Let me try to clear up a little muscle confusion, if I may: Women's fear that they will build a lot of muscle:
I have heard on several occasions women express that if they lift weights, or increase weight load, that they will get big, bulging, manly muscles. This is a fear that I understand, but it's completely unfounded.
You can NOT, I mean, no way, no how, it's not happening, can NOT get "big bulky muscles" like a man. Yes, I know you've seen those magazines with women who have freakishly large muscles and they look..... well.... masculine. Let me assure you of something: They are taking steroids. That's the only way it happens for women. Why? We simply don't make enough testosterone naturally to get huge muscles. Well defined muscles? Yes? Great, big ones? Can't happen. It's just physiologically impossible.
Want proof? Look at me. I've been lifting weights fairly consistently for the past 23 years, and very consistently for the past 2, increasing my weight load and maxing out as much as possible. I lift a lot of weight for a woman. Most people reading this have seen me in the fairly recent past. Let me ask you a question- Do I look anything remotely close to masculine, big, or bulky? I think I can safely say you would be hard-pressed to find a more feminine figure than mine.
Now, there are a few women out there who are the very rare exception, and I do mean EXTREMELY rare, who will build muscle larger than most women, but they are so few and far between that it's barely even worth a mention. Trust me, you aren't one of them.
Muscle tone adds sleek, sexy tightness and definition to a woman and enhances her feminine shape.
So if you are just starting out or getting back into lifting after a long sabatical, get a good book or hire a trainer to make sure you have proper form, and start lifting!
I'm sorry it took me so long to get another blog out. Between being injured in a wreck that totaled my car, finding a new vehicle, and my husband visiting, I didn't have proper time until now.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Keep your mind on the muscle you are working!
Maximum effectiveness of an exercise. Isn't that what we all want? Of course! Otherwise we wouldn't be exercising, right?
I have a saying when I exercise: "As long as I'm taking the time to do this, I may as well get maximum benefit from it."
Here is my best tip for getting the most of any exercise: Concentrate on the muscle you are working.
Sounds simple doesn't it? But it is so easy to let our minds wander when we are lifting weights or doing toning exercise.
First of all, when you get to the gym leave your problems at the door. This is not the time to be thinking through the strategy for a problem at work or about the fight you had with your significant other the night before. This is one time you need to be really selfish and concentrate on just you and your muscles.
Now that you are fully focused on your workout, really think about the specific muscle you are working for that exercise.
Let's use the Lat Pull Down as an example: This exercise works the latissimus dorsi muscle (lats) in the upper back (the muscles that flares out to the sides when well developed). So, from the start of the movement with my arms in the air, I am thinking upper, outer back. I'm thinking of starting the movement by contracting that muscle in order to pull the bar down. All the way through the movement, from the initial lowering of the bar, to the peak of contraction when the bar is near my chest, and then all the way back up the the starting position with my arms over my head, I am thinking about my lats doing the work of lowering and raising the bar up. I don't stop focusing on my lats until the last repetition of that set.
With any exercise you do, apply this principle of concentrating on the muscle or area being worked. Trust me- your mind won't have room for anything else if you do it properly and you'll get a much more intense and effective workout for your efforts.
My apologies for taking so long to post a new blog entry. Life has thrown some major curve balls at me lately. And I don't know why this is saying it's August 10th- It's really October 28th.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Best time of day to exercise.
Here's a question a lot of people wonder about: What is the best time of day to exercise?
There is some scientific evidence that an early AM workout is the most beneficial. So if you are a person who has the option to work out first thing in the morning and it's compatible with your personality, I say go for it! Why not?
However, if your schedule won't allow you to work out in the early AM or you are one of these people who just simply can't put out your best effort right out of bed, you need to find a time that works better for you. I stated in one of my very first blog posts, any exercise is better than no exercise.
If you can't give 100% to your workout in the morning but you can at 6PM, you will gain more benefit from working out at 6PM.
If you simply can't find time to work out until 6PM, you will gain more benefit from working out at 6PM than you will from not working out at all.
