Fitness Tips For Fathers

Men’s fitness does not naturally work itself out when fathers have a lot on their plate. Between a stressful day job and family obligations, often times single fathers end up taking their own physical condition and emotional state for granted. Being available to their children is important to them, but without taking good care of their own well being they run the risk of jeopardizing not only their health but the peace of mind of being active in their kids lives. A parent can not properly and fully nurture their children if they can’t function as care providers to their own selves. Here are important reminders every single dad should know when it comes to their fitness and health.

EXERCISING REGULARLY

Busy dads are often hard pressed to find available time for exercise, but by taking 10,000 steps a day will ensure the minimum required physical activity to keep active and in shape. Working dads can first aim for 3,000 then work their way up for a good cardio routine. Doing stretches as little as 5 minutes a day encourages flexibility, while keeping the heart rate up 60 minutes every week does wonders for a busy fathers stamina and endurance. To keep muscle tone, get into a strength training exercise with some 15 to 30 pound dumbbells for about 30 minutes every other day will do the trick. As men get older muscle tissue starts to get a little lean, and dads know that parenting requires all the energy and strength they’ll need in keeping up with their kids.

DAILY VITAMIN INTAKE

People do not get enough of the daily required amount of vitamins and minerals from food like they used to. As men get older, the risk of losing bone and muscle mass increases and nutrients that rebuild muscle and bone are of dire importance. Men under the age of 50 can benefit from daily multivitamin intake. These essential vitamins consist of the following: vitamin D (1000 ui) that promotes the immune system and helps fight off cancer; calcium (600 mg) for bone regeneration coupled with magnesium (200 mg) for better absorption of calcium; 2,500 units of vitamin A (retinal) which has antioxidant properties that neutralize free radicals. Although not a vitamin, studies show the benefits of taking 2 baby aspirins (162 mg total) will fight off cancer and heart disease.

EATING RIGHT

Proper nutrition is key to a single dads longevity. We have to be mindful of what we eat by making the right food choices and avoiding those that have no health benefits. A lot of the free radicals that wreak in the body increases as a man gets older, so eating 5-7 fist fulls of anti-oxidant rich fruits and veggies a day are weapons against these agents that accelerate aging. Brain degeneration is another risk factor as a man ages and eating food strong in Omega 3 fats (found in salmon and some nuts) is a way to prevent this from occurring. A daily intake of 12-25 grams of fiber helps the body eliminate harmful toxins. Avoidance of  high-sugar, high-fat proteins in food is recommended. Not only should we want to eat healthy, but also create a healthy lifestyle for our kids as well.

MONITORING HEALTH

The importance of keeping track of ones state of well being cannot be stressed enough. A dad has to know the condition his body is in- if his waistline is not more than half of his height in inches, his blood pressure reading (with a systolic value not greater than 140, while the diastolic no greater than 90), his cholesterol levels (LDL less than 100 and HDL greater than 40) and blood sugar level. As single dads, we need to take responsibility for our health by knowing what kind of medical health checks we need and when to have them administered. The standard medical exams include: an annual executive check-up, a dental check-up every 6 months, and bi-annual eye-exam. Single dads age 45 and older will benefit from having an echo-cardiogram, a stress test, and a colonoscopy. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and the best way to avoid an illness is to nip them right at the bud before they even strike.

SLEEP SHOULDN'T BE UNDERESTIMATED

A lot of guy’s often boast that they’ll get enough shuteye when their dead, or tell themselves that sleep is for the weak. The lack of sleep makes the body vulnerable to illness and zaps the life out of any activity  or work during the waking hours. Getting enough sleep at the right times every night is important- sleep gives the body a chance to recuperate, and it uses that time to rebuild internal damage caused by daily activities bringing wear and tear to tissue and cells. That all being said, how well you take care of yourself will reflect on how attentive your kids will be towards their own health as they mature

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8 Tips For Exercising In The Summer Heat

