Strength Training Posts
Monday, April 12th, 2010
When muscles undergo intense exercise, like resistance training, there is trauma to the muscle fibers. This is referred to as muscle injury or muscle damage. This disruption to muscle cell organelles activates satellite cells of the affected muscle fibers to proliferate to the injury site. Essentially, a biological effort to repair or replace damaged muscle fibers begins with the satellite cells fusing to each other, and to the muscles fibers, often leading to increases in muscle fiber cross-sectional area — or hypertrophy. The satellite cells have only one nucleus, and they replicate by dividing.
Ever wondered what makes your muscles grow?
As the satellite cells multiply, some remain as organelles; the majority, though, differentiate and fuse to muscle fibers to form new muscle protein stands (myofibrils) and repair damaged fibers. Thus, the muscle cells’ myofibrils will increase in thickness and number. After fusion with the muscle fiber, some satellite cells serve as a source of new nuclei to supplement the growing muscle fiber. With these additional nuclei, the muscle fiber can synthesize more proteins and create more contractile myofilaments, known as actin and myosin, in skeletal muscle cells.
Growth Factors
Growth factors are hormones that stimulate satellite cells to produce gains in muscle fiber size. These growth factors have been shown to affect muscle growth by regulating satellite cell activity. Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) is a key regulator of satellite cell activity. It is the active factor in damaged muscle and may also be responsible for causing satellite cells to migrate to the damaged muscle area. Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF) is another important factor in muscle repair following exercise. The role of FGF is in the forming new blood capillaries during muscle regeneration.
Human Growth Hormone (HGH) is also highly recognized for its role in muscle growth. Resistance exercise stimulates the release of growth hormone from the anterior pituitary gland, with levels dependent on exercise intensity. Additionally, growth hormone helps to trigger fat metabolism for energy use in the muscle growth process.
Finally, testosterone also significantly affects muscle growth. This hormone can stimulate growth hormone responses in the pituitary, which enhances cellular amino acid uptake and protein synthesis. In addition, testosterone can increase the presence of neurotransmitters at the fiber site, which can help to activate tissue growth. As a steroid hormone, testosterone can interact with nuclear receptors on the DNA, resulting in protein synthesis, and thus, muscle growth.
From trauma, comes strength. In a way, pain really is gain!
Hypertrophy: ‘The Bigger Picture’
Muscle growth occurs whenever the rate of muscle protein synthesis is greater than the rate of muscle protein breakdown. Both the synthesis and breakdown of proteins are controlled by complimentary cellular mechanisms. Resistance exercise can profoundly stimulate muscle cell hypertrophy, and the result is typically significant strength gains. However, the time to see results for this hypertrophy is relatively slow, generally taking several weeks or months to be apparent. Interestingly, a single bout of exercise stimulates protein synthesis within 2-4 hours after the workout. This protein synthesis (casually knows at “the pump“) may remain elevated for up to 24 hours after a strenuous workout.
Studies consistently show that men and women respond to a resistance training stimulus in an extremely similar fashion. However, due to gender differences in body size, body composition and hormone levels, gender will have a varying effect on the extent of hypertrophy one may attain. As well, greater changes in muscle mass will occur in individuals with more muscle mass at the start of a training program.
Aging also mediates cellular changes in muscle decreasing the actual muscle mass. This loss of muscle mass is referred to as sarcopenia. There is good news, however; the detrimental effects of aging on muscle have been shown be restrained or even reversed with regular resistance exercise. Importantly, resistance exercise also improves the connective tissue harness surrounding muscle, thus being most beneficial for injury prevention and in physical rehabilitation therapy.
Tags: actin, fatigue, fiber, growth, injury, muscle, myosin, organelles, protein, resistance, science, synthesis, testosterone, training, weight
Posted in Strength Training | No Comments »
Sunday, February 21st, 2010
Although some old fitness myths, such as “no pain, no gain” and “spot reducing” are fading fast, plenty of popular exercise misconceptions still exist. Here are some of the most common myths of exercise that, unfortunately, still persist amongst so many people that we work with on a daily basis. How many of these myths have you debunked in your experience with fitness? How many do you still believe? Be Well!
