Kindness

Posted on October 13, 2009 by violetquartz

I am always surprised by how touched I am by small gestures. Unexpected kindness is one of those little things that makes life beautiful. I am very lucky that I get to share in others experiences through life, and I am hopeful that I can help make a difference in help people achieve happiness. Today I am grateful to all those who have showen me kindness and have given to me. Specifically I would like to thank my brother in law who designed my new web banner as a birthday gift. It has inspired me to keep going and do what I can to bring more kindness into the world.

Energy Balance and its importance in training

Posted on October 9, 2009 by violetquartz

When training it is imporatnt to make sure you are eating nough calories and geting enough nutrient to supoort physiological adapation, even if you are trying to loose weight. Here is an exerpt from a postistion statement compiled by: American College of Sports Medicine: Nancy R. Rodriguez (University of Connecticut); American Dietetic Association: Nancy M. DiMarco (Texas Woman’s University); Dietitians of Canada: Susie Langley

Energy balance occurs when energy intake (the sum of energy from foods, fluids, and supplement products) equals energy expenditure (sum of energy expended as basal metabolic rate, the thermic effect of food, the thermic effect of activity, which is the energy expended in planned physical activity, and non-exercise activity thermogenesis).

Energy expenditure for different types of exercise is dependent on the duration, frequency, and intensity of the exercise, the sex of the athlete, and prior nutritional status in addition to heredity, age, body size, and fat free mass. The more energy used in activity, the more calories needed to achieve energy balance.

Inadequate energy intake compromises performance and negates the benefits of training. With limited energy intake, fat and lean tissue will be used for fuel by the body resulting in a loss of lean tissue. The concern here is that loss of strength and endurance, as well as compromised immune, endocrine, and musculoskeletal function can result.

Motivation

Posted on October 3, 2009 by violetquartz

Now that fall is upon us it is time to get back to our routines and schedules. Sometimes it is difficult to get back into the swing of things, especially if we are trying to incorporate new healthy habits into our lives. Motivation plays a big part in whether or not we will be successful in accomplishing and maintaining our goals.

Here are a few strategies to keep yourself motivation and accountable:

Write out a motivation list; why do you want to change what you are changing or why are you maintaining. Place the list in a place you look everyday, like you bathroom mirror, every time you look at it you will be reminded of why you are doing what you are doing.
Enroll others in your new habit or routine; tell you friend and family your goals, they will help keep you accountable.
Seek the help of a professional: they will definitely keep you on task and working towards your goals.
Get involved in a challenge; working towards the same goal as another person provides support and adds a competitive edge for those who enjoy healthy competition. For those of you interested the 100 day challenge is starting later this month. For more information please click here.

My Inspiration

Posted on August 27, 2009 by violetquartz

I find I look to people I admire most for inspiration on how I choose to live my life. This is my Grandmother, she will be 96 years old this month. She has a zest for life that is unparalleled; she lives independently in her own condo and maintains a healthy lifestyle. She walks 2 kilometers a day, rain, shine or snow. When I say snow I mean SNOW since she live in Ottawa. She has always walked, as long as I can remember.

Granted there is a genetic component, most of my relatives have live to be a 100, regardless she is tenacious in maintaing her physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual fortitude. What most inspires me is if she can still do this daily after all that she has seen and been through then who am I not to give life my all.

Learning to exercise easy

Posted on May 27, 2009 by violetquartz

When we are working out, exercising or partaking in physical activity most of the time we push ourselves because we believe the misconception that if there is no pain there is no gain. The great news is that, it is not necessaryly so, the bad news is that most people do not know this.

In some cases it is better to stop working if we feel pain or fatigue. For one form will suffer and you will not be working the muscles you want to be and maybe your body is telling you it needs a rest.

So I say it is ok to exercise easy sometimes; drop your weight, lower the number of sets, stretch instead. Just listen to your body, it will thank you later.

Well-rounded Fitness

Posted on April 21, 2009 by violetquartz

There are five components of fitness which together determine your overall physical well-being and ability; Cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and balance.

