Winston Salem Fitness

Being physically active is a key element in living a longer, healthier, happier life. It can help relieve stress and can provide an overall feeling of well-being. Physical activity can also help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight and lower risk for chronic disease. The benefits of physical activity may include:

• Improves self-esteem and feelings of well-being
• Increases fitness level
• Helps build and maintain bones, muscles, and joints
• Builds endurance and muscle strength
• Enhances flexibility and posture
• Helps manage weight
• Lowers risk of heart disease, colon cancer, and type 2 diabetes
• Helps control blood pressure
• Reduces feelings of depression and anxiety

Physical activity and nutrition work together for better health. Being active increases the amount of calories burned. As people age their metabolism slows, so maintaining energy balance requires moving more and eating less.

Some types of physical activity are especially beneficial:

• Aerobic activities – speeds heart rate and breathing and improves heart and lung fitness. Examples are brisk walking, jogging, and swimming.
• Resistance, strength building, and weight-bearing activities – helps build and maintain bones and muscles by working them against gravity. Examples are carrying a child, lifting weights, and walking. They help to build and maintain muscles and bones.
• Balance and stretching activities – enhances physical stability and flexibility, which reduces risk of injuries. Examples are gentle stretching, dancing, yoga, martial arts, and t’ai chi.

What is physical activity?  Physical activity simply means movement of the body that uses energy. Walking, gardening, briskly pushing a baby stroller, climbing the stairs, playing soccer, or dancing the night away are all good examples of being active. For health benefits, physical activity should be moderate or vigorous and add up to at least 30 minutes a day.

Moderate physical activities include:

* Walking briskly (about 3 ½ miles per hour)
* Hiking
* Gardening/yard work
* Dancing
* Golf (walking and carrying clubs)
* Bicycling (less than 10 miles per hour)
* Weight training (general light workout)

Vigorous physical activities include:

* Running/jogging (5 miles per hour)
* Bicycling (more than 10 miles per hour)
* Swimming (freestyle laps)
* Aerobics
* Walking very fast (4 ½ miles per hour)
* Heavy yard work, such as chopping wood
* Weight lifting (vigorous effort)
* Basketball (competitive)

Some physical activities are not intense enough to help you meet the recommendations. Although you are moving, these activities do not increase your heart rate, so you should not count these towards the 30 or more minutes a day that you should strive for. These include walking at a casual pace, such as while grocery shopping, and doing light household chores.

Studies have shown an alarming increase in obesity in children. Encouraging children to exercise is the best way to prevent excessive weight gain and to keep them healthy.

You can begin by setting a good example yourself. It is hard to persuade your child to play outside instead of watching television, if you spend most of your own leisure time in front of the set. Investing in bikes and going on regular family bike rides can be a great exercise plan. Taking your children on walks to the stores and walking with them to school rather than using the car are also good ways to establish positive habits.

Encourage children in any aptitude they may show for a particular sport and work around problems that may prevent them from taking part. For example, an asthmatic child may have difficulty breathing while exercising, but increased fitness can actually improve asthma.

In consultation with your doctor, a suitable routine can be developed. Swimming has been shown to cause exercise-induced asthma less often than other sports, and because children love playing in water, it’s a great way to introduce them to exercise. Increasing your child’s fitness outside of school may also help him feel more confident about joining in school sports and other activities.

Making exercise fun is the best way to encourage it. If your children feel intimidated by the pressure of team sports, explore other exercise options with them. For example, orienteering, in which children learn map-reading skills while hiking, may suit a more introverted youngster.

Encourage young people to participate in exercises that are appropriate for their ages. During early childhood the focus should be on fun games and activities that develop the basic movement skills of running, balancing, jumping, kicking, and throwing. Between the ages of 6 and 12, more emphasis can be given to areas where a child shows a particular talent.