1. You Will Burn Fat If You Exercise Longer at a Lower Intensity
The most important focus in exercise and fat weight control is not the percentage of exercise energy coming from fat but the total energy cost, or how many calories are burned during the activity. The faster you walk or run, for example, the more calories you use per minute. However, high-intensity exercise is difficult to sustain if you are just beginning or returning to exercise, so you may not exercise very long at this level. It is safer to start out at a lower intensity and work your way up gradually.
2. If You Are Not Going to Work Out Hard, Exercise Is a Waste of Time
This kind of thinking keeps a lot of people from maintaining or even beginning an exercise program. Research continues to show that any exercise is better than none. For example, regular walking or gardening for as little as an hour a week has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. Think consistency, not intensity!
3. Yoga Is a Completely Gentle and Safe Exercise
Yoga is an excellent form of exercise, but some styles are quite rigorous and demanding — both physically and mentally. As with any form of exercise, qualified, careful instruction is necessary for a safe, effective workout. Use the help of a qualified professional when beginning any sort of yoga regimen.
4. If You Exercise Long and Hard Enough, You Will Always Get the Results You Want
In reality, genetics plays an important role in how people respond to exercise. Studies have shown a wide variation in how different exercisers respond to the same training program. Your development of strength, speed and endurance may be very different from that of other people you know.
5. Exercise Is One Sure Way to Lose All the Weight You Desire
As with all responses to exercise, weight gain or loss is impacted by many factors, including dietary intake and genetics. All individuals will not lose the same amount of weight on the same exercise program. It is possible to be active and overweight. However, although exercise alone cannot guarantee your ideal weight, regular physical activity is one of the most important factors for successful long-term weight management.
6. If You Want to Lose Weight, Stay Away from Strength Training
Most exercise experts believe that cardiovascular exercise and strength training are both valuable for maintaining a healthy weight. Strength training helps maintain muscle mass and decrease body fat percentage.
7. Overweight People Are Unlikely to Benefit Much From Exercise
Studies show that obese people who participate in regular exercise programs have a lower risk of all-cause mortality than sedentary individuals, regardless of weight. Both men and women of all sizes and fitness levels can improve their health with modest increases in activity. Any small amount of exercise can help lay the groundwork for a solid health plan focusing on fat loss!
Tags: eating, exercise, fat, fit, FItness, health, healthy, misconceptions, myths, Nutrition, weight, weight loss, wellness
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Nutrition, Strength Training | No Comments »
Friday, February 19th, 2010
There are various reasons why you may be starting to consider the need to lift weights. Some of our clients start to improve their physique, others want to become bodybuilders, more are training for a specific sport or event, and still others just want to burn fat. Lifting weights always reminds us of bodybuilders first because that is how they spend a majority of their time working out. But training is about so much more than building bigger muscles and looking good in a competition. For the most part, it isn’t about becoming a better athlete in terms of strength, speed, or endurance.
Functional training helps a person become better at doing their daily activities. You become stronger with all your movements, so that lifting heavy loads isn’t such a burden. You train so that you can lift your groceries or your children with ease. This type of training focuses a lot on your core muscles, because those are the muscles used most in your daily routine.
Are you strong enough to perform daily tasks?
So what does it take to be functionally strong? Well, to be extremely simple – not much! Basic compound exercises and lifts can make you extremely strong from a functional standpoint, and lots of lower body strength, core stability, and upper-body joint and tendon strength are essential. There are a few sure-fire ways to become functionally strong!
