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7 day program To A Healthy life |
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Articles -
Health
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Written by Dawn Robertshaw
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Page 2 of 2 Here's a sample exercise program that may work for you:
- Warm Up -- seven to eight minutes of light aerobic activity intended to increase blood flow and lubricate and warm-up your tendons and joints.
- Resistance Training -- Train all major muscle groups. One to two sets of each exercise. Rest 45 seconds between sets.
- Aerobic Exercise -- Pick two favorite activities, they could be jogging, rowing, biking or cross-country skiing, whatever fits your lifestyle. Perform 12 to 15 minutes of the first activity and continue with 10 minutes of the second activity. Cool down during the last five minutes.
- Stretching -- Wrap up your exercise session by stretching, breathing deeply, relaxing and meditating.
When starting an exercise program, it is important to have realistic expectations. Depending on your initial fitness level, you should expect the following changes early on.
- From one to eight weeks -- Feel better and have more energy.
- From two to six months -- Lose size and inches while becoming leaner. Clothes begin to fit more loosely. You are gaining muscle and losing fat.
- After six months -- Start losing weight quite rapidly.
Once you make the commitment to exercise several times a week, don't stop there. You should also change your diet and/or eating habits,' says Zwiefel. Counting calories or calculating grams and percentages for certain nutrients is impractical. Instead, I suggest these easy-to-follow guidelines:
- Eat several small meals (optimally four) and a couple of small snacks throughout the day
- Make sure every meal is balanced -- incorporate palm-sized proteins like lean meats, fish, egg whites and dairy products, fist-sized portions of complex carbohydrates like whole-wheat bread and pasta, wild rice, multigrain cereal and potatoes, and fist-sized portions of vegetable and fruits
- Limit your fat intake to only what's necessary for adequate flavor
- Drink at least eight 8-oz. glasses of water throughout the day
- I also recommend that you take a multi-vitamin each day to ensure you are getting all the vitamins and minerals your body needs.
I suppose that's all I can think of for now. I should extend my thanks to a doctor friend of mine. Without him, I wouldn't be able to write this article, or keep my sanity. Please bear in mind that you should always seek advice from your Medical Practitioner before starting an exercise regime or diet.
Enjoy life, we all deserve it.
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