Summer weather in our valley makes it difficult to go outside and have fun. Still some of you love to keep your fitness routine of swimming, running or cycling. But the summer heat can be a real problem if you're not careful. The biggest problems are staying hydrated and maintaining your body's electrolytes and salt. When you sweat, your body loses water, electrolytes and salt. This delicate balance of water and electrolytes is crucial to keep your body functioning properly. If you don't drink enough water, you can get dehydrated and suffer from light-headedness and nausea. If you drink too much water without replenishing your electrolytes, you can experience hyponatremia. This can lead to confusion, nausea, muscle cramps, seizures or even death in extreme cases. Here are some things to keep in mind when it comes to exercising in our desert's heat:


1. The time of day is important. Avoid exercising from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It's the hottest part of day. Generally, the early morning is the best time to workout, especially if it's going to be scorcher that day.


2. Wear loose, light-colored. The lighter color will help reflect heat, and cotton material will help the evaporation of sweat. You may also want to try specially designed, "hi-tech" running shirts and shorts. They are often made from material meant to keep you cool.


3. Sunscreen is a must. Use SPF 45 just to be safe. It's important to protect your skin. You can get burned and suffer sun damage to your skin even on cloudy days.


4. Stay hydrated. Before you go out, drink a glass or two of water. Think about taking a hydration pack with you. Take a drink every 15 minutes, even when you're not thirsty. When you're done with your workout, have a few more glasses of water.

5. Replenish your electrolyte and salt intake while exercising.

6. If possible, choose shaded trails or pathways that keep you out of the sun.


7. Check the weather forecast before you start your workout. If there's a heat advisory, meaning high ozone and air pollution, you might want to take your workout indoors. These pollutants can damage your lungs.

8. Most importantly, listen to your body. Stop immediately if you're feeling dizzy, faint or nauseous.

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How Positive Thinking Affects Physical Fitness

Every minute, someone makes a decision to incorporate a fitness program into their life.  And every minute, someone falls off of that same fitness program and loses all motivation to maintain a healthy lifestyle.  This happens because of negative self-talk. Here you’ll learn why negative self-talk can keep you from getting the results you want in your fitness programs.

Negative self-talk is a destructive habit that forms an essential defense mechanism that we often develop to protect ourselves.  Many people end up talking themselves out of actions that may be scary or uncomfortable.  "I can't do this" is really just a way of saying, "I don't want to deal with the experience of doing this."  We are all strongly influenced by our feelings, which often determine how we respond to certain challenges and what actions we ultimately take.  If the feelings are uncomfortable, uncertainty, fear, and negative self-talk arise; then, we often decide not to take any action at all.

Many people assume that if a past experience produced a certain result, nothing can be done to change that experience in order to produce a different result.  For example, "I've tried every fitness program and diet there is.  I know what I should do; I just can't do it." Please understand that you can make the choice not to repeat old patterns of eating poorly, staying inactive and thinking negatively.  You have the ability to choose the emotions you have.  If you don't like feeling guilty, frustrated, or doubtful, you can choose not to feel that way.  You, and no one else, must decide what is best for you.  To become successful at making healthy choices, you must avoid negative self-talk, and start practicing positive thinking.

Positive or negative self-talk can play a big part in your decisions.  Be on the "look-out” for negative self-talk and notice how it influences your choices.  Notice how it can negatively affect your efforts to change.  For example, perhaps you've just returned from a week's vacation where you took a break from exercise and tedious calorie counting.  You tell yourself, "I feel so fat and out of shape; I'm back where I started."  You feel guilty and frustrated.  "I don't have enough will-power to start all over again.  Maybe I'm just meant to be overweight and out of shape."  Feeling overwhelmed and discouraged, you give up.

First, reflect on the feelings you had before you decided to give up.  Your negative self-talk may overshadow the positive, healthy habits you learned before your vacation.  Ask yourself if these feelings are reasonable.  Are you really back to ground zero?  Of course you’re not.  You accepted change and developed a new way of living; these skills will be yours forever.  The vacation might even have done you some good; everyone needs a break sometime.  It's time now to tell yourself: "It felt good eating whatever I wanted and taking a break from exercising; I had a great time.  But now I'm going to focus on the reduced-calorie strategy, exercise program, and active lifestyle I enjoyed before my vacation.  There is no reason to beat myself up; I'll just take it one day at a time."  Rethink your previous decision and take action that will move you forward, towards more positive change.