One precaution about working out late in the day: Most people will have a hard time getting a good nights sleep due to increased heart rate if they exercise within 2 hours of bedtime. And sleep is vital in the fitness battle, so don't sacrifice your sleep for your workout.
Whenever you decide is the best time for you to exercise, schedule it into your calendar and treat it like a non-negotiable appointment. This is your health we are talking about. It is that important.
There is some scientific evidence that an early AM workout is the most beneficial. So if you are a person who has the option to work out first thing in the morning and it's compatible with your personality, I say go for it! Why not?
I like to work out ASAP in the morning. I'm more energetic in the morning and it's out of the way. For me, it's worth it to wake up super-early to get my workout in, if necessary. That way, any excuse I can find for not doing it later on in the day is not given a chance to take hold. It's already done.
If you can't give 100% to your workout in the morning but you can at 6PM, you will gain more benefit from working out at 6PM.
If you simply can't find time to work out until 6PM, you will gain more benefit from working out at 6PM than you will from not working out at all.
One precaution about working out late in the day: Most people will have a hard time getting a good nights sleep due to increased heart rate if they exercise within 2 hours of bedtime. And sleep is vital in the fitness battle, so don't sacrifice your sleep for your workout.
Whenever you decide is the best time for you to exercise, schedule it into your calendar and treat it like a non-negotiable appointment. This is your health we are talking about. It is that important.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Weights vs. Aerobics
As time has gone on, I've come to understand that weight bearing exercise is more important than aerobic exercise.
Let me say it another way: If I have to make a choice between lifting weights and doing aerobic activity, I'll choose the weight lifting. Every time.
I didn't always feel this way. I used to think the opposite was true. I believed the heart was the most important muscle in the body (still do), and that the best way to condition it was through aerobic activity.This is the part that has.
Here are some reasons why:
- Weight lifting shapes your body like aerobics can't. Ever seen a body that is aerobically fit but not muscularly fit? It's missing shape and, in the case of women, usually curve. You can actually CHANGE the overall line of your body by adding muscle. All aerobics does to your body shape, at best, is make is a smaller, less-fat version of itself. I've never been able to add pleasing lines to my body with aerobic activity the way I have been able to with weight lifting. Through weight lifting I've been able to build my naturally-very-slight-shoulders up and tighten my abs, which has helped to give me a more hour-glassed shape and therefore make my hips look more balanced.
Because of this, muscle tone makes men look more masculine and women look more feminine.
- Muscle burns more calories at rest, so when you have more muscle on your body your resting metabolism (how many calories you burn just to keep your body alive) rises. Additionally, the calorie burn from the actual weight-lifting exercises themselves can continue for up to 24 hours. On the other hand, aerobic activity burns calories while you are doing it, but that calorie-burning effect stops very quickly after the activity stops. So it's a better calorie-burning-investment over all to build muscle.
In a nutshell, weight bearing activities are more effective at helping you shed fat than aerobic activity.
-Weight bearing activities are more practical because they make you stronger for doing daily activities. You can't gain strength to lift heavy grocery bags or help someone build a fence with aerobic activity. I'm willing to bet that no one is going to ask you to run away from something any time soon. But help them lift a TV? That just might happen!
- Weight lifting makes bones stronger, therefore enabling you to be less prone to injury as you age. This is especially important for women, who tend to lose bone density much more rapidly than men, but is still a significant benefit for both sexes. In case you are wondering how this happens, the muscles are attached to ligaments that are attached to the bones. When the ligaments tug on the bone, the body reacts by making the bone stronger to be able to withstand the pulling. The more and heavier you lift, the more dense the bone becomes, therefore the less prone you are to bone breakage.
Pretty cool, huh?
- If you are really working out hard doing weight-bearing activity, it can very well become aerobic. Ever seen someone who is weight lifting huffing and puffing? That's because they are using oxygen! And the word "aerobic" means "With oxygen". 'Nuff said.
I could go on, but the thing I want people to take home here is that if given a choice, lifting weights is more important to your healthy functioning over the long-haul than aerobic activity. Do I want you to stop aerobic activity? NO! It's still important, but weight lifting needs to be at the top of your priority list.