Get Off the Weight Machines
If you want to start performing functional training, it’s best to stay off of the weight machines. Weight machines limit your range of motion. Free weights are a better choice. The movements mimic ones that you would actually do during your day. Dumbbells are a great choice for weights. Use them in combination with compound exercises like squats, lunges, shoulder presses, and more that require the use of multiple muscle groups at one time.
Develop that Core
Core muscles are often neglected in working out, but they are essential for every task you perform. They are stabilizer muscles which help keep you upright (improved posture) and improve balance. They allow you to use your other muscles more effectively in your arms and legs. The core consists of your back and abdominal muscles and there are others that are deeper such as the tranverse abdominis. Core strength is essential to the well-being of your entire body, and any added core strength will significantly help you complete daily physical tasks! Be Well!
Tags: exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, functional, functional strength, health, strong, weight, weight loss, wellness
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Strength Training | No Comments »
Thursday, February 18th, 2010
You may typically think of them as the frame around which muscle is built, but in fact bones are one of the primary organs of the body, and they have many different functions and purposes. Today, we’ll run through the skeleton, indicating how bones help your body by protecting vital organs, assisting in blood cell production, and so much more! Be Well!
The rib cage, for instance, protects all the sensitive internal organs that it envelops, like the heart lungs, and more. Studies have also found that approximately one in every ten people is born with an extra rib!
The skull, aside from giving structure to the head and face, also protects our most sensitive organ of all, the brain. The skull cushions blows to the head and is one of the hardest and most durable bones in the human body (with another one being the femur).
Bones have several other important functions. The marrow they contain helps produce blood cells that are then used by the body. Bones are also essential to many different kinds of mineral storage, including calcium deposits. It’s the reason your mother wanted you to drink milk growing up – if you don’t feed your body the minerals it needs for healthy bones, osteoporosis can do significant damage to your bones.
Bones, of course, are also beautifully engineered. They are strong, hard, and yet relatively light. One of the primary reasons for this is that bones are actually full of holes on the inside, like a sponge or honeycomb structure. And bones are also somewhat elastic, owing to the support they get from softer parts of the skeletal system such as cartilage, tendons and ligaments.
Keeping Bones Healthy
Made up of more than 200 different bones, the skeleton may be the most underappreciated parts of the human anatomy, and keeping it healthy should be at the top of everyone’s priorities.
A great deal of what we can do to keep bones strong comes down to not significantly abusing them. Putting on a helmet while biking or motorcycling, or wearing other protective gear while engaged in sports, are important considerations to keep bones from serious injury.
On the other hand, a little light abuse, like weight training for example, will actually keep bones strong in much the same that running keeps the cardiovascular system in top condition.
A proper diet is also essential to keeping bones healthy. Weak bones are more susceptible to injury, and so a diet rich in calcium will do bones a world of good. Calcium supplements can also be taken with vitamin D, a nutrient which research has shown to be absolutely essential to bone health, especially later in life, to help ward off such age-related conditions as osteoporosis.
Tags: bone, bone health, bones, calcium, exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, health, Nutrition, osteoporosis, weight, weight loss, wellness
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Nutrition, Strength Training | No Comments »
Saturday, February 13th, 2010
Here on Lake Norman, we only got a few inches of snow last night — but shoveling can still be a necessity to be able to move around! Many people suffer from muscle fatigue, low back strain, vertebral damage, and even spinal fractures during the winter season. Some of these injuries result from excessive stress to spinal structures and others by slip-and-fall accidents. Let FusionSouth help show you how to properly shovel snow to avoid disc injuries in your lower back! Be Well!
It's not quite this bad here on Lake Norman...
The Basics
- Snow shoveling is comparable to weight lifting, and in some cases, the aerobic aspect of this activity is similar to a workout on a treadmill!
- Be heart smart! Don’t smoke before shoveling snow. Avoid caffeinated beverages. These are stimulants and may increase heart rate and cause blood vessels to constrict.
- Pace yourself during shoveling activities. Take frequent breaks and drink plenty of water. Snow shoveling is strenuous work, and it is important to re-hydrate your body often.
