stress that can either be positive (eustress) or more distressing (what we normally think of when we think of ‘stress') ; this is the type of stress we most often encounter in day-to-day life (e.g. skiing down said slope or dealing with road rage)

• Episodic Acute Stress, where acute stress seems to run rampant and be a way of life, creating a life of relative chaos (e.g. the type of stress that coined the terms ‘drama queen' and ‘absent-minded professor')

• Chronic Stress, the type of stress that seems never-ending and inescapable, like the stress of a bad marriage or an extremely taxing job (this type of stress can lead to burnout)

The Fight or Flight Response

Stress can trigger the body's response to perceived threat or danger, the Fight-or-Flight response. During this reaction, certain hormones like adrenalin and cortisol are released, speeding the heart rate, slowing digestion, shunting blood flow to major muscle groups, and changing various other autonomic nervous functions, giving the body a burst of energy and strength. Originally named for its ability to enable us to physically fight or run away when faced with danger, it's now activated in situations where neither response is appropriate, like in traffic or during a stressful day at work. When the perceived threat is gone, systems are designed to return to normal function via the relaxation response, but in our times of chronic stress, this often doesn't happen enough, causing damage to the body.

Stress and Health: Implications of Chronic Stress

When faced with chronic stress and an over-activated autonomic nervous system, people begin to see physical symptoms. The first symptoms are relatively mild, like chronic headaches and increased susceptibility to colds. With more exposure to chronic stress, however, more serious health problems may develop. These stress-influenced conditions include, but are not limited to:

• depression

• diabetes

• hair loss

• heart disease

• hyperthyroidism

• obesity

• obsessive-compulsive or anxiety disorder

• sexual dysfunction

• tooth and gum disease

• ulcers

• cancer (possibly)

In fact, most it's been estimated that as many as 90% of doctor's visits are for symptoms that are at least partially stress-related!

For more information go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/conditions/mental_health/emotion_stress.shtml