Here are some steps you can take to keep a positive attitude and rid yourself of negative thoughts: 

•       Step #1: Every morning when you wake up, say something positive about yourself and your commitment to live a  healthier lifestyle.  For example: “I like myself and I’m committed to a healthier lifestyle.”

•       Step #2: After your workouts, always have a positive attitude about the workout and the way you are feeling at that particular moment.  Your endorphins will be peaking and this will help to promote a positive outlook. 

•       Step #3: Praise yourself for the hard work and commitment you made to complete your routine.  Even if it wasn’t the best workout you’ve ever had, it was still a workout.  “Something is better than nothing” is the attitude you need to have. 

•       Step #4: Spread your positive energy to the rest of the world.  Compliment at least one person daily.  The compliment can be about someone’s shoes, tie, smile, eyes, or something that just pops out at you about that person.  When you do this, more positive energy will come into your life.  This is called the Law of Giving and Receiving.  If you put positive energy out, it will come back to you.  If you put negative energy out, it will also come back to you.

•       Step #5: Before you go to bed, say something positive about yourself and reaffirm your commitment to live a healthier lifestyle. As you begin to understand your reasons for negative self-talk, you'll find yourself recognizing it more and more quickly when it occurs.  Eventually, as you practice, you'll be able to recognize and stop negative self-talk before it interferes with your decisions. It is very important to practice positive thinking and to remind yourself that you're a worthwhile person.  Consistently acknowledge that you are making positive changes to improve your health.  You should be proud of yourself.  Visualize yourself as capable, happy, and confident.  These positive feelings will help the process of change.

Good luck, stay positive, and enjoy all the wonderful benefits of a healthy lifestyle!


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What is a realistic percentage of body fat to lose in a 3 month period?

Answer: It’s better to think of the goal in pounds of fat loss and let the percentages fall where they may. We measure body fat as a percentage of total body weight but calculate the loss in pounds. This is because people who lose fat, especially in health clubs (exercising, taking supplements, etc.) often gain muscle during the same time frame, so total body weight does not accurately reflect one's progress.

Example: If you weigh 200 LBS and have 40 LBS of body fat, then 20% of your total body weight is fat. If you project a pound per week loss of body fat (and you gain no muscle), you will weigh 188 after 12 weeks, and you’ll have 12 fewer pounds of fat, leaving 28 LBS of body fat. The final statistics are now 28 divided by 188 = about 15% body fat.

The lower your body fat, the slower you should go. One pound of body fat per week once you get closer to your goal is about as fast as one can go without much suffering (e.g. hunger and time spent in the gym). If your body fat is moderately high (males greater than 20% and females greater than 28%) you may lose at a faster rate, typically 1.5-2 pounds/week. For those who are significantly overweight and very high in body fat, three pounds weekly may be realistic. However, don't be fooled by the rapid weight loss that occurs initially and expect this rate of loss every week. For someone with significant weight to lose, the alteration of eating and exercise habits can lead to a large loss of body water, showing a 5-10 pound drop in a couple of weeks. Once the fluid losses stabilize, the previous recommendations apply.

Just remember, as you get closer to your individually realistic goal, slow the loss down in order to adjust to your new lifestyle and to help you maintain your new physique. If the process you use to lose is too intense and uncomfortable, the likelihood that you will be able to maintain a lifestyle that enables you to keep the new body composition is lower.

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How Fitness Can Help You Deal With Life's Daily Stresses

One of the questions we get asked all the time is "Will fitness help me deal with the life's daily stresses?" The Answer is yes and in more ways than just being fit. Eating healthy and exercising regularly, even if it’s as little as daily walking, help you look and feel better both of which makes EVERYONE less stressful when compared to being out of shape.

