Steps To Get Fit at Home

The 5 Elements of Fitness

According to Steele, an effective fitness program has five components, all of which you can do at home:

• A warmup.
• A cardiovascular (aerobic) workout.
• Resistance (strength-building) exercises.
• Flexibility moves.
• A cooldown

A warm-up could be an easy walk outside or on a treadmill, or a slow pace on a stationary bike. For the cardiovascular portion, walk or pedal faster, do step aerobics with a video, or jump rope -- whatever you enjoy that gets your heart rate up.

The resistance portion can be as simple as squats, push-ups and abdominal crunches. Or you could work with small dumbbells, a weight bar, bands or tubing.

Increase your flexibility with floor stretches or yoga poses. And your cooldown should be similar to the warm up, says Steele -- "cardiovascular work at a low level to bring the heart rate down to a resting state."

You can do strength work in same workout as your aerobic work, or split them up. Just be sure to warm up and cool down every time you exercise.

If you're short on time one day, increase the intensity of your workout, says Tony Swain, MS, fitness director of East Bank Club in Chicago. Instead of your usual 45-minute ride on the stationary bike, choose a harder program for 25 minutes and really push yourself. Choose the hilly walk in your neighborhood, or jog instead of walking.

You can step up the pace of your strength workout by doing compound exercises -- those that work more than one muscle group at a time.

Tips for home exercisers

The experts offer some other tips for home exercisers:

• Challenge yourself and avoid boredom. At home, you won't have the variety of equipment and classes that are available at a gym. So surf the Internet and browse fitness magazines to check out new workouts and make sure you're exercising correctly. "Pictures are everything. Use them as a guide for form and technique," Swain says.
• Find an exercise partner. You'll be less likely to find excuses when you've arranged to work out with a friend.
• Schedule your workouts. "Have a plan," says Calabrese. "Look at a planner and write out your exercise appointments one month in advance. If something comes up and you have to change one, reschedule it immediately."
• Use a journal to track your progress and jot down any breakthroughs you may have. When you have a bad day, write that down, too, to help you to find patterns you can break. For example, you may find an egg-white omelet gets you through your morning workout better than a bagel.
• Set goals, like training for a race or losing 20 pounds. "A goals should be something you can't do right now, but you know is within your reach," Calabrese says. Give yourself mini-rewards along the way: a new fitness magazine, those workout tights you've been eyeing, or a new pair of sneakers.
• Perhaps most important, make exercise as integral to your life as sleeping and eating, says Swain. "You have to think of it as a lifestyle change. It doesn't end. Get out of the mind frame that exercise is something you're only going to do for a period of time."

Is My Knee Pain Arthritis or a Torn Meniscus?

A torn knee meniscus often has similar symptoms to knee osteoarthritis, making it difficult to know the cause of the pain.

Common symptoms of both osteoarthritis and a torn meniscus include:

• Pain around the knee joint, especially after activity, such as walking, running, or climbing stairs
• Swelling, which occurs because of inflammation and may make the knee painful to the touch
• Knee locking, which means it may be difficult to bend or fully extend the joint

A knee meniscus tear and knee osteoarthritis affect different types of cartilage in the knee:

• Knee osteoarthritis refers to damage to articular cartilage. Articular cartilage is tough, slippery material that covers and protects the bottom of the thighbone (femur), the top of the tibia (shin bone), and back of the knee cap (patella).
• A torn meniscus refers to damage to a rubbery, flexible piece of cartilage that provides cushioning between the thigh bone and shine bone in the knee.

Below you’ll find a few questions to ask yourself when determining the cause of knee pain, however, a visit to a health care professional is the best way to get an accurate diagnosis.

When did the pain start?

The biggest difference between arthritis and a torn meniscus is whether the pain developed over time or following an injury.

• If your knee pain increases gradually and cannot be placed back to a specific injury you may have arthritis.
• If your knee pain arose suddenly, you may have a meniscus tear. Athletes, especially those who play soccer, football, or basketball, are more likely to experience the type of injuries that cause meniscus tears.

It is possible for a meniscus to break down slowly, but this is less common.

What does the pain feel like?

Another difference between arthritis and a torn meniscus is how the pain feels.

• People with osteoarthritis often report an intermittent, dull, or aching pain. The breakdown of cartilage may cause the bones to grind against each other when moving, which can cause a feeling of stiffness or produce a crunching sound.
• People with a torn meniscus often complain of sharp, immediate pain following an injury. The pain may go away with rest and return again with movement, especially the same type that caused the injury. Tenderness to the inside or outside of the knee may indicate a meniscus tear.

Exactly how the pain feels will be determined by the severity and location of the arthritis damage or meniscus tear.

Have you tried the Thessaly test?

A meniscus tear can be tested for by using a diagnostic exam called the Thessaly test. You can do this yourself while resting your hands on a counter or another person for support.

1. Stand on the leg to be tested with your knee bent slightly (about 20 degrees). Bend your opposite knee behind you, so that your foot is off the floor.
2. Keeping your foot planted, twist your body so your hips rotate back and forth 3 times.

If you experience a catching or locking feeling during the test, you may have a torn meniscus.

How old are you?