Tips on how to encourage your kids to become physically active

Regular physical activity, combined with good eating habits, is the healthiest and most efficient way to control your weight. Here are some simple ways to increase your family’s physical activity and encourage your children to be more active:

• Be a role model for your kids. If they see you enjoying physical activities, they’ll be encouraged to become active themselves.
• Go on an “active” family vacation, such as a camping or canoeing trip.
• Plan a weekend family activity, such as flying kites, riding bikes, or skating.
• Help your kids find activities that they enjoy, and get them involved through teams, clubs, or lessons. Keep in mind that some kids prefer team sports, while others prefer solitary activities.
• Give birthday and holiday gifts that involve physical activity, such as in-line skates, a tennis racket, or a soccer ball.
• Substitute physical activities for sedentary ones. For example, schedule a walk with your family after dinner instead of watching TV.
• Assign your kids physical household tasks, such as helping with yard work, washing the car, or cleaning the house.
• Become more active throughout your day and encourage your family to do the same. Take the stairs instead of the elevator or parking farther from the store.

10 Tips and hints to get you fit and healthy

1. Get real and be specific. Write down three or four realistic goals that you can stick to. For example, “I will try to lose one pound of body fat every week. I will walk for 30 minutes minimum five days a week.” Avoid fantasy-land goals that will only frustrate you.

2. Get prepared. Throw away all the junk, the processed, and the “bingeable” foods now and replace them with fresh, whole foods like lots of water and veggies. Buy a new pair of walking shoes and find some clothes in your closet you feel comfortable to walk in. During a lifestyle change, if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail!

3. Get support. Whether it’s your best friend, spouse, or pet, it helps to have some nonjudgmental and nurturing support when trying to lose weight, especially during trying times.

4. Make daily notes. Research has shown that keeping track of your daily exercise and food intake in a journal or notebook will increase the likelihood of success. Keep it simple, or if you’re inspired, write a novel! The key is to hold yourself accountable.

5. Create a food-free reward system. How about a new workout outfit, pair of jeans, shoes — or what the heck, even a spa treatment, shopping spree, or weekend getaway? You deserve this kind of treatment when you reach your goals.

6. Buy a pedometer. A pedometer keeps track of how many steps you take daily. Wear it every day, around home, work, and while exercising. Your National Body Challenge goal is to increase your steps by 10,000 or more daily! Remember this: You’ll burn roughly 100 to 125 calories by taking 2,500 steps (about one mile). The goal during the challenge is to burn 300 extra calories and to eat roughly 200 calories less in a day. This 500-calorie deficit is equivalent to one pound of body fat per week and a healthy boost to your self-esteem.

7. Don’t skip breakfast. Research shows that the most successful “losers” never skip it. Try to keep it balanced with some protein, a healthy carb, and a small amount of fat. Here are some examples: an egg-white omelet with fresh berries and a piece of whole-wheat toast, or a skim milk shake with fruit and yogurt.

8. Nix the late-night eating. If you eat a lot of excess calories after 8 p.m., you wear them the next morning. Put a stop to this by making sure you have a healthy dinner consisting of lean protein, veggies, and fruit.

9. Eliminate processed sugars. Processed sugars are carbs that have been stripped of their valuable nutrients. How can you identify these sugars? They are all white: table sugar, pasta, rice, and bread, and they’re nothing but trouble, since they kick up your appetite for more of the same.

10. Have a mid-afternoon snack. This will curb your appetite and provide fuel for your after-work walk or workout at the gym. Some great snack ideas include: reduced-fat peanut butter on a multi-grain cracker, a couple of pieces of low-fat string cheese and an apple, cottage cheese with pineapple, or try a low-fat cheese microwaved in a whole-wheat pita.

You don’t need a gym membership to do this effective exercise. Walking is the exercise of choice for most dieters. No wonder.