If you're not sure if you have time to do both weight lifting and aerobic activity on the same day, do your lifting first. Then with whatever time you have left, do aerobic activity.
Likewise, if you don't enjoy weight lifting as much, do it first, so that it's over and done with and you don't have time to talk yourself out of it.
Next blog I'll talk about why women shouldn't be afraid to lift heavy. But in the meantime just trust me: The more muscle, the better!
Let me say it another way: If I have to make a choice between lifting weights and doing aerobic activity, I'll choose the weight lifting. Every time.
I didn't always feel this way. I used to think the opposite was true. I believed the heart was the most important muscle in the body (still do), and that the best way to condition it was through aerobic activity.This is the part that has.
Here are some reasons why:
- Weight lifting shapes your body like aerobics can't. Ever seen a body that is aerobically fit but not muscularly fit? It's missing shape and, in the case of women, usually curve. You can actually CHANGE the overall line of your body by adding muscle. All aerobics does to your body shape, at best, is make is a smaller, less-fat version of itself. I've never been able to add pleasing lines to my body with aerobic activity the way I have been able to with weight lifting. Through weight lifting I've been able to build my naturally-very-slight-shoulders up and tighten my abs, which has helped to give me a more hour-glassed shape and therefore make my hips look more balanced.
Because of this, muscle tone makes men look more masculine and women look more feminine.
- Muscle burns more calories at rest, so when you have more muscle on your body your resting metabolism (how many calories you burn just to keep your body alive) rises. Additionally, the calorie burn from the actual weight-lifting exercises themselves can continue for up to 24 hours. On the other hand, aerobic activity burns calories while you are doing it, but that calorie-burning effect stops very quickly after the activity stops. So it's a better calorie-burning-investment over all to build muscle.
In a nutshell, weight bearing activities are more effective at helping you shed fat than aerobic activity.
-Weight bearing activities are more practical because they make you stronger for doing daily activities. You can't gain strength to lift heavy grocery bags or help someone build a fence with aerobic activity. I'm willing to bet that no one is going to ask you to run away from something any time soon. But help them lift a TV? That just might happen!
- Weight lifting makes bones stronger, therefore enabling you to be less prone to injury as you age. This is especially important for women, who tend to lose bone density much more rapidly than men, but is still a significant benefit for both sexes. In case you are wondering how this happens, the muscles are attached to ligaments that are attached to the bones. When the ligaments tug on the bone, the body reacts by making the bone stronger to be able to withstand the pulling. The more and heavier you lift, the more dense the bone becomes, therefore the less prone you are to bone breakage.
Pretty cool, huh?
- If you are really working out hard doing weight-bearing activity, it can very well become aerobic. Ever seen someone who is weight lifting huffing and puffing? That's because they are using oxygen! And the word "aerobic" means "With oxygen". 'Nuff said.
I could go on, but the thing I want people to take home here is that if given a choice, lifting weights is more important to your healthy functioning over the long-haul than aerobic activity. Do I want you to stop aerobic activity? NO! It's still important, but weight lifting needs to be at the top of your priority list.
If you're not sure if you have time to do both weight lifting and aerobic activity on the same day, do your lifting first. Then with whatever time you have left, do aerobic activity.
Likewise, if you don't enjoy weight lifting as much, do it first, so that it's over and done with and you don't have time to talk yourself out of it.
Next blog I'll talk about why women shouldn't be afraid to lift heavy. But in the meantime just trust me: The more muscle, the better!
Friday, July 31, 2009
What you eat is more important than how you move.
So you may be wondering- Why is a personal trainer talking so much about food? Glad you asked! Here is the answer:
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but in my opinion what you eat is at least 80% of the weight loss battle.
And I'd say it's about 70% of the battle to stay fit once you've lost weight. Reason? I've never seen a truly physical fit adult over the age of 20 who wasn't very mindful about what he or she puts into their mouth. The occasional (once a week, tops) splurge meal? Sure! Regular, mindless shoving of food into their mouth? Not happening. Not that I've seen.
I'm not saying that exercise isn't important- it is. But if you exercise like a body builder and eat like an overweight person, you're going to look an overweight person. You'll be more fit than most other out overweight people, but you'll still be overweight. I live this truth every day of my life.
