Fitness & Exercise

You have taken the important first step on the path to physical fitness by seeking information. The next step is to decide that you are going to be physically fit. This pamphlet is designed to help you reach that decision and your goal.The decision to carry out a physical fitness program cannot be taken lightly. It requires a lifelong commitment of time and effort. Exercise must become one of those things that you do without question, like bathing and brushing your teeth. Unless you are convinced of the benefits of fitness and the risks of unfitness, you will not succeed.

Patience is essential. Don’t try to do too much too soon and don’t quit before you have a chance to experience the rewards of improved fitness. You can’t regain in a few days or weeks what you have lost in years of sedentary living, but you can get it back if you persevere. And the prize is worth the price.

In the following pages you will find the basic information you need to begin and maintain a personal physical fitness program. These guidelines are intended for the average healthy adult. It tells you what your goals should be and how often, how long and how hard you must exercise to achieve them. It also includes information that will make your workouts easier, safer and more satisfying. The rest is up to you.

CHECKING YOUR HEALTH

If you’re under 35 and in good health, you don’t need to see a doctor before beginning an exercise program. But if you are over 35 and have been inactive for several years, you should consult your physician, who may or may not recommend a graded exercise test. Other conditions that indicate a need for medical clearance are:

High blood pressure, [intlink id=”154″ type=”post”]More on High Blood Pressure[/intlink]
Heart trouble [intlink id=”169″ type=”post”]More on Eating for a Healthy Heart[/intlink]
Family history of early stroke or heart attack deaths [intlink id=”172″ type=”post”]More on Stroke[/intlink]
Frequent dizzy spells [intlink id=”167″ type=”post”]More on Dizziness[/intlink]
Extreme breathlessness after mild exertion
Arthritis or other bone problems [intlink id=”165″ type=”post”]More on Arthritis[/intlink]
Severe muscular, ligament or tendon problems
Other known or suspected disease
If you are taking or considering cholesterol reducing drugs, [intlink id=”162″ type=”post”]More on Statins[/intlink]

Vigorous exercise involves minimal health risks for persons in good health or those following a doctor’s advice. Far greater risks are present by habitual inactivity and obesity.

DEFINING FITNESS

Physical fitness is to the human body what fine tuning is to an engine. It enables us to perform up to our potential. Fitness can be described as a condition that helps us look, feel and do our best. More specifically, it is: “The ability to perform daily tasks vigorously and alertly, with energy left over for enjoying leisure-time activities and meeting emergency demands. It is the ability to endure, to bear up, to withstand stress, to carry on in circumstances where an unfit person could not continue, and is a major basis for good health and well-being.”

Physical fitness involves the performance of the heart and lungs, and the muscles of the body. And, since what we do with our bodies also affects what we can do with our minds, fitness influences to some degree qualities such as mental alertness and emotional stability.

As you undertake your fitness program, it’s important to remember that fitness is an individual quality that varies from person to person. It is influenced by age, sex, heredity, personal habits, exercise and eating practices. You can’t do anything about the first three factors. However, it is within your power to change and improve the others where needed.

KNOWING THE BASICS

Physical fitness is most easily understood by examining its components, or “parts.” There is widespread agreement that these four components are basic.

Cardiorespiratory Endurance – the ability to deliver oxygen and nutrients to tissues, and to remove wastes, over sustained periods of time. Long runs and swims are among the methods employed in measuring this component.

Muscular Strength – the ability of a muscle to exert force for a brief period of time. Upper-body strength, for example, can be measured by various weight-lifting exercises.

Muscular Endurance – the ability of a muscle, or a group of muscles, to sustain repeated contractions or to continue applying force against a fixed object. Pushups are often used to test endurance of arm and shoulder muscles.

Flexibility – the ability to move joints and use muscles through their full range of motion. The sit-and-reach test is a good measure of flexibility of the lower back and backs of the upper legs.

