Exercise | GLUCOCARD YOU CHOOSE

Posts Tagged ‘exercise’

Wednesday Wellness Tip: Stick with Whatever Exercise You Like

Wednesday, April 20th, 2011

Sticking with exercise is the key in long term health for people that don’t spend a lot of time working out.

A recent study compiling data and information about exercise and mortality showed that a sedentary person’s risk for dying prematurely decreased almost 20% if that person started and sustained a walking program, 30 minutes of walking 5 times a week for several years.

Those results are not noted if the individual only continues the walking program for a short period of time. So, it is very important to pick an exercise that you can continue for the rest of your life. And having different types of exercise that you like to do is beneficial too.

Better Diabetes Management: Combining Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercises in Your Weekly Workouts

Thursday, September 16th, 2010

If you haven’t noticed, the last two posts were about the different health benefits from aerobic and anaerobic exercise. And here comes one last one for the week! I want to help you create a weekly workout plan that will maximize your health benefits, and that plan needs to include both kinds of exercise.

So, take a look at these lists and mix and match what you like to do and what you can plan into your schedule. If you already work out frequently in the week, aim to have 3-5 days of aerobic exercise and 2-3 days of anaerobic exercise.

If this is going to be your first effort at getting exercise into your life or if you haven’t exercised for awhile, it is definitely ok to start out slowly. You should fit in 3 days of aerobic exercise in a week but then keep adding in days of aerobic exercise until you work out 5 days a week. Then you can add in your two days of anaerobic activities.

Wednesday Wellness Tip: Benefits of Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercise for People with Diabetes

Wednesday, September 15th, 2010

Part of motivation to exercise is really understanding the benefits.

If you have never distinguished the differences between aerobic exercises and anaerobic exercises, take a look at these facts to learn just how important both types are.

Any type of exercise in general is going to improve your health, but planning your workouts throughout the week will give you better results. It’s like testing your blood sugars strategically in the morning, before a meal and two hours after your meal.

You could just check at random times in the day, but you learn more and can improve your health more if you strategically check.

Aerobic Fitness and Anaerobic Exercise: What are They and How Can They Help Your Diabetes?

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

When you hear the word aerobic exercise do you think about leotards and high kicks?

Or when you think about “lifting weights,” do you picture strong men pulling cars?

For someone that is not very familiar with the more scientific aspects of aerobic and anaerobic exercise, you might have comical ideas of the classic 1980s aerobics class instructor (a la Jane Fonda work out videos) and the classic football player throwing around weights and grunting.

That’s ok! If you’ve never heard what the differences are and what those words actually mean, you can learn right now!

Here are some basics that will help you understand the differences so you’ll be able to choose the right exercises for you.

Get a Jump Start on Exercise: Find the Right Fit for You with This National Fitness Database

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Need some help starting a workout program? Need instruction on how to exercises safely? Want to find an exercise class to join? Need a little kick of motivation to be more active? Want a personalized exercise program?

Here is a new tool that can help you with all of those things and more.

IDEA Health & Fitness Association is an organization for fitness and wellness professionals. The group is committed to improving health and fitness by preparing and equipping the professionals that help people like you and me exercise. This is good, because if they are helping me, I want them to know what they are doing!

http://www.ideafit.com/fitnessconnect

They have compiled tons of information from across the U.S. into an exercise locator database. Basically, you type in where you live and it pops out exercise classes, gyms, personal trainers, and more.

It is FREE and you can customize your searches to find just what you’re looking for.It provides detailed information so you can choose the trainer or class that fits your needs just perfectly.

Take a look at the database called Fitness Connect and be inspired to pursue a healthier, more active you.

Tags: Diabetes Management, exercise, Exercise Class Locator, Finding a Gym, glucose control, IDEA Fitness Connect, Losing Weight, Weight Loss Program, Workout Program
Posted in Blood Glucose Control, Live Well, Move More, Weight Loss | No Comments »

Wednesday Wellness Tip: Walking Your Way to Better Health

Wednesday, August 25th, 2010

Here is a walking program for beginners or expert walkers to get you moving and improving your health!

Walking exercise improves glucose control and cardiovascular fitness for heart health, and it helps with weight control.

To start, just get up and go! Walk 5-10 minutes at an easy pace. As that gets easier, add 5-10 minutes each week until you are able to walk 30 minutes without stopping.

Then start this program, walking each week’s target minutes at least 3-5 days a week. And remember, HAVE FUN!

Target Heart Rate

Maximum Heart Rate (beats per minute) = 220 – your current age

Walking rate = 60-70 % of Maximum Heart Rate

Example for 50 year old: 220 – 50 years = 170 bpm (that’s your max heart rate)

60 % of 170 bpm is 102 bpm and 70% of 170 bpm is 119

So you would want your heart to beat 102-119 beats per minute during the “target heart rate/brisk walking” minutes.

How to Check Your Heart Rate:

Find your pulse with two fingers either on your inside wrist or neck.

