Although there are a thousand health and wellness articles that say that "fitness starts in the kitchen", I strongly believe that there is an important element of a healthy lifestyle that is involved too. You can strip your eating habits down to rabbit food (and likely be completely miserable) all you want, but without adding the element of working your heart and muscles, there will be no real progress. Don't get me wrong, eating healthy is incredibly important, and I certainly don't condone eating several burgers followed with a super-sized fries and cola, but that's not the only thing that constitutes a diet. A lot of people (falsely) assume that if they cut their calories and eat nothing but lettuce and grilled chicken breast they will lose weight and are healthy, this is a false reality. The important thing about weight loss is not the calories, its the being healthy part. No one, even those trying to drop a lot of weight should ever focus solely on the pounds. The most important part is health and so many so called "diets" can be incredibly harmful to actual health. What I'm trying to get at here is for people to learn about their bodies, their food and their exercise. You can cut your calories to next to nothing, and still not lose weight if you aren't being healthy. The more I learn about the body the more I understand that we were designed to move, to be active and to enjoy these aspects of our lives. Our bodies naturally produce endorphens (the hormone that is release that gives us that happy feeling) when we are physically active. Intense activity produces enough of these endorphens to simulate the ecstasy that is felt by cocaine users. (Now please, please, please don't go out and become cocaine addicts...this is just based on research and not personal experience). My personal experience means that I sleep better, am happier and do better at school on days where I hit the gym or the pavement. Surely you can ask my husband, and he would tell you I am a much nicer person when I get home from a run than if I didn't go!
When I decided I wanted to lose some weight I barely modified my diet (because I honestly was eating fairly healthy to begin with), and mostly increased my overall activity. The Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation recommends that adults get AT LEAST 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per week (now ask yourself, do you hit that target?) to help prevent heart disease and risk of stroke. I challenge everyone to hit 150 minutes of exercise per week. You can start off slowly, walk to work or school instead of driving (I make a point of walking 20 minutes to school with a heavy backpack 5 days a week), try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and go for a 20 minute walk after dinner (the walk not only helps to increase activity, but activity immediately after eating helps to boost metabolism too!). Once you're good at walking try increasing your activity level. Like I have said before, if you are serious about being healthy you will find time to hit the gym, or go for a walk or workout. A lot of people say "oh I have kids", or "I work too much"... Everyone has time for those things they prioritize (trust me, I'm a full time student, taking an extra course by correspondence I work 20-30 hours a week, volunteer a bit and still find the time to go for a run or hit the gym 4 times a week). If health is important you make time for it. A lovely woman I have come to know had a toddler, two jobs and a husband that works shifts away from her most of the time, and over the last 18 months she has found time to eat healthy, to exercise and to lose over 30 pounds. She changed her lifestyle, not just her diet and has been incredibly successful. The point is, either you make the time to be healthy, or it isn't in your personal important list.
My advice on getting healthy is:
When I decided I wanted to lose some weight I barely modified my diet (because I honestly was eating fairly healthy to begin with), and mostly increased my overall activity. The Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation recommends that adults get AT LEAST 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per week (now ask yourself, do you hit that target?) to help prevent heart disease and risk of stroke. I challenge everyone to hit 150 minutes of exercise per week. You can start off slowly, walk to work or school instead of driving (I make a point of walking 20 minutes to school with a heavy backpack 5 days a week), try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and go for a 20 minute walk after dinner (the walk not only helps to increase activity, but activity immediately after eating helps to boost metabolism too!). Once you're good at walking try increasing your activity level. Like I have said before, if you are serious about being healthy you will find time to hit the gym, or go for a walk or workout. A lot of people say "oh I have kids", or "I work too much"... Everyone has time for those things they prioritize (trust me, I'm a full time student, taking an extra course by correspondence I work 20-30 hours a week, volunteer a bit and still find the time to go for a run or hit the gym 4 times a week). If health is important you make time for it. A lovely woman I have come to know had a toddler, two jobs and a husband that works shifts away from her most of the time, and over the last 18 months she has found time to eat healthy, to exercise and to lose over 30 pounds. She changed her lifestyle, not just her diet and has been incredibly successful. The point is, either you make the time to be healthy, or it isn't in your personal important list.
My advice on getting healthy is:
- Move it! Get yourself walking for at least 10 minutes at a time twice a day (or once for 20 minutes). Try getting off the bus a few stops early, or walking to work/school.
- Take the stairs always. Imagine how much extra your heart will be pumping (and will be thanking you!) if it gets to go up the stairs a few times every day.
- Work out. Whether you hit a yoga class, go running or just walk around the block 10 more times than you normally do, 20 minutes of vigorous exercise 5 times a week can increase your overall heart health, muscle health, lung healthy and mental health. Exercise and physical activity are strongly linked with mental health and curing depression.
- Monitor your eating (post coming soon!)
- Make time (this is SO important). Find the time to be active. Fit it into your normal routine, or modify what you do to make it happen! Heart disease and strokes caused by obesity and obesity related diseases are the leading cause of death in North America. Protect yourself!
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