Body Composition is often considered a component of fitness. It refers to the makeup of the body in terms of lean mass (muscle, bone, vital tissue and organs) and fat mass. An optimal ratio of fat to lean mass is an indication of fitness, and the right types of exercise will help you decrease body fat and increase or maintain muscle mass.

A WORKOUT SCHEDULE

How often, how long and how hard you exercise, and what kinds of exercises you do should be determined by what you are trying to accomplish. Your goals, your present fitness level, age, health, skills, interest and convenience are among the factors you should consider. For example, an athlete training for high-level competition would follow a different program than a person whose goals are good health and the ability to meet work and recreational needs.

Your exercise program should include something from each of the four basic fitness components described previously. Each workout should begin with a warmup and end with a cooldown. As a general rule, space your workouts throughout the week and avoid consecutive days of hard exercise.

Here are the amounts of activity necessary for the average, healthy person to maintain a minimum level of overall fitness. Included are some of the popular exercises for each category.

WARMUP – 5-10 minutes of exercises such as walking, slow jogging, knee lifts, arm circles or trunk rotations. Low intensity movements that stimulate movements to be used in the activity can also be included in the warmup.

MUSCULAR STRENGTH – a minimum of two 20-minute sessions per week that include exercises for all the major muscle groups. Lifting weights is the most effective way to increase strength.

MUSCULAR ENDURANCE – at least three 30-minute sessions each week that include exercises such as calisthenics, pushups, situps, pullups, and weight training for all the major muscle groups.

CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE – at least three 20-minute bouts of continuous aerobic (activity requiring oxygen) rhythmic exercise each week. Popular aerobic conditioning activities include brisk walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, rope-jumping, rowing, cross-country skiing, and some continuous action games like racquetball and handball.

FLEXIBILITY – 10-12 minutes of daily stretching exercises performed slowly without a bouncing motion. This can be included after a warmup or during a cooldown.

COOL DOWN – a minimum of 5-10 minutes of slow walking, low-level exercise, combined with stretching.

A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE

The keys to selecting the right kinds of exercises for developing and maintaining each of the basic components of fitness are found in these principles:

Specificity – pick the right kind of activities to affect each component. Strength training results in specific strength changes. Also, train for the specific activity you’re interested in. For example, optimal swimming performance is best achieved when the muscles involved in swimming are trained for the movements required. It does not necessarily follow that a good runner is a good swimmer.

Overload – work hard enough, at levels that are vigorous and long enough to overload your body above its resting level, to bring about improvement.

Regularity – you can’t hoard physical fitness. At least three balanced workouts a week are necessary to maintain a desirable level of fitness.

Progression – increase the intensity, frequency and/or duration of activity over periods of time in order to improve.

Some activities can be used to fulfill more than one of your basic exercise requirements. For example, in addition to increasing cardiorespiratory endurance, running builds muscular endurance in the legs, and swimming develops the arm, shoulder and chest muscles. If you select the proper activities, it is possible to fit parts of your muscular endurance workout into your cardiorespiratory workout and save time.

MEASURING YOUR HEART RATE

Heart rate is widely accepted as a good method for measuring intensity during running, swimming, cycling and other aerobic activities. Exercise that doesn’t raise your heart rate to a certain level and keep it there for 20 minutes won’t contribute significantly to cardiovascular fitness.

The heart rate you should maintain is called your Target Heart Rate. There are several ways of arriving at this figure. One of the simplest is: Maximum Heart Rate (220 – age) X 70%. Thus, the target heart rate for a 40 year-old would be 126.

Some methods for figuring the target rate take individual differences into consideration. Here is one of them.