Dress for Success!
- Dress in layers. Wear clothing that is easy to move in.
- Wear a hat. A great deal of body heat is lost through the head.
- Proper boots are essential for keeping feet warm and dry while appropriate soles provide traction. Good boots can help you maintain your balance!
- Choose gloves that will keep your hands warm, dry, and blister free—consider thicker gloves, which allow for a good grip on the shovel’s handle.
Select a Shovel That’s Right for You
- Choose a shovel that is ergonomically correct — a shovel with a curved handle. Many hardware stores and home centers stock ergonomically-designed snow shovels. These shovels help you to keep your back straighter reducing spinal stress.
- Use a shovel with a plastic blade instead of metal — plastic is lightweight — isn’t the snow heavy enough?
- Sometimes a smaller blade is better. You will not be able to shovel as much snow per shovel load, but the load will weigh less, which puts less strain on the spine.
- Get a shovel made to push snow. It is far easier to push snow than to lift it. There are shovels made expressly for pushing snow.
Technique, Technique, Technique
- Warm muscles work better. So take some time to stretch to prepare your body for activity.
- Don’t put your hand grip close to one another. Create some distance between the hands. This will give you more leverage and make it easier to lift snow.
- Address your task directly. Stand with your feet about shoulder width apart to maintain balance.
- Try to keep the shovel close to your body. Bend at the knees — not the waist or back. Tighten your stomach muscles as you lift the snow. Lift with your legs — not your back. Do not twist your body. Dump the snow in front of you. If you need to move the snow to the side, move your feet—do not twist!
Special Notes
- If you must lift the snow, lift it properly. Squat with your legs apart, knees bent and back straight. Lift with your legs. Do not bend at the waist. Scoop small amounts of snow into the shovel and walk to where you want to dump it. Holding a shovelful of snow with your arms outstretched puts too much weight on your spine. Shovel an inch or two; then take another inch off. Rest and repeat if necessary.
- Not everyone is able to shovel snow. Consider the disabled and some in our senior populations. Fortunately, many communities have organized volunteers to help people who need assistance during the winter season. Consider helping someone in your neighborhood who is less able with their shoveling needs!
Tags: back, back injury, disc, exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, health, muscle, Nutrition, shovel, shoveling, snow, snowing, snowstorm, spine, strength, vertebrae, weight, weight loss, wellness, winter
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, General Fitness, Good Workouts, Strength Training | No Comments »
Friday, February 12th, 2010
The early bird gets much more than the worm! Getting up early in the morning and being proactive about your health goals is an almost completely guaranteed way to succeed in weight loss. Being proactive about your fitness by rising early to get your workout done is a sign that exercise is an important part of your life, and is the foundation for long-lasting successes.
Did you beat the sun this morning?
Fitting fitness into your hectic life can seem like an impossible chore. Your schedules are set, your routine is like clock-work, and change often seems to be out of the question. The real truth of the matter is that you can make time for fitness. You just need to evaluate how you spend your time, and whether or not that time spent is in line with your priorities. The first step towards success is when you open ourselves up to the possibility of change. And one of the easier and more noticeable changes to make is the start time of your day.
There’s something invigorating about beating the sun to work. If you’ve ever gone for a walk or jog, or driven to the gym before the sun gets up, you know exactly what we mean. Beating the sun, and getting started before the rest of the world, can invigorate you to push harder through your day than if you had rolled out of bed late and rushed! The world is yours, if you would only just get up and face it!
To those that find this notion a bit crazy, well, what else do you have to do at that hour? If you really need to sleep, what kept you up so late the night before? The late-night show? The news? Surfing the internet? Or our personal favorite show, Family Guy? Think about it. The average work-day is 9 hours, and the average commute is 30 minutes (each way). This leaves 14 hours per day to take care of your other priorities. Answer this question honestly – how are you spending those hours?
Or did you miss another opportunity?