And for the record, I'm sure you've heard this before, but you can not turn muscle into fat. Muscle cells are muscle cells, fat cells are fat cells, and ne'er shall the two metamorphis into one another. You must build muscle and lose fat to see the muscle. That's just the way it works.
I've had this exchange more than once:
Other person- "How do I get myself into good physical shape?"
Me- "Well, you have to watch what you eat. Without changing your dietary habits you won't see or feel maximum results."
Other person- "I don't eat that much!"
Me (mentally- if they are overweight)- "Bull doo-doo!" (I cleaned that up!)
If they ask, I share some general guidelines they can follow (I'm not certified to give particulars), and give them help with their exercise regime. Sometimes they tell me they have every intention of watching what they eat, in addition to following our exercise program.
I am sad to say that most of the time they stick with the exercise, but 90% of the time they don't change their eating habits. So the changes in the mirror are minimal, since all of that beautiful muscle is hidden under a layer of fat.
Additionally, all of the muscle you put on can't benefit your body they way that losing fat can. And the strength you give your heart with cardiovascular exercise can be negated by extra fat on the body that the heart must work hard to pump blood through.
Am I saying to abandon your exercise routine until you get the excess weight off? No!!! Good Lord, PLEASE don't do that! If you are exercising, keep it up! First of all, it's raising your metabolism, helping to maximum your dietary weight loss efforts. Second of all, it'll make you more fit in general and help give you a "tighter" appearance, making the general lines of your body more pleasing. And thirdly, once you do lose weight you will have wonderful, sexy muscle to show off instead of tired, loose, skin filled out with minimal muscles development. You'll be ahead of the game and looking enviable when you get closer to goal!
If you already are a low body-fat percentage and exercising but not seeing results the way you think you should, it's time to clean up your eating. I've seen people amazed at the difference a good, sound eating plan adds to their already sound fitness routine.
I'll be the first to admit that changing eating habits is difficult. I struggle with this issue regularly. I love to eat! But until I get the excess weight off of my body I won't see the full extent of the fruits of my efforts from exercise. That, my friends, is a sad, true fact.
So, if I were to have to choose for someone between eating right and exercising, I'd pick eating right. Every time.
BTW, I'm curious. Is anyone reading this?
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but in my opinion what you eat is at least 80% of the weight loss battle.
And I'd say it's about 70% of the battle to stay fit once you've lost weight. Reason? I've never seen a truly physical fit adult over the age of 20 who wasn't very mindful about what he or she puts into their mouth. The occasional (once a week, tops) splurge meal? Sure! Regular, mindless shoving of food into their mouth? Not happening. Not that I've seen.
I'm not saying that exercise isn't important- it is. But if you exercise like a body builder and eat like an overweight person, you're going to look an overweight person. You'll be more fit than most other out overweight people, but you'll still be overweight. I live this truth every day of my life.
And for the record, I'm sure you've heard this before, but you can not turn muscle into fat. Muscle cells are muscle cells, fat cells are fat cells, and ne'er shall the two metamorphis into one another. You must build muscle and lose fat to see the muscle. That's just the way it works.
I've had this exchange more than once:
Other person- "How do I get myself into good physical shape?"
Me- "Well, you have to watch what you eat. Without changing your dietary habits you won't see or feel maximum results."
Other person- "I don't eat that much!"
Me (mentally- if they are overweight)- "Bull doo-doo!" (I cleaned that up!)
If they ask, I share some general guidelines they can follow (I'm not certified to give particulars), and give them help with their exercise regime. Sometimes they tell me they have every intention of watching what they eat, in addition to following our exercise program.
I am sad to say that most of the time they stick with the exercise, but 90% of the time they don't change their eating habits. So the changes in the mirror are minimal, since all of that beautiful muscle is hidden under a layer of fat.
Additionally, all of the muscle you put on can't benefit your body they way that losing fat can. And the strength you give your heart with cardiovascular exercise can be negated by extra fat on the body that the heart must work hard to pump blood through.
