Home Workouts
Winter can be the hardest time to keep motivated and active. It’s colder, it’s darker longer and the idea of doing anything but curling up with some comfort food can be hard to imagine.
Exercising now, however, is the best time to start getting ready for summer; and the good news is you do not even have to leave you house if you don't want to! Home programs can be achieved with a few simple pieces of exercise equipment, such as an exercise ball, skipping rope, and exercise bands or hand weights. Make sure your workout always includes cardio, resistance work (including abs and core) and stretching. It is always best to ask a trainer to design a program for your that will help you achieve your fitness goals.
Remember, the minimum amount of exercise to maintain health is 30 minutes of moderate exercise per day, so if your goal is to lose weight you will have to boost it up a notch!
For some great workout ideas check out the link below.
http://www.lifestyle.com.au/health/five-winter-workouts.aspx
I want to learn how to run
We are coming up to fun run season. Whether its the Mother's Day classic or the Melbourne Marathon a lot of people had running a fun run as a new year's resolution- and that's as far as it went.
If you are not a "natural runner" (and let's face it, most of us aren't) it can be hard to get started when the end goal is anywhere from 4-42km depending on your goal. There are a lot of mistakes people make when preparing for a fun run, or just getting started to do a daily run or jog. Incorrect preparation can be enough to leave most people discouraged from trying again.
The important things to remember are: -
- Start slow. A lot of people make the mistake of going out on their first run and running as fast as they can- you may last 400m.
- Interval train- walk for 30 seconds, run for 30 seconds and slowly increase you run time. If you don't want to time yourself pick landmarks you can use to judge distance (e.g. telephone/electricity poles, driveways- run 2, walk 2)
- Running apps- couch to 5km for example is great to get you going at your own pace
- Take a buddy- running is one of those types of exercises that does go quicker if you have a training buddy. It will also help you monitor your intensity levels (starting out you should be able to carry out a conversation while exercising)
- Join a running club- events like the Melbourne marathon often have groups you can join to help you achieve your bucket list dream of ticking off a marathon
- Get a trainer- when in doubt, ask!
- Don't judge yourself by anyone elses standards but your own- Steve Moneghetti's personal best for the marathon was 2 hours 8 minutes, but unless you are planning to go to the London Olympics finishing is the achievement
Is your job killing you?
We have all heard that you need to do a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate exercise to maintain health; however research now shows us that it is not just the lack of exercise that is doing us damage, it is not moving at all in between that is making it worse!
Sitting for any length of time stops your body's ability to remove fat from your blood, which in turn increases your risk of cardiovascular disease. Every time you are sitting you are causing damage to your health, and 30 minutes of exercise is not enough to counteract the effects (although it is still necessary for other aspect of your health and wellbeing).
Why not try these tips to keep off your seat and on your feet: -
- Stand up when you are on the phone (even if you are at your desk)
- Walk whenever possible (to the shops, use the stairs, park further away)
- Instead of a bottle of water on your desk use a glass and get up to refill it
- Get up and talk to work colleagues instead of calling or e-mailing them
- If watching TV, get up and walk around in the ad break
For more information check out the article below.
Electrolyte Sports Drinks
Electrolyte drinks assist with rapid replacement of fluid and electrolytes lost during exercise training or hard physical labour. They help with muscle recovery and soreness, preventing dehydration, and providing stamina and increased endurance during strenuous exercise. Electrolyte drinks ingested during exercise aims at providing a source of carbohydrate fuel to supplement the body's limited stores and supplying water and electrolytes to replace losses incurred through sweating.
Electrolyte drinks are needed when you are exercising for more than 40 minutes, playing sport (football, soccer etc) or if your work involves hard physical labour.
1. Before Exercise
Sports drinks are ideal in the hour before sport. The carbohydrate tops up muscle glycogen fuel levels, while the added sodium reduces urine losses before exercise begins.
2. During Exercise
Sports drinks are primarily designed for use during exercise, for optimal fluid and fuel delivery. They will allow the athlete to perform for longer and more effectively in training and competition.
3. Recovery
Sports drinks greatly assist re-hydration. When aggressive re-hydration is required, drinks with a higher sodium content may be more useful. For complete recovery, sports drinks need to be consumed with a food source that provides carbohydrate, protein, vitamins and minerals
Remember, sports drinks are often as high in sugar as most soft drinks so if your fitness goal is to lose weight water may be better for most workouts.
Exercise- it makes you smart!
Research has discovered that moderate intensity aerobic exercise can assist in boosting the memory centre of your brain. Our brain's memory centre (the hippocampus) shrinks over time; however research conducted at the University of California shows that exercise can prevent this.
Moderate intensity aerobic exercise (e.g. brisk walking or light jog) had the biggest impact, increasing volume in the hippocampus by 2% over the course of a year. Weight training and other exercise (e.g. yoga) also had an impact of an increase of around 1%. These studies were conducted on older adults (55-80yrs) however the benefits are still there for anyone who exercises.
Often people look at exercise as a weight loss tool only, so if they do not need to lose weight they figure, "I don't need to exercise; I'm thin”. The health benefits of exercise, however, go beyond weight loss. It is important to keep moving regardless of how fit, thin or healthy you think you are. For more information regarding this study check out the link below.
http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2011/02/01/aerobic-exercise-boosts-memory
Glycemic Index
Glycemic index (abbreviated to GI) is a way of classifying carbohydrate foods according to their effect on blood glucose. It is of special significance to people with diabetes, but there is also evidence that GI has health implications for people in general (so there are high and low GI but that doesn't necessarily make them good or bad).