For 1 minute, count the number of pulses you feel.

The total number of pulses in exactly 1 minute is your current heart rate.

Find more information about starting a walking program with this great presentation from dLife.

Tags: Control Blood Sugars, Diabetes and Exercise, exercise, Exercise and Glucose Control, Manage Diabetes, Walking Program for Diabetes, Walking Workout, wednesday wellness tip
Posted in Blood Glucose Control, Weight Loss | No Comments »

Starting an Exercise Program: Manage Your Diabetes and Get Moving!

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

The hardest part of exercising is actually getting started! Lacing up your running shoes. Driving to the gym. Figuring out which weights to lift. Wheeling out your bike. Joining that pilates class.

Those first few steps seem to get pushed back in the day or side stepped for something “more urgent.” But your health is one of the most urgent things in your life!

Exercising, along with smart nutrition, is one of the best ways to control your blood sugar. Working out causes your muscles to become more sensitive to insulin, so your blood glucose can get into your cells better.

Your blood sugar level drops while you exercise but it also has been shown to stay lower after exercising. Think what a difference regularly exercising can make!

Recent studies have told us two new things about starting exercise:

The first: Individuals that are able to internally motivate themselves to start exercising and to put effort into their workouts have the best exercise and weight loss/weight maintenance results up to three years later.

The second: Most people need a specific plan or structured program to start exercising and to keep exercising. Knowing this, you can equip yourself to start the best exercise program for you that will give you the best health results!

Exercise While Losing Weight: Decrease Insulin Resistance by Maintaining Muscle Mass

Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

The message to lose weight has been thrown at you from all directions. And you’ve been repeatedly reminded to exercise, exercise, exercise. Both weight loss and exercise can be intimidating if you think of them as two big obstacles to tackle separately.

What about focusing on the two lifestyle changers together? This is exactly what clinical studies are telling us we should do.

From the recent findings of the "National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III," we’ve learned sarcopenia, or losing muscle mass, is associated with insulin resistance.

This means that the more muscle you lose, the more resistant your cells will be to insulin. Not good for people with diabetes.

This is where weight loss and exercise come together. For the average person trying to lose weight, the total amount of weight lost is made up of about 75% fat mass and 25% muscle mass. “Oh no!” you say. “I need to lose weight, but I can’t lose anymore muscle!” Resistance training to the rescue!

Burn Calories While You Celebrate July 4th

Thursday, July 1st, 2010

Many of you have plans to visit friends and family for this July 4^th weekend. And many of you are the ones opening your homes to family, visitors, neighbors, and friends.

Work some of these fun activities into your weekend, especially if you don't have time to exercise.

Even if you don’t have any plans for the weekend, there is still plenty of time to prepare to celebrate and burn calories all at the same time. Now that is a great way to have a good time with a bang!

Exercise/Activity	Duration	Approximate Calories
Socialize while standing at all your 4^th of July parties	45 minutes	200
Shoot hoops with the kids	45 minutes	260
Plan a picnic and bike to and from the park	1 hours	305
Challenge family or friends to bike races around the neighborhood	30 minutes	307
Canoe on a lake or down a stream	45 minutes	406
Vigorously clean the house and yard before family comes over!	2 hours	536
Cook up a storm for a party or get together	1.5 hours	290
Play fun lawn games like croquet and bocce ball	45 minutes	145
Dance away the night at a concert, in your backyard, at a festival, at a party, or with the family	30 minutes	173
Head out fishing at a nearby pond, lake, or stream	2 hours	390
Get a pick up game of touch football going	1 hour	615
Gather the family to play kickball at a park	1 hour	541
Round up the neighborhood for a game of slow pitch baseball or softball	1.5 hours	576
Splash around in the pool or at the beach	45 minutes	347
Grab some friends and play volleyball	1 hour	230
Participate in the town parade and walk along cheering	45 minutes	145
Take visiting family out to shop and see the sites	1 hour	183
Take some time to scrub a dub dub your car	30 minutes	173
Listen to an outdoor July 4^th band or orchestra concert	1 hour	240
Sit up on a blanket in the grass watching the fireworks	30 minutes	297
Clean up after guests leave	45 minutes	260

Tags: Activities, Burn Calories, Caloric Expenditure, Calories, exercise, Fun Activities, July 4, Outdoor Exercise
Posted in Live Well, Move More | 1 Comment »

Exercise for Everyday

Monday, June 14th, 2010

Did you know that some of your everyday chores can count towards your exercise for each day? Your body needs at least 150 minutes of exercise each week, but you can divide up those minutes many different ways during your day.

Exercise at least 30 minutes, at least 5 days a week
Exercise at least 22 minutes each day of the week
Pick a few days in the week to exercise 45 minutes to an hour
Plan your own combination of workout times throughout the week

Fit in planned workouts as well as daily exercises that accumulate through chores and normal activities. Here are two example days to show you just how easy it is to accomplish those health promoting minutes. Leave a comment to tell us how you get in exercise to your busy lives.