Together these components provide general health benefits also known as functional fitness. Functional fitness is comprised of exercises and activities which includes two or more of these components. They are all equally important because they contribute to a longer and more importantly independent life.

Cardiovascular endurance is essential to a healthy circulatory system and heart; your body’s transportation system to nourish itself. Because heart health is so vital for everyday living regular cardiovascular exercise, is a sure fire way to ensure it is optimal for as long as possible

Muscular strength is important in everyday movement, getting out of bed, getting dressed etc. These are things we take for granted until we are no longer able to perform them for ourselves. Because we lose muscle mass as we age it is important to build and maintain as much as possible so that you can live independently for as long as possible.

Muscular endurance is the ability to repeatedly move a muscle without tiring and allows us to participate in sport, gardening, hiking; activities which contribute to our quality of life and are essential to our overall well-being.

Flexibility helps us maintain range of motion around our joints reducing stiffness and tension. The more flexible we are the less likely we are to get injured because we can more easily move our joints properly.

Balance is critical in injury prevention especially as we age. Participating in physical activity which requires us to balance helps us build and maintain our stabilization muscle which helps prevent falls and related injuries.

Warm ups, cool downs and stretching

Posted on April 13, 2009 by violetquartz

When you are participating in physical activity and or exercise it is important to make sure you warm up, cool down and stretch.

Warming up prepares the body for more strenuous work, or exercise. It takes a few minutes for the body to gear up to work optimally during an exercise bout. Firstly blood has to be redistributed from your internal organs to your working muscle, your heart and lungs. The movement of blood to your muscle warms them which reduces your risk of injury as your move your body more strenuously. Therefore a warm up is important to prepare your body for exercise and reduce your risk of injury.

Similarly a cool down in important because as you exercise your heart rate is increased, and your body temperature is higher. A gradual cool down is an effective way of reducing post exercise muscle soreness.

Stretching is an important part of a cool down down for many reasons. Stretching is important in maintaing range of motion around a joint a.k.a. flexibility. It also reduces muscular tension built up in the muscle during exercise, thus improving recovery time. Stretching must be done while your muscle are still warm to prevent injuring yourself, and is a great way to cool down; you are still moving, but you are giving your body a chance to recover gradually.

How to Measure Exercise Intensity

Posted on April 8, 2009 by violetquartz

Exercise intensity can be gauged based on this simple equation:

220- (minus) your age gives you a fairly accurate estimate of your maximum heart rate.

Heart rate is used as a benchmark in determining exercise intensity because as the exercise gets more difficult, the heart has to provide the working muscles with more blood, which means the heart has to pump faster. Working at a maximum intensity is very uncomfortable to exercise at and is most suitable for athletes. For the general population, a healthy exercises range is 60-80% of you maximum heart rate. To find this rate, take your max heart rate and multiply it by .6 and .8 respectively to get your exercise range.

You exercise range can be further broken down into moderate and vigorous zones. If you are looking to improve your cardiovascular fitness over time, then incorporating small bouts of vigorous physical activity into your daily routine can help. Start small; 2 minutes and work up. As you become more fit, it will take more intense exercise to get you in the vigorous zone. Eventually you will be able to enjoy more vigorous physical activity pursuits.

There are several ways to know what intensity you are working at: the heart rate equation, and/or how you feel. Moderate exercise is characterized by an increased heart rate, increased rate of breathing, mild sweating and the ability to carry on a conversation while exercising. If you find you cannot carry on a conversation, then you are working too hard. You can also use a scale from 1 to 10. If the exercise you are doing feels like a 6-7 then you are in the moderate zone.

Welcome to my new blog!

Posted on March 27, 2009 by violetquartz

Hello and welcome. I am stating this blog to share my thoughts, experience and expertise on health and wellness. Check in weekly for updates. If you have specific topics you would like me to cover feel free to e-mail me questions and comments.

There is 30 day exercises challenge starting April 1st. It is organized by reach physio. I will leading a chat room discussion Tuesday nights for those taking part. To sign up go here.

Enjoy the sunshine.