When a food containing carbohydrate is eaten it is digested in the small intestine and sugars are released from the carbohydrate. Glucose is the major sugar, but other sugars are also released and then absorbed into the blood, along with the glucose. The body responds to the increase in blood glucose by releasing insulin—a hormone that (among other metabolic functions) causes the glucose to be stored for later use. GI is a measure of how long it takes for the glucose from a food to be absorbed into the blood. The lower the GI, the slower and more even the rate of absorption of glucose into the blood. In essence, a food with a low GI means ‘slow release’ of carbohydrate into the body, while high GI means the carbohydrate is rapidly released.
Low GI foods (GI of 55 or less) include most mixed-grain breads, All Bran, legumes (peas, beans, soy products) and milk and yogurt. Intermediate GI foods (GI in the range 56-69) include Swiss formula muesli, white durum wheat spaghetti, Basmati, Arborio and long-grain rice and muesli bars. High GI foods (GI of 70 or more) include white and wholemeal bread, potatoes (boiled and baked), white Jasmine rice, some breakfast cereals (e.g., Cornflakes, Coco Pops) and sports drinks.
The Winter Dilemma
It is definitely colder, wetter and generally more miserable weather wise this time of year. This makes getting out and exercising (or just getting out) harder than normal. It also means all of the comfort foods that may have made us put on weight in the first place suddenly look very appealing again!
Some people do not mind exercising outside when it is cold, as they know they will warm up very quickly. However, for some people it is harder (particularly for those who get asthma in cold weather). There are always other options, and you will feel better for them.
1. Ask your trainer to take it inside! If you are near a studio an indoor workout session will ensure you are still getting your training, and it will not be weather dependant (even if it means you have to travel a little further to get to your session)
2. Get a home program. You don't need a lot of hi-tech equipment (or any equipment at all) to do a workout- ask your trainer to write a program that you can perform at home.
3. Lunchtime walk- during your lunch break is a good time to get out. It not only gets you away from your desk it gets you some much needed exercise (30 minutes is all it takes) and sunshine (most Australians are low on vitamin D)
4. Avoid the high fat comfort foods- try homemade vegetable soups, pastas with tomato based sauces rather than cream based, or tomato based casseroles (watch how much oil you use in cooking them)
Remember, if you want to look good for summer, now is the time to start- leaving it until the weather gets better is going to be too late and leave you disappointed.
For more tips check out the article below.
http://health.ninemsn.com.au/family/goodhealthandmedicine/8244283/how-to-avoid-winter-weight-gain
Diabetes Awareness Week
This week is National Diabetes Awareness Week. Type 2 diabetes is sometimes described as a ‘lifestyle disease’ because it is more common in people who do insufficient physical activity and are overweight or obese. It is also, unfortunately, considered by some as the "not so bad" diabetes as it does not require the daily insulin injections like Type I diabetes; however the health risks associated with the disease are still potentially life threatening if not taken seriously, even if not as immediate as Type I diabetes.
Lifestyle factors that increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes include being overweight or obese (especially around the waist), low levels of physical activity, unhealthy eating habits (such as regularly choosing high fat, high sugar, high salt or low fibre foods), high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and cigarette smoking. Other risk factors include age, ethnicity and past medical history.
If you have any symptoms including being more thirsty than usual, passing more urine, feeling tired and lethargic, slow-healing wounds, itching and skin infections, blurred vision or mood swings you should consult your GP.
Would this make you quit?
Iceland has recently considered making cigarettes a prescription only product. This would ban the product being sold anywhere other than a pharmacy, and would be available only with a valid medical certificate. Although it is not sure to what extent this will actually stop people smoking, it is thought it will discourage people (particularly young people) from taking up the habit by ensuring they see a medical practitioner beforehand.
In Australia we have slowly made the move to ban smoking in public areas, and there are many programs available to assist anyone who wants to quit smoking. Despite this smoking is still the leading cause of preventable disease and deaths in Australia. Risks include cardio-vascular disease, heart disease, stroke, increased risk of cancer (including lung, mouth, brain, stomach, nose, voice box, lip, tongue, nasal sinus, esophagus, throat, pancreas, bone marrow, kidney, cervix, liver and bladder), emphysema, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and peptic ulcers.
Smoking also decreases your ability to exercise effectively. Smoking is a stimulant, therefore it increases your resting heart rate and blood pressure, making it harder to exercise effectively as these are both elevated before you even start moving. Smokers are often concerned about weight gain if they quit smoking. Smoking is a habit and most people replace one habit with another- in the case of smoking it is often food. The health benefits to quitting far outweigh the possibility of weight gain if you are aware of this during the transition.
To read more please follow the link below.
Phone apps and healthy eating
In an age where we Google, twitter, Facebook, blog and chat online it is amazing how some of us coped before the reign of the Smartphone. Our phones are not just for making phone calls anymore, they are a source of information and entertainment. The introduction of Applications (or Apps) has definitely resulted in us being able to use our phones for more.
Some of these apps can assist you in making healthy eating choices. From apps that count your daily caloric intake, recipes, fresh produce guides and even diet specific foods (for example, cooking for people with allergies) a range of diet and healthy eating apps can be found on our phones. Some of these are more for entertainment; however some of them people do find useful when trying to decide what to buy at the supermarket, or just need a new healthy recipe idea.
Why not check out some of the top apps available in the article below.
http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/wellbeing/app-a-day-keeps-the-kilos-away-20110618-1g8jk.html