Age is not just a number when it comes to determining the cause of knee pain. Arthritis is a degenerative disease, meaning it is more likely to occur in older adults.

A torn meniscus is a cartilage injury that can happen at any age, although more likely to occur in the younger, active, population.

Getting a diagnosis and treatment for knee pain

Whether you think you have knee arthritis or a torn meniscus, your best bet is to visit a health care professional for an accurate diagnosis and treatment. Early treatment can prevent your symptoms from worsening and, in some cases, help you avoid future surgeries.

Stopping the weight-gain: Menopause

Menopause is well known as being a time when weight is gained. Eating well and being active are key.
Menopause causes the greatest revolution in hormone levels. Blamed for many things during a woman's life, her hormones are now also maligned for causing weight gain. As well as the
effect of age, falling levels of the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone further reduce the rate at which energy is used – known as metabolic rate. This is reflected in the dietary
recommendations for women over the age of 50. The amount of kilojoules recommended each day is less, but the amounts of vitamins, minerals and protein remain roughly the same.
So eating healthily, without some of the 'extras', is vitally important to stay fit and well. Remaining active will also help keep weight stable. Although many women feel lethargic and low during this time of change, activity boosts metabolic rate, as well as feelings of self-esteem and self-worth.

Tummy trimming tips for menopause

• A brisk walk each day is one of the best ways to help yourself feel better, and can be enjoyed with friends too.
• Don't skip breakfast. Missing meals does not help weight control and can leave you feeling even more tired and lethargic.
• Take a tip from the Japanese, the masters of portion control. Keeping the amount we eat at each meal in check is important for controlling weight, and there is some evidence it can help us live longer too.
• If grandparenthood finds its way to you, allow your grandchildren to run you off your feet – it's good for you, if exhausting!
• Enjoy this time of life to the maximum, but indulge yourself in non-food treats. Sadly, you will start to lose friends to some of our common lifestyle illnesses, such as heart disease and cancer. Although these usually take years to develop, it's never too late to help yourself by eating well.

Minimum Health or Maximum Health? That is the Question!

Picture yourself in one of the following scenarios.

You're cruising along in your new car by the ocean or in the mountains near the ski lodge, or just a leisurely drive through a beautiful forest or in the country. You stop and smell the fresh air you hear the scenic sounds. You are at peace.

You're relaxing on the patio of your new home - you see the mountains or lake in the distance. Your friends are over as you barbecue in your new back yard. Everyone loves your new home. Or you're out on the lake in your new boat with family or friends. Feel the breeze in your face - smell the fresh scents in the air.

Picture yourself on vacation - you are on the deck of a cruise ship - you are on the top deck under the stars. You feel the warm tropic breeze in your face. The full moon is reflecting off the water as you are holding the one you love in your arms.

We analyze the lives most of us actually have and what our lives could be and the role they play!

The question is who would want only minimum health (or worse) when they could have maximum health!


Maximum health is like you feel when you ask that special someone for a date for the first time and they say yes!
Minimum health is when you ask that special someone out and they tell you, that is the Saturday night when they have to do the laundry and wash their hair!

Picture maximum health as cruising next to the ocean in a sport car convertible with your lover next to you..
Picture minimum health as stuck in traffic in your 10-year-old station wagon with the air conditioner broken.

Maximum health is like being on a honeymoon on your own private beach in Hawaii. Running down the beach at night with the one you love with the warm tropic wind in your hair. The huge moon shining down on the palm trees and the tranquil bay.

Minimum health is stuck working overtime in an un-airconditioned office with a huge pile of paperwork stacked on your desk. In walks your boss - the one with all the personality of a geek with BO. He can't stand going home to his abusive wife so he works 14 hour days and gives dirty looks to his employees when they leave before him. Your boss starts yelling about some stupid unfinished report...

Minimum health is like living paycheck to paycheck - just getting by, just barely having enough money to pay the bills each month. Minimum health is like Darling we have a little extra this month - would you like to go out to eat at McDonalds and get a Big Mac?

Maximum health is sailing away on a cruise ship to the Caribbean with the one you love while dining in elegance each evening!





 

 Sure the above minimum health situations aren't going to kill you (or at least not immediately), but is this the way you want to live your life? Do you really want to just scrape by when there is an option? Let's examine the statement ...aren't going to kill you or at least not immediately.

Minimum health is simply the current absence of real illness or disease. Often people in minimum health are often too tired or sluggish to do things, they are overweight, etc. They don't feel real bad but they sure don't feel terrific. And what about our statement, some would argue that the above minimum health scenarios lead to premature and even a slow death!

Actually the attitude of minimum health is like too many other attitudes we have. We are always too willing to sell ourselves short. We are too willing to settle for second best even when we don't have to. Too often this attitude can flow over into our jobs and relationships. This over the course of a lifetime can cause us much unhappiness and cost us a lot of money.

But the real issue here is minimum versus maximum health and what are we doing to strive toward maximum health? For example do you take high quality nutritional supplements or are you depending on the fast and processed foods to get all your nutrients? I would encourage you to take high quality vitamin and nutritional supplements with enzymes, antioxidants and dietary fiber along with exercise and weight management on a daily basis to strive toward maximum health.