Am I saying to abandon your exercise routine until you get the excess weight off? No!!! Good Lord, PLEASE don't do that! If you are exercising, keep it up! First of all, it's raising your metabolism, helping to maximum your dietary weight loss efforts. Second of all, it'll make you more fit in general and help give you a "tighter" appearance, making the general lines of your body more pleasing. And thirdly, once you do lose weight you will have wonderful, sexy muscle to show off instead of tired, loose, skin filled out with minimal muscles development. You'll be ahead of the game and looking enviable when you get closer to goal!
If you already are a low body-fat percentage and exercising but not seeing results the way you think you should, it's time to clean up your eating. I've seen people amazed at the difference a good, sound eating plan adds to their already sound fitness routine.
I'll be the first to admit that changing eating habits is difficult. I struggle with this issue regularly. I love to eat! But until I get the excess weight off of my body I won't see the full extent of the fruits of my efforts from exercise. That, my friends, is a sad, true fact.
So, if I were to have to choose for someone between eating right and exercising, I'd pick eating right. Every time.
BTW, I'm curious. Is anyone reading this?
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Excuses, Excuses!
Unless a doctor has told you differently, any reason you have for not eating right or exercising is not a reason, it's an excuse.
Sounds extreme, doesn't it? It's not.
Here are a few I've heard:
-"I don't like the way healthy food tastes." You've become accustomed to eating unhealthy foods. Likewise, you can become accustomed to eating healthy foods. The trick is to start. It'll take time, but you'll get there. And you'll believe it was worth it once you do.
-"I don't have time to count calories." First of all, counting calories only takes time in the beginning. After a few days, armed with a good calorie-guide and nutritional information on the side of packaging, you'll be able to find the calorie count in any particular food fairly quickly. It's good for you to know what exactly is in the things you are putting in your mouth. Secondly, you don't have to count calories. Join a sound diet plan (Weight Watchers is my favorite) that has taken most of the work out of calorie counting by supplying you with comprehensive lists of easy-to-look-up foods. Then follow it.
-"I don't have access to good foods." This is usually baloney, but if all you have access to is butter-dripping vegetables, fried chicken, and triple-layer cake, sop as much butter off of the veggies as you can with a napkin, take the breading/batter/skin off the chicken and the frosting off the cake. Then eat a lot less of them. And move more. (Refer to my "Move More" post.) Many times we have to adapt. For help, refer back to my first blog.
-"It's more expensive to eat healthy." Well, okay....... Most of the time, yes. I'll give you this one. But doctors bills and missed work from being in poor health costs more.
Now some I've heard for not exercising:
-"I injured my (insert body part here). I don't want to hurt it again." So did I. Years after rehabbing a torn rotator cuff I still have to be careful about how much weight/how I lift with it. But the fact is that I can lift weights. It's not enough of an excuse to stop exercise entirely. If you have recently injured yourself, ask your doctor what you can do for exercise. Ditto for surgery.
-"It makes me feel uncomfortable". Look, it's called a work out for a reason- It's work! We all feel some degree of discomfort at some point when we exercise. But trust me, muscles adapt very quickly. Pretty soon you'll be feeling better more often and uncomfortable less often. And you could wind up surprising yourself by looking forward to workouts and wanting to make your body a little uncomfortable with challenging it. You can't know until you try.
-"I don't like to sweat." This always elicits a chuckle from me. Do you want to be sweaty a little bit of the time, or look flabby all the time? That's what it comes down to. Your call. The sweat excuse is by and far the weakest one I've ever heard.
And my all time favorite:
-"I don't have time." This one makes me want to pull my hair out! Hey, listen, if you don't have time to exercise now, think of how much less time you'll have in the future when you're sitting in a hospital bed, recovering from open heart surgery. How will THAT fit into your busy schedule? Or the schedules of your equally busy loved ones? I can almost guarantee you will be thinking (besides "Dear God, please don't let me die!"), "I wish I'd have made time to exercise and eat right. This is not worth it."
Even just a 20-minute walk to clear your head at the end of a busy day is better than nothing and will have a positive accumulative affect on your health.
