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tips to stick with morning workouts
fitness + excerise
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Routine exercise is one of the keys to a healthy life. When paired with a healthy diet, regular exercise can promote long-term health and reduce a person’s risk for a host of conditions and diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Set your alarm earlier than you intend to wake up.
Prepare the night before.
hile many adults are aware of the importance of routine exercise, finding time to break a sweat can be difficult. In fact, a 2013 study from researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that nearly 80 percent of adults in the United States do not get the recommended amounts of exercise each week. Hectic schedules dominated by obligations to work and family can make it difficult to find time to exercise. But working out in the early morning, before the kids wake up and coworkers’ emails begin flooding your inbox, can help men and women meet the WHO’s recommended exercise guidelines and might even provide a noticeable energy boost throughout the rest of the day.
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Waking up with a to-do list in the morning takes away from the time you have to exercise. Rather than fumbling for your gym clothes and sneakers in the darkness of your pre-dawn bedroom, lay out your workout gear before going to bed each night. Lay out your work clothes as well so you spend more time exercising in the morning and less time choosing an outfit.
Get a good night’s sleep. In 2015, the National Sleep Foundation convened experts from sleep, anatomy and physiology, as well as pediatrics, neurology, gerontology and gynecology to reach a consensus on sleep guidelines for people of all ages. The panel recommends adults between the ages of 26 and 64 get between seven and nine hours of sleep per night, noting that anything less than six hours
Few people wake up the moment their alarm clocks first go off. Snooze buttons may help you ease into your wakeup routine, but those postsnooze button minutes are minutes you could be spending getting your recommended daily exercise. If you’re a snooze button devotee and you want to be up by 6 a.m., then set your alarm for 5:50 a.m.
or more than 10 hours is not recommended. A good night’s sleep will help you feel more energetic when that alarm goes off, even if it is going off before the sun rises. Exercise and sleep go hand in hand, as studies have shown that routine exercise actually improves quality of sleep because exercise is a beneficial stressor to the body, which responds to the stress of exercise by increasing the amount of time the body spends in deep sleep.
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What is clean eating all about? food +
Clean eating is a growing trend among nutrition people focused on health and wellness. A relatively simple concept of selecting foods that are minimally processed, clean eating intends to instill a greater understanding of think simple the pathway between a food’s origins and the final Many foods designated as products that end up on grocery store shelves and “clean,” including vegetables and fruits, whole grains, dinner tables. hoosing whole or “real” foods that are as close to their natural forms as possible is a staple of clean eating. The availability of convenience food products has never been greater, and not all packaged foods are unhealthy. But clean eating encourages consumers to be more aware of the ingredients in the foods they eat while selecting those foods that are minimally processed.
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free-range meats, low-fat dairy products, unsalted nuts, and whole seeds, are straight from the farm.
read the ingredients
If an ingredient list includes names you cannot recognize or if the natural form of the food has been changed (i.e. removing the bran from whole grains), it cannot be included in a cleaneating plan. Also, foods that have a lot of additives, including salt, sugar and fat, are not classified as clean.
think natural sugar
balancing the benefits
Another component of clean eating is eliminating or greatly reducing the consumption of refined sugar. Many health experts advise that refined sugar is a large contributor to unnecessary calories. Many people can get all the energy they need by consuming foods with natural sugars.
remember: not all food processing is bad
Jessica Fanzo, assistant professor of nutrition at Columbia University, advises that not all food processing is bad. Processing is sometimes necessary to prevent pathogens that can lead to illness. For example, pasteurizing milk is a processing method, but one that is necessary to stop the proliferation of bacteria. Even steaming foods is processing in some form, but it is not on par with some of the overly processed foods available.
start slowly
Those interested in clean eating can begin slowly. Start to introduce more fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and farm-fresh foods into your diet. Look for foods in their natural form, such as whole oats and other grains. Avoid highly refined ingredients and limit sugar and salt intake. Opt for fresh herbs and spices to season food. Over time you can make other changes.
