Go outside! take a walk - three 10 minute power walks a day is as effective as one 30-minute workout.
Play with your kids and make all family events involve physical activity, including birthdays and holidays.
At work, don't email or use the phone if you’re in the same building as the person you wish to speak with, get off your butt and walk over to the person.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Instead of endlessly searching for the CLOSEST parking spot, spend those minutes more productively by burning a few calories walking from the farthest parking spot! Try to find every opportunity to be more active.
Pack your lunch three days per week. I know you love going out to lunch every day. However, if you make a healthy lunch just three days per week, you’ll be coaxing a realistic habit.
Take small steps to change your diet. Eliminate one portion of food from one daily meal. If you usually have a sandwich with cheese for lunch, just eliminate the cheese. If you have a salad for lunch, but it’s smothered with croutons, just eliminate the croutons.
Email Valerie to help you get started!
Tips Of The Week
Week - 4/18/2004
The more you move, the better you eat. People who exercise at least 3 hours a week tend to eat a more balanced diet and think twice before pigging out. Plus they don’t have to cut as many calories from their diet and risk feeling deprived - and cranky.
Week - 4/25/2004
Your metabolism is genetically programmed. However, you can change your metabolism by changing your body composition. Build lean muscle mass through weight training, and make your body more metabolically active. Muscular people burn more calories sitting still than those with less muscle mass and more body fat.
Week - 5/2/2004
100 Crunches a day? No way! Don’t fall into the trap of thinking your abdominal muscles are somehow different from any other muscle in your body. You should incorporate the same strength training principles with the abdominals as any other muscle group. That means reaching fatigue in 30 - 90 seconds, using controlled movements and training the abdominals every other day. You wouldn’t think of performing 100 bicep curls and the same applies to the abs.
Week - 5/09/2004
One pound of fat equals 3,500 calories - so losing a pound of fat a week is quite an accomplishment! The most effective way to create a negative caloric deficit of 3,500 calories is to combine exercise with a complimentary diet. Exercise alone is a slow road to weight loss, but regular physical activity is one of the most important factors for successful long-term weight management and the best way to improve your health and fitness.
Week - 5/16/2004
Start training like a boxer and get yourself a rope! Jumping rope is a great cardio workout, especially when time and space are limited. And it doesn’t take much to get started! All you need is a good pair of supportive sneakers and a jump rope. By jumping at a moderate pace, it only takes 15 minutes to burn 200 calories! It would take an hour of walking to burn that amount! Once you’ve mastered the basic jumping movements, you can get creative. Turn on some music and go for it!
Week - 5/23/2004
If you’re thinking about increasing the intensity of your jogs or walks by adding weight – think again. You should never walk with hand or ankle weights. This adds too much stress on your joints and the risks outweigh the benefits. Instead increase the pace, walk on an incline, do a combination of walking and jogging or jogging and running intervals or increase your distance and time. If you insist on adding weight, do so by evenly distributing weighted objects in a backpack.
Week - 5/30/2004
If you’re watching your weight, consume alcohol in moderation. At 7 calories per gram, alcohol is metabolized like fat, which means it is absorbed and stored in your fat cells. Alcohol also decreases your willpower, and when you’re trying to reduce your weight, you need your resolve. Moderate drinking is defined as no more than two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women.
Week - 6/6/2004
Interval training -- rotate between periods of high and moderate intensity exercises to facilitate calorie burning and fuel your metabolism. If you find it difficult to work at higher intensities, work at lower intensities for 30 to 60 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week – slowly working your way up, adding short bouts of high intensity.
Week 6/13/2004
Strength train to ward off osteoporosis. By the time you leave high school, you have established all the bone mineral density you'll ever have--unless you strength train. Research has found that weight training can increase spinal bone mineral density by 13 percent in six months. Strength training is one of the most powerful tools against osteoporosis.
Week 6/20/2004
Give purpose to every workout. The more carefully you plan your weight training program, the more meaningful, exciting and effective each session will be. Although long-term goals are encouraged, you should still have a goal in mind for each workout. It may mean going a little longer, a little faster, a little heavier on the resistance or trying a new exercise.