I'm sure you can come up with more. Throw them at me! Let's see if you can render me answer-less.
Again, unless a doctor has told you that eating right and/or any form of exercise are hazardous to your health, any reason you have isn't a reason, it's an excuse.
Sounds extreme, doesn't it? It's not.
Here are a few I've heard:
-"I don't like the way healthy food tastes." You've become accustomed to eating unhealthy foods. Likewise, you can become accustomed to eating healthy foods. The trick is to start. It'll take time, but you'll get there. And you'll believe it was worth it once you do.
-"I don't have time to count calories." First of all, counting calories only takes time in the beginning. After a few days, armed with a good calorie-guide and nutritional information on the side of packaging, you'll be able to find the calorie count in any particular food fairly quickly. It's good for you to know what exactly is in the things you are putting in your mouth. Secondly, you don't have to count calories. Join a sound diet plan (Weight Watchers is my favorite) that has taken most of the work out of calorie counting by supplying you with comprehensive lists of easy-to-look-up foods. Then follow it.
-"I don't have access to good foods." This is usually baloney, but if all you have access to is butter-dripping vegetables, fried chicken, and triple-layer cake, sop as much butter off of the veggies as you can with a napkin, take the breading/batter/skin off the chicken and the frosting off the cake. Then eat a lot less of them. And move more. (Refer to my "Move More" post.) Many times we have to adapt. For help, refer back to my first blog.
-"It's more expensive to eat healthy." Well, okay....... Most of the time, yes. I'll give you this one. But doctors bills and missed work from being in poor health costs more.
Now some I've heard for not exercising:
-"I injured my (insert body part here). I don't want to hurt it again." So did I. Years after rehabbing a torn rotator cuff I still have to be careful about how much weight/how I lift with it. But the fact is that I can lift weights. It's not enough of an excuse to stop exercise entirely. If you have recently injured yourself, ask your doctor what you can do for exercise. Ditto for surgery.
-"It makes me feel uncomfortable". Look, it's called a work out for a reason- It's work! We all feel some degree of discomfort at some point when we exercise. But trust me, muscles adapt very quickly. Pretty soon you'll be feeling better more often and uncomfortable less often. And you could wind up surprising yourself by looking forward to workouts and wanting to make your body a little uncomfortable with challenging it. You can't know until you try.
-"I don't like to sweat." This always elicits a chuckle from me. Do you want to be sweaty a little bit of the time, or look flabby all the time? That's what it comes down to. Your call. The sweat excuse is by and far the weakest one I've ever heard.
And my all time favorite:
-"I don't have time." This one makes me want to pull my hair out! Hey, listen, if you don't have time to exercise now, think of how much less time you'll have in the future when you're sitting in a hospital bed, recovering from open heart surgery. How will THAT fit into your busy schedule? Or the schedules of your equally busy loved ones? I can almost guarantee you will be thinking (besides "Dear God, please don't let me die!"), "I wish I'd have made time to exercise and eat right. This is not worth it."
Do you want to wait and see if I'm right, or do you want to start taking care of yourself?
None of us have time to not take care of ourselves.
I'm sure you can come up with more. Throw them at me! Let's see if you can render me answer-less.
Again, unless a doctor has told you that eating right and/or any form of exercise are hazardous to your health, any reason you have isn't a reason, it's an excuse.
Any Exercise Is Better Than No Exercise!
I think I'm gonna want that put on my grave marker, I say it so much: Any Exercise Is Better Than No Exercise!
If you only have time for a 5-minute walk, take a 5 minute walk!
If you have an injury that won't let you exercise for more than a few minutes, exercise for a few minutes!
If you feel like the little bit you can do won't matter, it matters!
First of all, any amount of moving will help to raise your metabolism, which I covered in my "Move More" post. This makes you burn more calories, which in turn makes you slimmer, which in turn, makes you healthier. Why? Because It ALL Makes A Difference! (Title of blog, in case you needed reminding one more time.)
And second of all, when you DO get to where you can put in more time/effort for physical activity, you will be that much more fit to get started and make the most of it.