You don’t need a gym membership. You can do it virtually everywhere (around the block or around the mall, for example). It’s gentle on joints. And you can burn a surprising number of calories. On flat terrain, a half-hour walk at a brisk pace can chew through 75 to 100 calories. Hike up some hills and you can spend 200 to 250 calories. Here’s how to prepare:

Find a Walking Shoe That Fits

The only equipment you really need is a decent pair of walking shoes. Finding them is a cinch. What matters most is comfort. If it feels good, odds are it provides enough support. When you’re shopping for shoes:

• Wear the socks you plan to exercise in. That way you’ll get the best fit.
• Try on both shoes. Most people’s feet aren’t exactly the same size. Choose a pair that fits your larger foot.
• Allow a little extra room. Feet swell when you walk, so buy a pair with about a thumb’s width between your longest toe and the end of the shoe. Make sure the heel doesn’t slip, though, or you could end up with painful blisters.

Check Your Walking Form

Sure, walking comes naturally, and it’s smart to go with the technique you’ve honed since you were a toddler. But these tips will help you stay comfortable and get the most out of your walk:

• Stand up straight. Imagine a string pulling you up from the center of the top of your head. Let that string pull you up as straight as possible. Relax your shoulders.
• Look ahead. Keep your neck straight and your head held high to avoid unnecessary strain to your neck and shoulders. If you have to look down to see where you’re going, lower your eyes, not your head.
• Move those arms. Bend your elbows and let your arms swing naturally at your sides. You’ll prevent swelling, tingling or numbness — and you’ll burn up to 15 percent more calories by keeping your arms moving.
• Don’t carry that weight. Some people try to get in extra exercise by toting a couple of light dumbbells, but fitness-walking experts say that’s risky: The weights can pull you off balance and strain muscles in your back or legs.

Tame unhealthy urges that damage your diet.

It’s 8:00 p.m., and you’re sitting comfortably in front of the television when suddenly the urge hits:

You must have a bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream. You can’t stop thinking about it. Your craving is so intense that if you don’t find ice cream hidden in the back of your freezer, you may even run out to the store to pick up a half-gallon.

We’ve all experienced those strong urges for a particular food — whether it be ice cream, greasy French fries, or Oreo cookies. So how do you prevent your craving from turning into an out-of-control binge? Nutrition experts offer these simple tips to tame your urges.

Let it pass. Studies suggest that the average craving lasts only about 10 minutes, so try to let the urge subside before you even walk into the kitchen or toward the vending machine.

Practice portion control. While it’s okay to slip up occasionally, you need to keep an eye on how much you’re eating. Try to prevent yourself from overindulging by placing only a certain amount of food in front of you. For instance, try putting potato chips in a small bowl rather than eating them right out of the bag.

Reach for healthy substitutes. Try to eat a similar food that has a better nutritional value than the one you crave. A glass of chocolate skim milk instead of a candy bar is a healthier choice. Or, instead of regular ice cream, try low-fat frozen yogurt.

Don’t be too restrictive. Any food is okay in moderation and depriving yourself may lead you to overeat something else.

Write it down. Keep track of your cravings in your journal to determine if your emotional state is the underlying trigger. Once you figure out what’s causing your urges, try looking for other ways to address those emotional needs. If you’re having a stressful day, take a break and go for a walk or call a friend. If you’re feeling down, try renting a funny movie.

Winston Salem Fitness enthusiasts – from beginner to elite athlete – will all encounter barriers that keep you from sticking to your fitness routine. Consider the tips below to keep you on track.

Not enough time to exercise?

Squeeze in short walks throughout the day. Short duration exercise spaced throughout the day offers health benefits too.

Wake up 30 minutes earlier three times a week to exercise. Once you have adjusted to your earlier schedule add another day to your routine.

Rethink your habits. Your weekly Saturday trip to the movies with your family could easily be turned into a family bike ride or hiking trip.

Too tired after a long day at work?

Make your lunch time count. Keep a pair of exercise shoes at your desk and take walks during your lunch break.

Plan ahead. Have your workout gear laid out on your dresser and a water bottle in the refrigerator. Have a fitness DVD ready as soon as you get home from work

Not having enough energy is difficult when facing daily challenges. Try going to bed 30 minutes earlier than normal to make sure you are getting enough sleep.

Frustrated by past routines not working?

Start small. Pace yourself and build up to more intense workouts. Let your body dictate your intensity.