Week 6/27/2004
Cardiovascular exercise will improve the efficiency of your heart and lungs. Your resting heart rate will be lower, while the amount of blood supplied to the rest of your body with each beat will increase. This increased blood flow supplies additional oxygen to the working muscles, which makes your muscles function more efficiently.
Week 7/4/2004
Regardless of what the labels say, both butter and margarine are 100 percent fat. That indicates that neither will prove supportive in any excess. Butter, at least, is a more "friendly" fat. What they do to create margarine is force hydrogen molecules into an oil to give that oil a solid consistency. The process is called "hydrogenation." If you look at the ingredients on a tub of margarine, you'll find the primary and only significant ingredient to be "hydrogenated oil." By altering the molecular structure of the fatty acid chains, they turn what might have been a supportive fat into a compound that may actually do cellular damage!
Week 7/11/2004
Don't skip breakfast! Studies show that people who skip breakfast tend to overeat throughout the day. And your metabolism may slow down if you go too long without food. If you skip breakfast, that could mean going up to 14 hours without food - from last night's dinner to today's lunch. So, break the fast. Start the day with a kick-start!
Week 7/18/2004
Boost your metabolism! Strength training is your secret weapon to an increased metabolism. Regular strength training will add lean muscle to your body. Every pound of muscle on your body takes up to 50 calories a day to maintain, whereas a pound of fat only requires 2 calories a day to sustain it. So the more muscle you have the greater your metabolism -- even when you are sleeping!
Week 8/15/2004
Do you know your label lingo? "Reduced" means an item has 25% less fat/sodium as compared with the regular version of the same food. "Light" is used when an item has 1/3 fewer calories, or 50% less fat than the original. "Low" indicates frequent consumption of a food will not exceed Daily Values of a particular nutrient.
Week 8/22/2004
Minute per minute, running burns more calories than walking. A general rule of thumb is for every mile you complete, you expend about 100 calories. The difference is it takes a lot longer to walk a mile than to run one.
Week 8/29/2004
Stop putting off weight loss! Realize that there will never be a better time to lose weight. Unless you're nearing retirement or about to send the kids out into the world, your life will probably only get busier with time. If you really want to lose weight, it will take some time and planning. There is no magic pill that will melt away pounds. Make the commitment and start now!
Week 9/5/2004
Try a trainer. Those who workout out with a trainer accomplish twice the results of someone exercising on their own. This was proven in the areas of body fat reduction, increasing strength and boosting metabolism. A qualified trainer can help you set realistic goals and determine safe strategies, all while providing the encouragement you need.
Week 9/19/2004
Exercise during pregnancy. A good exercise program may help relieve some of the common problems associated with pregnancy, such as excessive weight gain, swelling of your hands and feet, leg cramps, varicose veins, insomnia, fatigue and constipation. But before you get started, talk to your doctor. Your physician will want to evaluate your fitness status in relation to your pregnancy and your fitness instructor will most likely want your physicians consent before you begin an exercise program.
Week 10/4/2004
Feeling tired? Did you know that one of the most common reasons for fatigue is mild dehydration? Keep track of how many glasses of water you consume by filling a 2-liter bottle of water and drinking it over the course of a day. If you finish the bottle, you've reached the average goal of 8 glasses per day.
Week 10/17/2004
Think about how you breathe. Chest and shoulder breathing is the most common method of breathing, despite being incorrect. This type of breathing causes tension in neck and shoulders and calls upon unnecessary muscles to constantly work and tighten – creating rounded shoulders and a curved upper back. Instead, breathe with the diaphram. This involves an expansion of the abdomen during inhalation. Concentrate on the way you breath at least once a day and use it as a relaxation tool as well!
Week 11/3/2004
Shoulder pain?? Rotator cuff tendonitis is a common problem that occurs when one of the four rotator cuff muscles get irritated and inflamed. Pain is primarily on top and in the front of your shoulder or on the side. Usually it worsens with overhead activities. How to treat it – stop the activity that can aggravate your symptoms, use cryotherapy (cold therapy) and strengthen your rotator cuff!!