We are not sure there is a better way to manage stress than exercise. It is well accepted in the scientific community that exercise counteracts stress-related disorders. Exercise has been proven to be a better strategy for treating depression than any drug on the market. The hormonal changes, including the release of endorphins during and following exercise, naturally soothe the entire body. Exercise and proper diet help keep the brain “young” - i.e. improves cognitive functioning by helping maintain the integrity of your brain cells just like exercise and diet improve your muscle cell functioning. And finally, both short-term exercise and long-term aerobic exercise training are associated with improvements in various aspects of psychological functioning. Cross-sectional studies reveal that compared with sedentary individuals, active persons are more likely to be better adjusted, to perform better on tests of cognitive functioning, to exhibit reduced cardiovascular responses to stress, and to report fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Exercise can help you recharge, and eating properly positively affects the way you look and feel. Any way you slice it, fitness creates a happier, more satisfied person. Once you’ve experienced the euphoric feeling of true fitness, it’s locked in your mind and will emanate throughout your body.

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How You May Be Sabotaging Your Weight

Weight Control Basics

You may recall from Weight Control 101 that your weight is determined by the calories you take in and the calories you burn on a daily basis. If you’re like most adults, you’ve been taking in more calories than you burn and you have excess body fat that you’d like to get rid of. If you’re not like most adults, consider yourself warned as experts predict that 9 out of 10 people will become overweight or obese at some point in their lifetime.  This underscores the importance of consistently balancing the calories you take in with the right amount of activity, especially since the majority of people pack on the pounds slowly and steadily without really noticing it. Years of misjudging your intake by just a few calories at a time will end up sabotaging your weight. For example, if you gain the average amount of one pound per year, this means you’re off by only 10 calories a day. After 20 to 30 years, you’ll end up 20 to 30 pounds overweight. To help you avoid this, here are common ways people underestimate the calories they take in and unknowingly eat more than they realize.


What you don’t know WILL hurt you

Research shows that most people: 1) don’t know how much to eat to control their weight;  2) don’t accurately judge the calories they take in and 3) have no idea they take in extra calories in different situations.
In a recent national survey, only 15 percent accurately estimated how many calories they should eat to maintain their weight.    Ask yourself – how many calories should I eat to maintain my weight? This begs the question – is it possible to maintain a healthy weight without knowing how many calories to eat? Certainly, if you keep regular tabs on your waistline and make the needed adjustments to your diet or activity level. Studies on college freshmen showed that daily weighing helped maintain body weight whereas those who did not weigh daily gained nearly seven pounds in ten weeks.   Since most people don’t weigh themselves daily or even monthly, they don’t notice the weight creeping on. And as you can see, what you don’t know WILL hurt you.

You eat more than you think you doLet’s say you do know how many calories to eat to manage your weight. The next question is - do you accurately judge how much food you eat? Not according to research. When people are asked to record how much they consume, they consistently underestimate.  , ,   Overweight and obese women tend to underestimate more than other people, and it worsens as body mass index (BMI) goes up.  ,  That is, the higher the BMI, the fewer calories people report eating. Meal size also affects how accurate we are. The larger the meal, the more we misjudge how much we eat. One study demonstrated that participants underestimated a large meal by up to 1,000 calories.   If you ate an extra 1,000 calories once a week without making up for it with more activity, you’d gain almost 15 pounds in a year. An extra 1,000 calories equates to eating one more slice of meat lover’s pizza and one more fruit smoothie. The bottom line is we eat more than we think we do, making weight control quite challenging. 

You eat more and don’t even realize itStudies have also shown that people unknowingly consume more calories in the following situations:
• Food is presented in large quantities (restaurants, parties)
• A wide variety of food is present (buffets,  all you can eat)
• More people are present
• Being distracted and doing something else (watching TV)
• Eating out of large packages (bag of chips, tub of ice cream)
• Tempting foods are within reach and within eyesight
• Frequently dining out

By becoming aware of how you eat in these situations, you’ll be better equipped to control the amount of food you take in.


