Month: March 2013

Why You Should Exercise

Exercise is a an activity that maintains and enhances physical fitness, wellness and overall health of an individual. There are different reasons, why an individual performed physical exercise, it may include muscle building and strengthening, improving the cardiovascular system, honing any athletic  skill, weight loss or just plain enjoyment. Regular physical activity helps boost the immune system, prevent heart disease, obesity and diabetes. It gives the body the needed oxygen and helps the blood absorb this needed oxygen and circulate it to the body. It improves mental health, beats depression, boosts self esteem and can level up an individual’s body image and sex appeal. These benefits are hard to ignore. With the present sedated lifestyle of people nowadays, an exercise is a way to keep people really going.

In general, there are three types of exercises:

  1. Flexibility exercises. It helps and improves the flexibility  and the range of motion of the muscles and the joints.
  2. Anaerobic exercises. It increases muscle strength in a short period of time. Activities like sprinting, high intensity interval training and weight training are godly examples.
  3. Aerobic exercises. It focuses on strengthening and increasing the endurance of the cardiovascular system. Swimming, cycling, tae bo, running and jogging are good examples of aerobic exercises.

Benefits of Exercise

The obvious benefits are already mentioned earlier, but let us expand on it further. There are so many reasons why exercise is important especially in our modern and technology driven world. First, it controls weight. Any physical activities burn calories and fats thus it helps reduce weight If the individual is beyond the ideal weight; helps maintain weight if it is within the normal range. Second, it helps fight diseases and reduce developing risks of any health conditions. It reduces the levels of cortisol. Regular exercises also prevent and in some cases treat chronic diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and depression. Aerobic and anaerobic exercises improve the efficiency of the heart by increasing the cardiac volume. Plus regular exercise can improve the motor skills of the individual and helps prevent arthritis. Third, it improves the mood of the person. It increases the brain function because more oxygen is delivered into the brain. It creates new brain cells and increases the chemicals that help cognition. The body will release feel good chemicals after a workout in the gym or over the field. Fourth, it increases the energy level of the body. A well trained and physically enhanced individual through exercise will feel a greater level of energy. The body will adjust and take in oxygen and nutrients at double the normal intake. It’s like using a race quality fuel to run a car. Fifth reason, it improves sleep. Studies were made and proves that regular exercise greatly improves sleep. It treats sleep disorders like insomnia and is  a great alternative to sleeping pills which are dangerous if taken more than the recommended dosage. Sixth reason,  physical activity will promote  a better sex life. A person feeling good and looking the part will generate a positive sex appeal to the opposite sex.

Proper nutrition is equally important  to health as physical activity. Food is the fuel the body use to run, thus it is important to have the correct ration of nutrients in order for the body to recover and adjust after any strenuous exercise. Also take note that too much of something is not good. Over exercising will surely cause injuries and body pain. Give the body ample rest to recover and heal. Enjoy it and have fun. 

How To Find Good Resources For Healthy Eating

People are creatures of habit. Most people go to the grocery on the same day day every week. Every shopping day, the cart is filled with the same items. There’s nothing bad about it really but some change would make it more interesting especially if a person is trying to be healthy. Eating healthier can be scary or for some, time consuming. People are used to eating a certain way that they tend to forget what they are ingesting if it’s healthy enough or not. Healthy eating means paying attention to what is the best food to get and getting the most nutrients out of it. Finding good resources for healthy eating is not that hard to do. The regular grocery can give anyone a healthy option as long as people know what to look for. The internet is another good source, it can point anyone to any alternative stress or groceries that sell organic and free range products. Magazines can also be good sources of information. Try to change the daily menu and see what happens. Make small changes and experiment what will work best regarding the dishes that can be prepared at the same time, having a nutritious meal.

Adjusting to a healthy diet is not that hard. Making gradual changes and small steps are the easiest way to achieve it. Don’t expect too much too soon, usually the changes and adjustment will take about a month or two to feel natural. Remember, healthy eating is not about strict nutrition, staying unrealistically thin, or depriving oneself of certain foods. It’s about having more energy, stabilizing the mood and keeping the body and mind as healthy as possible. All of these can be achieved by learning some basic nutrition and using it every day. After getting all the resources needed, everything will just fall naturally. Most nutritionists have set up some healthy eating tips that can be done by everyone.

  1. Set the mind and body for success. Don’t concern the diet by measuring the portion size or calories, instead think of the diet by freshness, variety and color. It will make healthy choices easier. Find foods that you love and incorporate fresh ingredients. Again, small steps are better than making 360 degree turn regarding the diet. Adding salad or using extra virgin olive oil from butter are some small steps in making the diet healthier. Once it becomes a habit, the diet will become healthier down the road. This is not a cliché, but water really is good for the body. It flushes out toxins and other waste out of the body, rehydrates and helps the body cool down. Exercise is another important factor in overall health. Exercise and eating foods high in fiber and vitamins and mineral will really boost a person’s energy.
  2. Moderation is the key. This will depend on the overall eating habit of a person. The goal of a healthy diet is to develop a diet that can be maintained daily as long as possible. If a person’s diet consists of fast food, a healthy change is needed fast. Try to reduce any fast food and rather pack something nice for lunch at work. Try to add some salad or foods rich in fiber and water that can replace certain fast food items. Eating cheeseburger is not bad if it’s consumed maybe once a week, same with pizza or fried chicken. Don’t deprive anyone with any food they like, because a rebound from a food deprivation is much the same as eating fast food every day.
  3. Changing the way a person eats is another factor. Eat breakfast as much as possible and eat smaller meals throughout the day. Skipping breakfast and then binge eating at lunch and dinner is not helpful. Take time in chewing the food and enjoy every meal. Whenever possible, add greens and fruits to the daily diet. Fiber and water from the fruit will make the person full with less food intake and at the same time getting the required vitamins, minerals and fibers for the day. As much as possible, avoid processed and Prepacked foods. They contain preservatives and does not taste as good as fresh produce.