1. Subtract age from 220 to find Maximum Heart Rate.

2. Subtract resting heart rate (see below) from maximum heart rate to determine Heart Rate Reserve.

3. Take 70% of heart rate reserve to determine Heart Rate Raise.

4. Add heart rate raise to resting heart rate to find Target Rate.

Resting heart rate should be determined by taking your pulse after sitting quietly for five minutes. When checking heart rate during a workout, take your pulse within five seconds after interrupting exercise because it starts to go down once you stop moving. Count pulse for 10 seconds and multiply by six to get the per-minute rate.

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About… Fitness and Exercise

Fitness and Exercise Introduction
Today, there is a growing emphasis on looking good, feeling good and living longer. Increasingly, scientific evidence tells us that one of the keys to achieving these ideals is fitness and exercise. But if you spend your days at a sedentary job and pass your evenings as a “couch potato,” it may require some determination and commitment to make regular activity a part of your daily routine.

Equal Opportunity Benefits

Exercise is not just for Olympic hopefuls or supermodels. In fact, you’re never too unfit, too young or too old to get started. Regardless of your age, gender or role in life, you can benefit from regular physical activity. If you’re committed, exercise in combination with a sensible diet can help provide an overall sense of well-being and can even help prevent chronic illness, disability and premature death. Some of the benefits of increased activity are:

Improved Health

* increased efficiency of heart and lungs
* reduced cholesterol levels
* increased muscle strength
* reduced blood pressure
* reduced risk of major illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease
* weight loss

Improved Sense of Well-Being

* more energy
* less stress
* improved quality of sleep
* improved ability to cope with stress
* increased mental acuity

Improved Appearance

* weight loss
* toned muscles
* improved posture

Enhanced Social Life

* improved self-image
* increased opportunities to make new friends
* increased opportunities to share an activity with friends or family members

Increased Stamina

* increased productivity
* increased physical capabilities
* less frequent injuries
* improved immunity to minor illnesses

Mind Over Immobility

Getting moving is a challenge because today physical activity is less a part of our daily lives. There are fewer jobs that require physical exertion. We’ve become a mechanically mobile society, relying on machines rather than muscle to get around. In addition, we’ve become a nation of observers with more people (including children) spending their leisure time pursuing just that – leisure. Consequently, statistics show that obesity and the problems that come with it (high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, etc.) are on the rise. But statistics also show that preventive medicine pays off, so don’t wait until your doctor gives you an ultimatum. Take the initiative to get active now.

The Fitness Formula

If you’re interested in improving your overall conditioning, health experts recommend that you should get at least 30 minutes of moderately intense physical activity on all or most days of the week. Examples of moderate activity include brisk walking, cycling, swimming or doing home repairs or yard work. If you can’t get in 30 minutes all at once, aim for shorter bouts of activity (at least 10 minutes) that add up to a half hour per day.

Instead of thinking in terms of a specific exercise program, work toward permanently changing your lifestyle to incorporate more activity. Don’t forget that muscles used in any activity, any time of day, contribute to fitness. Try working in a little more movement with these extras:

* Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
* Park at the far end of a parking lot and walk to the office or store.
* Get off public transportation a few blocks before your stop.
* Get up from your desk during the day to stretch and walk around.
* Take a brisk walk when you get the urge to snack.
* Increase your pace when working in the house or yard.
* Mow your own lawn and rake your own leaves.
* Carry your own groceries.

All-Season Exercise

If you’re ready to move up to more vigorous activity, remember that “no pain, no gain” isn’t exactly true. The best-laid plans of many a fitness program have been ruined by too much enthusiasm on the first day and sore muscles on the second. A goal is an end point, not a beginning, so work toward your goal gradually. Once you’re in better shape, you can gradually increase your time or distance or change to a more vigorous activity.

If you have cardiovascular disease, you should check with your physician before undertaking more vigorous activity. Likewise, if you’re a man over 40 or a woman over 50 with risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or obesity, seek your doctor’s advice.

The key to a lifetime of fitness is consistency. Here are some tips to
help you make exercise a habit.