Get informed and take charge

One of the most effective ways to get informed about the way you eat is to track it regularly. People who do lose more weight.   To avoid calorie amnesia, jot down everything you consume right away. Start to pay attention to the calorie content of the items you choose by reading food labels and looking up the calorie content of restaurant foods and beverages. Keep in mind that many beverages contain calories so be sure to count those tea drinks, sports drinks and alcohol.  They add up quickly especially if you’re thirsty. In certain states it is now required by law to post the calorie content directly on the menu board. You’ll think twice once you realize your favorite coffee drink and muffin has 1,000 calories. If you’re really motivated, weigh and measure the amount of food you eat with a food scale, measuring cups and measuring spoons and calculate the calories you take in. This pocket size Calorie, Fat and Carb Counter contains thousands of common foods, restaurant items and useful information. Since humans are creatures of habit, you’ll get familiar with the items you eat regularly and measuring will no longer be necessary. The idea is to get educated on how much you eat.

To prevent unconsciously eating excess calories, follow these tips:

• Eat and only eat. Avoid being distracted during mealtimes or snack times. 
• Eat from smaller plates, bowls and glasses.
• Portion out your food and avoid “family style” eating or eating out of the package.
• When you dine out, control the portion sizes by sharing meals or packaging some to take home right away.
• During social occasions, decide on what you’re going to eat and stick to it. Otherwise you’ll graze mindlessly.
• Limit your alcohol intake. Alcohol tends to stimulate appetite and reduce your awareness of what you’re eating and how much. 
• Keep snacks, treats and tempting foods out of reach.
• The old adage “knowledge is power” is true for weight control if you use it to make informed decisions.

It’s not rocket science if you judge by RESULTS over time

It’s challenging to manage something you aren’t aware of and don’t keep track of. Since only one third of the population acknowledges that calories are responsible for weight gain, it’s no wonder there’s an obesity epidemic. 21 (And by the way, it’s no coincidence that one third of adults have a healthy body weight.) Knowing how much you consume is a key part of successful weight control, but even if you don’t know – the scale will tell you. If the number on your scale increases over time, you’re taking in more calories than you’re burning – PERIOD. The solution is to burn off that extra fuel by moving more and eating fewer calories.  If you don’t measure your results by checking your weight regularly, you’ll end up sabotaging your waistline and likely your health.

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Tips To Help You Keep Your Diet Under Control On Easter

Easter is here and for weeks now as we have completed our weekly grocery shopping we have been forced to walk past a never ending range of Easter eggs & candies scattered all throughout the store. For weeks these childhood favourite treats have been tempting us with their fancy packaging.

Did you start your Easter early by giving in to the temptation each time you did the grocery shopping? Have you bought Easter eggs or candies for others only to have eaten them yourself? Easter is one of those times of year when time off work, social events, and plenty of delicious food can lead to gaining a few extra pounds.

Chocolate is high in sugar and fat and low in essential nutrients. A diet that is high in sugar can lead to chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure) and obesity. Unlike other foods, when we consume sugar it does not cause the release of the hormones that tell our body we have had enough to eat and here is why over indulgence is a big risk. The best way to stop your good habits from falling by the wayside this Easter Sunday is to plan ahead and stay in control.

For the sweet tooth and the chocoholics Easter can be a risky time to over indulge so below are some tips to keep you in control:

1. Exercise on Sunday like any regular day, if you have exercised you are more likely to make better food choices and less likely to over indulge.

2. When you are eating, think about your food choice before you put it in your mouth. Consider whether your body really needs that particular food and the consequences that may follow after eating it then make you final decision.

3. Set yourself a Easter egg & candy quota.  If you fulfill your daily quota take notice of how you feel. If you feel sick your quota was way too high. Don't go over your quota, not even by the smallest amount.

4. If you are the host for a Easter get-together ensure to create healthy options and include lean meat and lots of vegetables. Over Easter we still should be aiming for a nutrient - rich diet rather than one that is high in saturated fat and sugars.

5. Be aware of how much energy an Easter egg contains and if you are going to eat it then you will need to balance it out by burning it up.

Don't give up on the Easter bunny altogether, just act in moderation and stay in control. You will feel great for doing so.

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