If your job takes 11 or 12 hours of your day, it may be worth exploring other options. One way to get around the persistent work-a-holic mentality is to try a mid-day workout. If you get in the office early, workout at lunch, and stay back at the office a bit later. You’ll have put in a full day at work, and still be able to beat the evening rush hour! But whatever your schedule is, getting up a little bit earlier can be like finding a treasure chest full of time.
But unless you work more than 12 hours per day, or have other exceptional responsibilities in your home life, there is no excuse for not getting in a workout. You don’t need a gym, and you don’t need an hour and a half of time. You can get fit in small increments of time – 15 minutes here, 30 minutes there – and energize yourself for the long-haul! Be open to the opportunities your day presents you, and Be Well!
Tags: desire, determination, early, exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, hard work, health, healthy, Nutrition, proactive, wellness, work
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Strength Training | No Comments »
Thursday, February 11th, 2010
Every year during the first few weeks of January, fitness centers have a huge draw of people. There are sign-up sheets to use the treadmills and stationary bikes. There is a sea of cars in the parking lot. It is louder and much more congested.
People want to knock out their resolutions to be more healthy, lose weight and get in shape – during the first week of January – and then move on to excuse making the rest of the year. Like clockwork, the same thing happens every year. What could be an annoying inconvenience with the large crowds of people chugging away on the equipment is decreased by the knowledge they will be gone in a month.
How about you; how are your resolutions going? Are you continuing down your path? Or is your confidence fading? After two weeks doubt can start creeping into the thoughts; The first week was great! But this week I don’t feel so good. Like all great achievements, there is a weeding-out period. The weak must be separated from the strong.
What would it mean to you to be one of the few who makes it? What if the goal you have chosen is difficult, so difficult that most people quit after two weeks — but you keep going? What does that say about you? Doesn’t that mean you are stronger than most?
And what about the negative thoughts that weed their way in? Can’t they motivate you even more? You could choose instead to welcome all the negative thoughts into your head. The more the merrier. Yes, let them all in as long as you do one simple task…show up. Challenge those negative thoughts, invite them in, and then destroy them with unrelenting effort, desire, passion and work ethic. Plan your work, and work your plan.
Look at it this way. You might think that a goal is impossible — but if you simply show up and keep going, you will be doing the impossible. Again, what does that say about you? Show people that you chew up impossibilities and eat them for breakfast. The negative challenges are part of the process – just another part of your life story and eventual success.
What if there were no negative thoughts, no challenges? I’ll tell you…nobody would be interested in you! Nobody wants to read a book, for example, about how you climbed Mount Everest with the greatest of ease. It wasn’t even cold, you say. The air was fresh and clear..we even had a picnic on the top. Makes for a boring story, doesn’t it?
The challenges you inevitably face are part of your life stories. You can learn to appreciate them as being necessary to well-rounded success. So let the negativity come, and make a note of it as you continue down your path. What fun is success if you got it too easily? Embrace the negativity. Embrace the difficulties. And succeed in spite of them. Be Well!
Tags: exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, health, healthy, inspiration, negative, Nutrition, positive, weight loss, wellness
Posted in Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Good Workouts, Nutrition, Strength Training, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010
In the past, people got their workouts the old-fashioned way: getting outside. Of course, they were harvesting crops and tending fields, but you too can take your routine outdoors – with a modern twist. Walk to the market, ride your bike to work, take up hiking or gardening – all of these ideas will have you fit and toned without the investment of a gym.
If you are a gym rat, look for one that has eco-friendly qualities. Do they recycle water bottles? Do they switch off televisions when machines are not in use? And when you’re looking at exercise equipment, choose from the plethora of green alternatives to traditional products. Enjoy these five tips from FusionSouth to go green in your workouts!
