A High Fat Meal Can Reduce Your Ability to Handle Stress
May 8th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
It’s common knowledge that eating a high fat diet can have a negative impact on your health in the long run. It can lead to obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease and other ailments. But can a single high fat meal also have a negative impact on your body’s ability to perform normally? A recent study indicates that it can.
A recent study shows that eating a single high fat breakfast can negatively impact your body’s ability to handle various stressful situations. The test group was exposed to 4 different types of stressful conditions, while their blood pressure, heart rate and blood vessel resistance was monitored.
The group eating the high fat breakfast reacted more strongly to the stressful situations. Their bodies did not adapt as well to the stress that they were exposed to.
Although the study concludes that additional research is needed, it would be wise to consider these results when you are planning your meals. You should especially keep the results in mind when you are under a lot of stress.
If you are preparing for a stressful event, you may want to play it safe and eat healthy just in case. Next time you have a really bad day or do not seem to be handling stress as easiy as normal, you may want to evaluate what you had for breakfast. Perform your own test and make your own decision.
If you want to read the entire article, please visit:
Apparently, you really are what you eat!
To Your Health,
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Start Walking For Fitness and Weight Loss
May 4th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
Are you serious about starting a fitness and weight loss program? If the answer is yes, fitness walking is one of the fastest ways for you to accomplish your goals. Fitness walking merely involves walking at a fast pace. My usual pace for fitness walking is 3.7 miles per hour. It’s a great exercise because it is low impact, is easy to do and you can adjust your pace based upon your fitness level.
Make sure you have the following before starting a fitness walking program:
- heart rate monitor;
- walking shoes;
- a water bottle; and
- headband, if you’re like me and your scalp sweats a lot. Trust me, this is a necessity and will make your exercise session much more comfortable.
Using a heart rate monitor is a great way for you to monitor the intensity of your fitness walking program, ensure a safe and consistent walking pace and track your progress. You may want to ask your doctor to recommend an exercise target heart rate for you to start walking at.
In order for your fitness and weight loss program to be effective you need to fitness walk at least 3 times per week for 20-30 minutes. Start out slow and you can increase the intensity, duration and frequency as your fitness level improves.
Fitness Walking and Treadmills
I only recommend treadmills for fitness walking, not jogging or running because I prefer low impact aerobic exercises. If you are just starting your fitness and weight loss program, here are some guidelines:
- walk 20-30 minutes, 3 days per week for at least one week before increasing your workout;
- start walking at a brisk pace that is comfortable for you and that you can maintain during your entire workout;
- use a heart rate monitor and walk at your fat burning rate which is 60%-70% of your maximum heart rate, unless your doctor recommends otherwise. (Your maximum heart rate is computed as follows: 220 - your age = max heart rate.) Your fat burning rate is considered low to moderate intensity and good for fitness, health, weight loss and endurance. Most treadmills will adjust the incline or you can adjust the speed in order to maintain a steady heart rate.
- Remember to breath steady and regularly. Breath deeply in through your nose and exhale steadily through your mouth. Try to breath as consistently as possible and focus on your breathing as you are walking. Breathing in this manner will prevent most people from losing their breath or huffing and puffing while they are exercising. This form of breathing also has a calming effect similar to meditation.
- If you can not keep your breath steady or you can not work out for at least 20 minutes at your fat burning rate, you need to lower the intensity of your fitness walking. Try lowering your exercise heart rate by 5-10 beats per minute and continue doing so until you find a heart rate that you can maintain for 20 minutes.
- Make sure you drink plenty of water as you are fitness walking.
Follow the above guidelines and adjust your fitness walking as your fitness level improves. It should not be long before you begin to see results with respect to both fitness and weight loss. You know that your fitness level is improving when:
- you are no longer breathing heavily while fitness walking. This means your lung capacity and cardiovascular fitness is improving;
- you are not sweating as much during your workout;
- the treadmill keeps increasing the incline in order to maintain your fat burning heart rate. This means that your heart is getting stronger.
Once you start to notice some of the above improvements, it may be time to increase the duration of your workouts, increase the frequency of your workouts or increase the intensity of your workouts. You increase the intensity of your fitness walking program by increasing your exercise target heart rate. You can either increase the intensity for your entire workout or for a portion of your workout. Mix it up so that you do not get bored and you continue to experience improvements in both fitness and weight loss.
When you see improvement or reach milestones, you should celebrate. Give yourself a reward, you deserve it.
Here are some additional tips to maximize weight loss:
- add some strength training to your program. This helps to ensure your lose fat and not muscle;
- do your fitness walking early in the morning before you eat. You should burn more fat versus burning the food that you just ate;
- eat six small meals instead of 3 large meals. This will increase your metabolism and burn more calories.;
- drink lots of water. This will flush out your system, keep you hydrated and prevent your body from storing excess water reserves.
- eat a balanced diet. Eat lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat meals.
Remember the basic rule: in order to lose weight you need to burn more calories than your consume.
When you are ready for more information on fitness walking, check out out earlier article:
Fitness Walking: The Ultimate Exercise
Happy Walking
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Peak Fitness: Is it Possible?
April 23rd, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
The term peak fitness is usually associated with athletes, however it can also apply to non-athletes. If a person strives to reach peak fitness they must realize that this level can vary drastically from person to person. Regardless of your current fitness level and your personal peak fitness level, the basic steps needed to meet your goals are the same. To reach peak fitness and/or to improve your fitness you need three types of exercises: cardiovascular or aerobic exercise, strength training and flexibility or stretching exercises. All three exercises are needed for a balanced fitness program.
