October 29, 2004, Issue #019

Hello and welcome to the October issue of Just the Right Touch.

My vision with this newsletter is to provide information on a wide range of topics so that you can decide for yourself what interests you. That means you probably won’t agree with everything you read. That’s great!

If you do have a question or comment or suggestion, just reply to this message and let me know. I will reply to sincere, polite messages (but not impolite or rude ones - yes, that has happened).

The holiday season will be upon us shortly. So, I’m using this issue to give you some health and fitness strategies to help keep you on track during this potentially stressful time to year.

Best Regards,
Carol Wiley, LMP

Health and Fitness Strategies

1. At first, do not make your fitness plan overly aggressive. One of the biggest problems most people have when starting a fitness program is rapidly depleted motivation after only a few weeks due to an overly ambitious fitness plan. Two days per week of 20-minute low-intensity cardiovascular exercise (walking, jogging, biking, swimming) and two days per week of 30-minute light resistance training (using weights or resistance machines) is adequate in the beginning.


2. Always stretch. Stretching improves flexibility, blood flow, muscle recovery, low back pain, and a host of other things. Additionally, stretching can prevent injury, help you sleep better, and improve your performance in all sports. Always stretch, but do not stretch cold muscles. Always warm up before stretching.


3. Never do a traditional sit-up. Unless you are a super athlete with an incredibly well-developed midsection, sit-ups can lead to a strained lower back and possibly lumbar injuries. But it gets worse. Rather than affecting your abdominal area, sit-ups can shift exercise tension to your hip flexors - which defeats the purpose. (For more about David’s approach to abdominal exercise, see his book, Firm and Flatten Your Abs.)


4. Set realistically attainable goals.


5. Set exercise appointments with yourself. Use your day-timer to set appointments for exercise - and then stick to them. You wouldn't miss a business meeting or client appointment, would you? So don't miss your exercise appointment with yourself. Nothing is more important than your health.


6. Exercise correctly. So much time is wasted doing, at best, unproductive exercise, or at worst, dangerous exercise. Get educated on how to exercise correctly.


7. Enjoy yourself. Pick activities you enjoy. Make exercise your personal time.


8. Fried foods are garbage. Potato chips, French fries, onion rings, breaded chicken strips, and all the rest of the deep-fried junk are filled with saturated fat and calories, and they contain almost zero nutritional value. If you're trying to lose weight and/or reduce fat, simply eliminate fried foods completely from your diet.


9. Never skip breakfast. If you want to maximize your fitness results or fat-loss efforts, you've got to eat breakfast.


10. Eat fat to lose fat. Your body needs healthy fats for a bunch of reasons: regulating hormonal production, improving immune function, lowering total cholesterol, lubricating joints, and providing the basics for healthy hair, nails and skin. The distinction you must be aware of is the difference between healthy "good" fats, and dangerous "bad" fats. Good fats are monounsaturated fats like olive, peanut, and canola oil, avocados, all natural peanut butter and nuts, and omega-3 fats like salmon and mackerel and soy-based foods. Bad fats are saturated fats, partially hydrogenated fats (killers!), and trans fats.


11. Drink plenty of fresh, clean water. When you don't drink enough water, and substitute diuretics like coffee, tea, and caffeinated sodas, you dehydrate your body, your blood doesn't flow properly, and your digestive system doesn't operate smoothly (among other problems).


12. Eat regularly throughout the day. When you restrict your diet, your body instinctively thinks it's being starved and shifts into a protective mode by storing fat and using lean muscles for energy expenditures. Therefore, your body fat remains essentially the same and you lose vital fluids and muscle instead. The less muscle you have, the slower your metabolism becomes and the less fat you burn. Eat three nutritionally balanced meals each day and at least one or two healthy snacks. This keeps your metabolic furnace stoked, so you burn more at a faster rate.