Set realistic goals. If hour workouts are not possible for your schedule, set aside smaller time increments. Try 20 minutes, 3 days a week for a few weeks and then step up the duration.

Reward yourself. Remember your personal goals and reward yourself for achieving them.

Time, energy and personal achievement play various roles in the way we look at our fitness needs. Tailor your workouts around our own habits and daily routines. There are always barriers to stand in our way, but a little creativity can overcome them in a breeze. Besides, maintaining your personal health and wellness is a habit you can afford to keep.

Whether it’s family pizza and movie night on Saturday or a big home-cooked breakfast on Sunday, weekends can be a challenge when trying to lose weight. Keep your favorite activities, but make smart substitutions to save calories.

Family Movie Night – Make your own healthier pizza. Start with premade whole wheat crust, add pasta sauce and, instead of using sausage or pepperoni (high in calories and fat), sprinkle on ham, diced chicken, turkey pepperoni or turkey sausage. Include lots of veggies (mushrooms, onions, bell peppers) and only moderate amounts of mozzarella cheese (a naturally lower fat cheese choice). If you’re in the mood to snack, munch on microwave light popcorn or baked tortilla chips with salsa, rather than candy.

Big Breakfast or Brunch – Make homemade whole wheat pancakes or waffles. Use store-bought whole grain pancake mix or make from scratch with whole wheat flour and 1% lowfat buttermilk. Choose a low calorie sugar-free maple syrup or fruit for toppings along with leaner breakfast meats such as Canadian bacon, ham or turkey sausage. Eggs are a weight-loss ally – one egg has just 75 calories yet contains around 7 grams of protein to help lose weight. Use lower fat cheese in egg casseroles and quiches.

Party Drinks – Adult beverages are packed with excess calories. Too many drinks can wipe out every calorie you saved during the week. If you drink alcohol, limit yourself to two drinks. Calorie free soda or sparkling water would be even better.

Calories in Party Drinks

• 4 ounces Margarita (a mere one-half cup) = 275
• 12 ounces beer = 150
• 4 ounces wine = 125
• Any size sparkling water = 0

There are 4 key components to a balanced fitness routine and it is important to incorporate them all. Perhaps you enjoy strength training more than aerobic exercise, or maybe you have made yoga a major component of your training program. Whatever your favorite form of exercise may be, base your fitness goals on these four primary elements of fitness to achieve a well-rounded exercise plan!

Aerobic Fitness

Aerobic Fitness is the cornerstone of most training programs. The better your aerobic fitness the more effective your heart and lungs are at transporting oxygen throughout your body. This not only makes daily tasks easier but allows you to accomplish spontaneous aerobic challenges, such as taking the stairs at work! To improve your aerobic fitness try walking, jogging, biking, swimming, or dancing. Even housework can count as long as you increase your heart rate!

Muscular Fitness

Muscular Fitness is another key component that is sometimes left out of the equation. Regular strength training reduces body fat, increases lean muscle mass and boosts your metabolism. You do not need to invest in a gym membership or buy expensive equipment to reap the benefits of strength training. Hand-held weights and resistance bands are great options. Your own body weight is just as effective so try push-ups, abdominal crunches and leg squats.

Stretching

Stretching is an essential part of your routine. Aerobic and strength training exercises cause your muscles to contract and flex. For stability in your fitness program, it’s important to stretch your muscles. Stretching increases flexibility, improves range of motion, relieves stress and helps prevent injuries. Set aside time to stretch after each workout. If you do not exercise daily, you should stretch at least three times a week to maintain flexibility. Activities such as yoga and tai chi are great for increasing flexibility!

Core Stability

Core Stability is the final element of a well balanced training program. Your abdomen, lower back and pelvis are known as your core muscles and help to support stability. Abdominal crunches are a classic core exercise. Fitness balls are great way to develop core strength and offer a wide range of movements. Try replacing your office chair with a fitness ball to improve your core strength and posture.

Whether you create your own exercise program or have a personal trainer, make sure aerobic exercise, strength training, stretching and core stability are a part of your overall fitness plan. These four elements can help you live a lifetime of health and wellness!