Get Out
Why use your energy to run on a treadmill or stationery bike when the whole world is in front of you? Lace up a pair of running shoes and go for a jog – it’s the simplest do-anywhere workout, and all you need are shoes. If you’re not a runner, hit the local hiking trails, take your two-wheeler out for a spin, or just add a daily walk to your lunch hour!
Capture Your Energy
Fuel your body with fresh, organic food, and skip the processed foods. Go for organic energy bars that don’t include sugar or artificial colors and flavors, and that are made from fruit, nuts, fiber, protein, and natural fats. Before you exercise, fuel yourself with a snack that’s high in carbohydrates and low in fat – like pretzels – and drink lots of water. After your workout, snack on both carbohydrates and protein to replenish your energy supplies.
Team Up
Working out with others is one of the most effective ways to stick with your plan; accountability will help you both get fit faster. Finding a jogging partner, or even a personal trainer, makes it easier to schedule your workouts; even better, sign up for a group race or join a team to play soccer, softball, or any other sport. Bonus: The team will likely have a lot of the equipment already, so you can skip buying your own!
Dress Appropriately
Serious athletes wear those nice fabrics for a reason: they are designed for optimal performance and recovery. But there are eco-alternatives, too: sneakers made with recycled rubber soles, tops and pants that combine soy and organic cotton blends, and coconut shells transformed into breathable fabrics. Look for companies with sustainable business practices, like Patagonia, REI, and Nau when you are in the market for some new workout gear!
Inspire Change In Others
If you’ve decided that joining the gym is the best way to go (at least for the winter) you can still encourage your local health club to make some green changes: restrict the use of towels, invest in energy-efficient machines, offer recycling bins for water bottles (or, even better, stop selling them altogether), and set up televisions to shut off when machines aren’t in use. Some gyms harness human power to reduce bills. Also, talk to your workout partner about switching indoor workouts for weekend hikes or bike rides; you’ll be able to get a great workout while making everyone more environmentally conscious!
Use these tips, and anything more, to go green when you exercise! Who knows – you might even find exercise a little more fun than before - and the environment will thank you! Be Well!
Tags: environment, environmental, exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, green, health, jogging, Nutrition, outdoors, running, weight loss, wellness
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Corporate Fitness, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Good Workouts, Nutrition, Strength Training | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
So many people we work with on a daily basis too often try to do a million things at once — and then suddenly wake up to the unpleasant reality that this just isn’t possible. You’re only human — and capable as you may be, you can only take on so much. So in the spirit of digging out from under, here are some tips from FusionSouth for dealing with feeling overwhelmed. Track how they may relate to your fitness needs and goals, as well as your daily stress level!
Identify What Is Truly Important: A big part of feeling overwhelmed is not knowing where to start. Try to pick three areas of your life: personal, relationship and career, and write down all the nagging things that are rippling under the surface and affecting your peace of mind. This brain dump can be useful in that it shows you what really must be accomplished, so that there is not one large pile of impossibility.
Prioritize The Important Stuff: Once you identify the items in each category, rank them on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being extremely important and 1 being extremely trivial.
Decide Exactly How To Start: Of all the ‘10′ items on your to-do list decide two things. First, which ones are the most important to your life goals, values, and passions. Second, which tasks/projects, once accomplished, will give you the most satisfaction and opportunity for success.
Act On What You Planned: Break your three most important tasks into doable sub-tasks, and decide what is the next step that you could take towards its attainment. Many times, you likely feel overwhelmed because you see a mountain of responsibility in front of you. You forget that it is a process made up of lots of smaller tasks, which are victories in themselves.
Assign, Assign, Assign: As far as your sanity and time management are concerned, it is crucial to hand out tasks to trusted others that you do not need to finish yourself. Leverage high school and college students, if necessary, to handle mundane tasks that can be real time-wasters. You will get more accomplished, they will gain some real-world experience, and everybody wins!
Just Say No: Too many people are uncomfortable with saying “no”. A reasonable way to avoid getting committed to projects you’d just as soon leave alone, is to buy yourself time — in other words, never answer immediately after the request is proposed.