The basic components of a fitness program are the same for everyone regardless of the type of sport you specialize in or if you are preparing for a major sporting event. Although the components are the same to ensure overall fitness, there will be differences between programs to specialize in certain muscle areas, the level of exercise intensity, exercise duration and exercise frequency. These factors will vary depending upon your goals, your current fitness level and personal preference. Designing an effective program to achieve peak fitness often requires professional guidance, from a personal fitness trainer.
Obtaining and maintaining peak fitness is not usually attempted by non-athletes because of the time and commitment required. Peak fitness requires determination and a lot of work. First you need an effective exercise plan, then you need to monitor results and tweak the fitness plan on a regular basis. Exercise programs are more effective initially and then you body adjusts to the exercise and you reach a plateau. In order to obtain additional results, new exercises or changes in intensity or exercise duration are usually needed. There are many ways to adjust an exercise program so that you can break through the plateau, begin seeing results again and move closer to your peak fitness level. Personal fitness trainers and coaches can make this process easier since they know the most effective methods of adjusting your fitness routine to deliver results. Some people reach a plateau and mistakenly think they have reached their peak fitness level.
Peak Fitness Strength Training
To effectively strength train for peak fitness you do not need to build bulky muscles or look like a body builder. Successful strength training will include all major muscle groups and also target specific areas used in your sport or activity. For example, a peak fitness program for a swimmer will differ from that of a tennis player. Your strength training should work with, not against, your main activity to achieve peak fitness.
The strength training portion of you routine may involve using weight machines, free weights or other types of resistance training. Push-ups are an example of a resistance training exercise that does not require the use of weights or other fitness equipment. The amount of resistance used, the types of exercises, the number of repetitions and the number of sets will vary depending upon your specific goals.
Peak Fitness Aerobic Training
The key to achieving your peak cardiovascular fitness level, often involves the quality of the exercises and not the quantity. You need to constantly adjust the intensity of your aerobic workout if you want to reach your peak fitness level. You can include segments of high intensity work in the middle of your cardiovascular exercises, to enhance results without increasing total exercise time. For example, after a ten minute easy warm up you can do two minutes at an 85-90% effort, then slow back down for a minute to allow your heart rate to settle down. Repeat for ten minutes, and then finish with a ten minute cool down. When this pattern becomes easier for you, increase the amount of time you’re exercising at a higher intensity, or decrease the time you’re resting in between. You’ll need to change the intensity of your workouts every four to six weeks to maintain your personal level of peak fitness. Most gyms also have cardiovascular equipment that you can program to provide a random workout, which will add variety to your workout automatically.
Peak Fitness Flexibility Training
Flexibility training will give your body the ability to perform more efficiently as an athlete and is good for overall fitness and increased mobility. Increased flexibility minimizes the risk of injury and also helps the body to recover faster from strenuous training and exercise. Flexibility training keeps your muscles and joints loose and can prevent or alleviate cramping. At a minimum you, should stretch for at least ten minutes after each strength training or cardiovascular exercise session. Some people prefer to stretch after each specific exercise while they are resting between exercises. This can also be effective and is a productive way to utilize waiting time.
Whether you’re a professional athlete, sports enthusiast or working to improve overall fitness you need a fitness program that includes the 3 main exercise components: strength training, aerobic training and flexibility training. Everyone is capable of reaching their peak fitness level if they are willing to do the work, make the commitment and modify their fitness program to enhance results.
To Your Health,
Female Fitness and Strength Training?
April 10th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
Since females are different than males it makes sense that a female fitness program should differ from a male fitness program. Although all fitness programs should include strength training, aerobic and stretching, a female fitness program should be designed to meet the special needs of a woman.
Many women tend to focus their exercise programs around aerobic exercise and minimize strength training, this is a huge mistake. Many women fear that strength training will make them develop large bulky muscles. This is not true if you follow a balanced female fitness routine that includes strength training and aerobic exercise. A woman’s body chemistry is different than a mans, and it is impossible for a woman to build bulky muscles. Strength training is critical for a woman for the following reasons:
Maintain Lean Body Mass
Starting at age 30 our bodies begin to convert muscle into fat. Strength training is needed to minimize the muscle loss that normally occurs. This muscle loss is more extreme in women which is why strength training is critical for female fitness.
Strengthen Bones
It’s common knowledge that women are more susceptible to osteoporosis. Including strength training in a female fitness program makes a woman’s bones stronger and she is less likely to lose bone mass. This minimizes the risk of osteoporosis later in life.
Maximize Fat Loss
Many women think that the best way to lose weight (and fat) is through aerobic exercise. However if your female fitness program includes only aerobic exercise, there is a good chance that you will also lose lean body mass. Strength training helps to prevent the loss of lean body mass. Muscles also burn more calories than fat, which is why strength training is needed to maximize fat loss. This is especially important in a female fitness program because women have higher body fat percentages and more difficulty losing fat.
Female Fitness Myths
Another misconception about female fitness is that a woman should use minimal weight and less repetitions than men. This is not true. In order to maximize the benefits above, a female fitness program should include 10-12 repetitions, 3 sets and as much weight as needed to make the last repetition challenging. Using weights that are too low, will make the exercises ineffective. You need higher weights to maintain muscle and increase bone strength. You need to take your female fitness routine seriously, if you expect to reap the benefits. Muscle is good for females as well as males. Muscles tone your body.
The exercises included in a female fitness program are designed to target the problem areas of the female body. Although a woman needs a total body workout like men do, it should also be customized to target the hips, thighs and buttocks. These are usually the areas that women need more help with. Since all women are different, your female fitness routine should be designed specifically for you to meet your goals. A personal fitness trainer that specializes in female fitness can help you design the ideal program for you. A custom female fitness program can help you sculpt the body that you always dreamed of.
To Your Health,
MyDietAndFitnessProgram.com
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