The benefits to clean eating are numerous. Increasing intake of fruits and vegetables can boost your immune system and serve as a nutritious way to maintain a healthy weight. Clean eating may help you become more conscious of everything from meal ingredients to portion sizes. Adopting a clean-eating approach to their diet is a great way for men and women to start living healthy lifestyles. Speak with a doctor or nutritionist about healthy and effective ways to transition to clean eating.
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How to health find time for exercise everyday
Diet and exercise are essential components of a healthy lifestyle. While even the busiest men and women can find ways to eat healthy, finding time to exercise can be more difficult. ccording to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition, regular physical activity can prevent chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer and stroke, which are the three leading causes of health-related death in the United States. In addition, men and women who are not physically active are at greater risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Regular exercise helps people control their weight while promoting bone, muscle and joint health.
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While the benefits of regular exercise are substantial, finding the time for daily exercise is not always so easy. The following are a handful of strategies men and women can employ as they attempt to make more time in their days to exercise.
Re-examine your free time
Few adults, and especially those juggling families and careers, have an abundance of free
time. But reexamining the ways you are spending your free time may help you uncover some moments for daily exercise. The Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition notes that adults between the ages of 18 and 64 need at least two and a half hours each week of moderateintensity aerobic activity. While that may seem like a lot, it’s only
slightly more than 20 minutes per day. It helps to supplement such aerobic activity with some strengthtraining activities at least two days per week. Try waking up 20 to 30 minutes earlier each day, using that time to hit the treadmill or jog around the neighborhood. You likely won’t be affected by waking up earlier, and you won’t need to alter your existing schedule for the rest of the day, either. If mornings aren’t your
voyager media >> spring 2018 thing, make better use of your lunch hour, going for a jog or visiting your company’s exercise facilities if that option is available to you.
Work while you exercise
Technology has made it easier than ever before to stay connected to the office even when you are nowhere near your desk. Men and women who can’t seem to find time to exercise often cite the demands of their job as the primary reason behind their inactivity, but those same individuals can use the technology at their disposal, be it smartphones that allow them keep track of work emails or tablets that make it possible to connect remotely to office servers, to work while they exercise. Bring your smartphone or tablet with you when you work out on the elliptical or jog on the treadmill.
Reduce your sedentary time
A 2008 study from Australian researchers found that people who regularly break up their sedentary time, including the hours they sit behind their
spotlight on desk at the office, with movement had healthier waist circumferences, body mass indexes and triglycerides than those who did not. While hourly breaks to walk around the office might not seem like exercise, such breaks can benefit your long-term health.
Get creative
Many people associate daily exercise with private gyms, and while gyms can serve as excellent motivators and great places to get full-body workouts, time involved in driving to and from the gym can make it difficult to commit to gym memberships. But you don’t need a gym membership to live a healthy lifestyle. When possible, take the stairs instead of an elevator and park further away from your office door so you get a small cardiovascular workout on your way into and out of the office. Rather than retiring to the couch after dinner, walk or bike around your neighborhood. Such simple gestures may seem insignificant, but the more creative ways you find to exercise each day, the more beneficial such efforts become.
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Things to know about children heart health In many cases, if cardiomyopathy is detected early and managed properly, sudden cardiac death can be prevented hen thinking of heart disease, older adults typically come to mind, but children also can have heart disease, often with more devastating outcomes. Pediatric cardiomyopathy is a potentially life-threatening disease and the leading cause of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in children. Cardiomyopathy is a chronic disease of the heart muscle that affects the heart’s ability to pump blood. Some children who have the disease can be symptom-free and are unknowingly at risk for SCA. Approximately 2,000 people under 25 die of SCA every year according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but there are preventative measures for families. In many cases, if cardiomyopathy is detected early and managed properly, sudden cardiac death can be prevented, says Lisa Yue, a
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parent who lost two children to cardiomyopathy and founder of the Children‚ Cardiomyopathy Foundation (CCF). The Foundation is launching the first Children’s Cardiomyopathy Awareness Month in September to call attention to the disease. Knowing the symptoms and risk factors for cardiomyopathy can help save lives.