And it might, just maybe, be the thing that finally gets you into action about setting aside time for full-blown workouts. Gosh, I hope so! But even if it's not, any exercise is better than no exercise.
Hey, listen- I'm a big proponent of long, thorough workouts. I love them, and I do them often. But today, due to a thunderstorm this morning during my regular walk time, all I could do was an afternoon walk in the Texas heat with the dog and my 20-year old daughter. It was NOT what I would call a cardiovascular workout. It's wasn't even really what I would call a workout. Between the dog (who is fickle on a leash), the heat (waaaaaaay too hot to be exerting myself much) and talking to my daughter (who really needed some mom-gab time), getting a true cardio workout was impossible. But you know what? It was the best I could do today. And that has to be good enough. I could have said to myself "What the heck? It won't even be enough of a workout to shower- what's the point?" But I didn't, because I know that any exercise is better than no exercise. (And because I know that one scheduled exercise day without exercise could lead to two, which could start me on the sedentary path, which I never want to be on again.)
Here are a few ideas:
- Do push-ups, sit-ups, lunges, something during the TV commercials to a 1/2 hour show.
- Do calf raises or modified push-ups on the counter (feet on floor, hands on counter edge) in the kitchen while you are waiting for your microwave popcorn to finish.
- Do walking lunges while you walk through the house: http://www.5min.com/Video/Walking-Lunges-30427368?sid=247 (trust me- you'll feel this one the next day!)
- Go for a quick walk whenever you can fit it into the day.
- Go dancing. (Dancing, any kind, is GREAT exercise!)
- Sit on an exercise ball at your desk instead of a regular chair. (I'm sitting on one right now!)
The power really is yours to decide if you will do nothing or something. And in the case of exercise, something, unless under doctors orders to do otherwise, is always better than nothing.
If you only have time for a 5-minute walk, take a 5 minute walk!
If you have an injury that won't let you exercise for more than a few minutes, exercise for a few minutes!
If you feel like the little bit you can do won't matter, it matters!
First of all, any amount of moving will help to raise your metabolism, which I covered in my "Move More" post. This makes you burn more calories, which in turn makes you slimmer, which in turn, makes you healthier. Why? Because It ALL Makes A Difference! (Title of blog, in case you needed reminding one more time.)
And second of all, when you DO get to where you can put in more time/effort for physical activity, you will be that much more fit to get started and make the most of it.
And it might, just maybe, be the thing that finally gets you into action about setting aside time for full-blown workouts. Gosh, I hope so! But even if it's not, any exercise is better than no exercise.
Hey, listen- I'm a big proponent of long, thorough workouts. I love them, and I do them often. But today, due to a thunderstorm this morning during my regular walk time, all I could do was an afternoon walk in the Texas heat with the dog and my 20-year old daughter. It was NOT what I would call a cardiovascular workout. It's wasn't even really what I would call a workout. Between the dog (who is fickle on a leash), the heat (waaaaaaay too hot to be exerting myself much) and talking to my daughter (who really needed some mom-gab time), getting a true cardio workout was impossible. But you know what? It was the best I could do today. And that has to be good enough. I could have said to myself "What the heck? It won't even be enough of a workout to shower- what's the point?" But I didn't, because I know that any exercise is better than no exercise. (And because I know that one scheduled exercise day without exercise could lead to two, which could start me on the sedentary path, which I never want to be on again.)
Here are a few ideas:
- Do push-ups, sit-ups, lunges, something during the TV commercials to a 1/2 hour show.
- Do calf raises or modified push-ups on the counter (feet on floor, hands on counter edge) in the kitchen while you are waiting for your microwave popcorn to finish.
- Do walking lunges while you walk through the house: http://www.5min.com/Video/Walking-Lunges-30427368?sid=247 (trust me- you'll feel this one the next day!)
- Go for a quick walk whenever you can fit it into the day.
- Go dancing. (Dancing, any kind, is GREAT exercise!)
- Sit on an exercise ball at your desk instead of a regular chair. (I'm sitting on one right now!)
The power really is yours to decide if you will do nothing or something. And in the case of exercise, something, unless under doctors orders to do otherwise, is always better than nothing.
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