Six Per Day: Pick six (not more, and not less) of your high-priority, doable tasks and do them every work day. Where will you get the most traction on the things that matter to you most? If you pick the items of utmost importance to accomplish each day, think of where you will be in just a few weeks of productivity!
Let It Go: Being overwhelmed is often a product of staying after success for a long time, not realizing that you need at least one (or, preferably two) days off per week. Think of your mind as a knife: if your mental blades are dull and rusty you can’t be very effective.
We hope you find some of these tips helpful in reducing your stress load and prioritizing your responsibilities. Be Well!
Tags: exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, health, money, must, Nutrition, office, overwhelmed, overwhelming, priorities, prioritization, relaxation, requirements, responsbility, responsible, stress, stressed out, stressing, tasks, to-do list, wellness, work
Posted in Corporate Fitness, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Strength Training, Travel Health Tips | No Comments »
Monday, February 8th, 2010
Like many so-called ‘desk jockeys,’ the majority of your work day likely requires you to stare at a computer for a living. While your brain is no doubt working hard on the job, your body is essentially in idle mode for 40% of your day, every day. And, when you include sitting in traffic, meals, and the (hopefully) eight hours of sleep you should be getting, your body could be sedentary for as much almost 85% of your day!
You're tired of being tired at the office...
Many large companies are creating full-scale fitness centers on-site for their employees to exercise, but even today, most workers aren’t lucky enough to have a fully equipped fitness facility at the office. Even without the fitness center, it is absolutely crucial to find ways to fit in fitness during the workday, as an increasingly important strategy in the “battle of the bulge.”
Given that many of you spend a big chunk of their waking hours at work, your job certainly could be contributing to weight gain. People whose work is largely conducted while sitting behind a desk, such as secretaries, lawyers, teachers and many more, get little physical activity during the day.
So what can you do about it? Well, you wanna get moving? Deliver the mail! Mail carriers, not surprisingly, consistently top the list of most active workers, with 20,000 (or more!) steps per day. Custodians, restaurant workers, factory workers, construction workers, nurses, and emergency room doctors also get plenty of exercise during their daily work responsibilities.
If you’re at a sedentary job, you need to make it a point to get exercise during your leisure time. That’s especially important if you’re trying to shed pounds or maintain weight loss. People trying to slim down should aim for an hour of physical activity a day. Of course, finding time to work out during the morning rush or at the end of a long day isn’t realistic for many people. That’s why more of us should strive to fit in some fitness during the day!
...so start working on the move!
That doesn’t necessarily mean running a couple miles at lunch. Instead, look for small, but consistent, opportunities to move during the course of the workday. A few simple, but effective suggestions: hold informal meetings during a walk outside; use the farthest restroom in your building; take a few flights of stairs during your coffee break.
Even standing and pacing in place while talking on the phone helps. So does walking down the hall and talking with a co-worker instead of sending an e-mail. Wearing a pedometer can help you track your progress.
Depending on the size of your company, ask your human resources department about an office gym, holding some fitness classes, or providing incentive programs to help employees get in shape. Increasingly, companies are realizing that healthy workers mean a healthier bottom line — so workplace fitness becomes a win for everybody. When employees are healthy, it’s well-documented that health-care costs are lower, sick days are fewer and productivity increases.
Any activity that you can complete on the move (which otherwise would have been completed sitting behind a desk) will help you get more fit in the long run! Even if it is in small increments, fitness involves movement; any sort of movement you can add to the sedentary office routine will affect you in a positive way! Be Well!
Tags: corporate wellness, costs, employee, exercise, fat, fat loss, fit, FItness, health, health care, healthy, Nutrition, office, weight, weight loss, wellness, workplace
Posted in Cardiovascular Training, Corporate Fitness, Fitness Tips, General Fitness, Nutrition, Strength Training, Travel Health Tips | No Comments »