Know the Symptoms
Currently there is no formal cardiac screening process for children. While pediatricians can respond to more obvious symptoms, identifying pediatric cardiomyopathy can be challenging because some affected children are symptomfree. It is not uncommon for cardiomyopathy to be missed or misdiagnosed as a cold, flu or asthma. Symptoms include shortness of breath, rapid breathing,
solutions to
For more information about cardiomyopathy, visit www. childrenscardiomyopathy. org.
fainting, chest pain, dizziness, heart palpitations and fatigue. Infants may experience poor weight gain, difficulty breathing, excessive sweating or lethargy. It is important for parents to communicate concerns to the pediatrician.
Know the Risk Factors
Cardiomyopathy can occur in any child and be inherited or acquired through a viral infection or from cancer chemotherapy, explains Steven Lipshultz, M.D., pediatricianin-chief of Children’s Hospital of Michigan and chair of CCF’s medical advisory board.
Since the majority of cardiomyopathies are inherited, understanding a family’s cardiac history is the best way to prevent premature death. Hereditary risk factors include having a family member who is disabled by heart disease, has died of heart disease before age 50, or was diagnosed with Long QT syndrome, cardiomyopathy, Marfan syndrome or a heart rhythm issue. Family members who exhibit symptoms such as chest pain, discomfort upon exertion, fatigue, fainting or high blood pressure should be evaluated by a cardiologist.
Protecting At-Risk Young Athletes Adolescents with an
underlying heart condition like cardiomyopathy are at a higher risk for SCA due to increased physical activity and certain body changes. SCA is the top cause of death on school property, and according to the American Heart Association these deaths occur most commonly in high-intensity sports. To help keep young athletes safe, Senator Robert Menendez, Representatives Lois Capps and Bill Pascrell, Children’s Cardiomyopathy Foundation and the National Athletic Trainers Association introduced the Supporting Athletes, Families, and Educators to Protect the Lives of Athletic Youth (SAFE PLAY) Act, with provisions to protect student athletes from SCA.
help kids stay healthy
With childhood obesity on the rise, making sure kids eat right and get plenty of exercise is vital. Parents and care-givers can play a big role in children’s nutrition and health, teaching kids about healthy foods, being a good role model and making sure physical activity is incorporated into each day.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is encouraging families to focus on the important of healthful eating and active lifestyles by taking the following steps:
Shop Smart
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To encourage a healthy lifestyle, get your children involved in selecting the food that will appear at the breakfast, lunch or dinner table.
Cook Healthy
Involve your child in the cutting, mixing and preparation of meals. They will learn about food and may even be enticed to try new foods they helped prepare.
Eat Right
Sit down together as a family to enjoy a wonderful meal and the opportunity to share the day’s experiences with one another. Research indicates that those families who eat together have a stronger bond, and children have higher self-confidence and perform better in school.
Healthy Habits
You can help kids form great, healthy habits by setting a good example. Fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables, choose lower-sodium options,
and make at least half the grains your family eats whole grains. For beverages, choose water over sugary drinks, and opt for fat-free or low-fat milk.
Get Moving
Aside from being a great way to spend time together, regular physical activity is vital to strengthen muscle and bones, promote a healthy body weight, support learning, develop social skills and build self-esteem. Kids are encouraged to be active for 60 minutes per day.
Talk to your children
Learn the foods they like. Teach them about the foods they need for their growing bodies. Find ways together to make sure they have the knowledge and ability to eat healthy and tasty foods at every meal, says Angela Lemond, registered dietitian nutritionist and Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics spokesperson.
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