* Choose an activity you enjoy.
* Tailor your program to your own fitness level.
* Set realistic goals.
* Choose an exercise that fits your lifestyle.
* Give your body a chance to adjust to your new routine.
* Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see immediate results.
* Don’t give up if you miss a day; just get back on track the next day.
* Find a partner for a little motivation and socialization.
* Build some rest days into your exercise schedule.
* Listen to your body. If you have difficulty breathing or experience faintness or prolonged weakness during or after exercise, consult your physician.

It’s a good idea to choose more than one type of exercise to give your body a thorough workout and to prevent boredom. Also, you might want to choose one indoor exercise and one outdoor activity to allow for changes in your schedule or for inclement weather. Very few people live in a climate that’s temperate year-round. But weather extremes don’t have to interfere with your exercise routine if you make some minor adjustments.

When it’s hot or humid:

* Exercise during cooler and/or less humid times of day. Try early morning or evening.
* Drink plenty of fluids, especially water.
* Avoid alcohol, which encourages dehydration.
* Wear light, loose-fitting clothing.
* Stop at the first sign of muscle cramping or dizziness.

When it’s cold:

* Dress in layers.
* Wear gloves or mittens to protect your hands.
* Wear a hat or cap. Up to 40% of body heat is lost through your neck and head.
* Adjust the size of your shoes if you need to wear thicker socks.
* Warm up slowly.
* Drink plenty of fluids. You can get dehydrated in the winter, too.
* Stop if you experience shivering, drowsiness or disorientation. You may need help for hypothermia.

Year-round safety:

* Let someone know where you’re going and when you’ll be back.
* Carry identification with you when exercising outside the home.
* Exercise indoors or try mall-walking when it’s stormy. Don’t risk a run-in with lightning or ice.
* Build in warm-up and cool-down periods to decrease risk of injury.
* Avoid strenuous exercise for one to two hours after eating.
* Wear sturdy, well-fitting shoes appropriate for the activity.
* Wear brightly colored clothing when exercising outdoors.
* Add lights and reflector tape to your body or bike if you exercise after dark.
* Wear helmets and safety pads appropriate for the activity.
* Move against traffic if you must run or walk on the road.
* Don’t let headphones distract you from observing traffic and safety concerns.
* Respect pollution alerts and exercise indoors when warnings are posted, especially if you have heart or lung disease.
* Avoid areas where traffic is heavy.
* Take special care of your feet if you are diabetic or have vascular disease.

Diet and Action – the Fitness Combo

Did you know you need to burn off 3,500 calories more than you take in to lose just one pound? If you’re overweight, eating your usual amount of calories while increasing activity is good for you, but eating fewer calories and being more active is even better. The following chart gives you an idea of the calories used per hour in common activities. Calories burned vary in proportion to body weight, however, so these figures are averages.

Activity	Calories burned per hour
Bicycling 6 mph	240
Bicycling 12 mph	410
Jogging 5.5 mph	740
Jogging 7 mph	920
Jumping rope	750
Running in place	650
Running 10 mph	1,280
Skiing (cross-country)	700
Swimming 25 yds/min	275
Swimming 50 yds/min	500
Tennis (singles)	400
Walking 2 mph	240
Walking 4 mph	440

Source: American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Before making any major dietary changes, you should check with your doctor. But there are plenty of small changes you can make on your own, such as avoiding sweets and salty foods and cutting down on fat in your diet, especially saturated fat.

No More Excuses

You can probably come up with plenty of excuses for why you’re not more active. You’re too young, you’re too old, you’re too busy, you’re too tired or you’re in pretty good shape – for your age. But with few exceptions, these excuses are pretty flimsy. There are activities for the young and old and for those with little time. So the next time you think about getting fit, don’t ask “Who has time?” Instead, ask yourself “Who doesn’t want to feel better?”

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SOFTWARE
Online software to track meals, nutrition, calories, etc. Click here.

Windows software to track exercise, meals, nutrition, calories, etc. Click here.