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Benefits of Staying Active as a Teenager

January 26, 2011 By Isaac Leave a Comment
Sad overweight or fat girl

Sad Girl

In these times of easy communication and video games that take on lifelike forms, it is still vital to know that there are benefits to staying active as a teenager.

There will not be many teenagers around that have not at least got one super hi-tech gadget. Be it an IPhone or a WII or even an Xbox Kinect, there is a good chance that any teenager you see in the Western world has one of them. The problem with them is that they do not encourage an active lifestyle.

Truth be told. The latest video games, like the WII, the Kinect and the Playstation´s Move, do encourage a little bit of activity in your living room or bedroom. They come at a time where kids all over the world are getting more and more obese and this is largely due to the fact that healthy lifestyles are not taught anymore to children.

Most people in their 30´s or 40´s will remember playing outside on the street as soon as homework was done. The balls, skip ropes, hula hoops and Skippy balls all came out of the garage and we were exercising like there was no tomorrow. Of course it was never seen that way as it was fun and good to be playing with friends, but it was a very good and healthy exercise.

Nowadays a 15 year old probably has more friends that live 1000 miles away than that they have friends on the same block of the street. IPads and IPhones as well as online gaming have made it (too) easy for them to stay in touch with people from all over the globe. Most it will be gaming related and it will all be done lying done on the sofa or on the bed.

This of course goes with the not so healthy diets that have been the norm over the last decade or so and it is easy to see why teenagers nowadays are not the vibrant kids anymore that they used to be.

Now is a good time to start with some health and fitness advise, because when they are growing up more it will be even harder to change their patterns. If there is a need to play a video game, make sure it is a new generation game that encourages moving around. This does help burn calories and it will help with muscle growth. Try to get the teenager out and about. It does not matter if it is a walk to the store or a bicycle ride to see a friend, anything helps. It is always good to try and instill some daily routines that help with the circulation of the blood. This could be some walking or stair climbing which can easily be done for 5 min per day.

There is nothing worse than finding out a teenager has a health problem, but trying to do something about it might be just as hard. It is very well possible that the parent will need to help and become more active too, just to make the activity a bit more fun to do. There is a good chance there is some green around the house, so take a ball and play “catch”. Even though this is still limited exercise and it will not improve the teen’s fitness that much, it will get some fresh air in the lungs and help burn the calories of the meals down.

Boy and Girl Teenagers on Bikes

Boy and Girl Teenagers being Active on Bikes

Your teen will almost immediately become less lethargic and more active and there is a very good chance that the appetite will become a lot better too. Not just for more food, but also for more healthy food. These are just some of the benefits of staying active as a teenager, but there are many more.

One of the most important benefits, if not THE most important one, is the fact that there will be interaction. Be it with a kid from the neighborhood or with someone at the fitness club or sport school. This is vital for the development of “normal” interacting between your teenager growing up and other people. You will give yourself a chance to get out as well, because what is nicer than cheering your son or daughter on in a sports event. Now, it might not even go that far, but there are many sports hero’s that did not pick up a sports attribute till they were in their late teens.

As you can see, not only the health and fitness part of the life of your teenager daughter or son could change with some activities, but their social and economic life as well. These are some of the most welcome benefits of staying active as a teenager and should never be understated.

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Staying Active in Old Age

January 18, 2011 By Isaac Leave a Comment

Growing older shouldn’t mean growing inactive – even in old age it is very important to remain as active as physically possible. No matter what your age or current state of health, exercising is a necessary and important part of healthy aging and as long as you are not at a high risk for injury, most types of exercise will still be suitable for seniors, especially those who are younger and/or have been physically active for most of their lives. Even seniors with physical impairments can keep active in order to remain healthy and happy.

Being inactive can cause elders to lose ground in four areas that are fundamental for staying healthy and independent: strength, balance, flexibility, and endurance. Different exercises can help elderly citizens maintain and even restore a degree of functionality in these four key areas.

There are multiple types and categories of physical exercise, each with its own benefits:

Cardiovascular: as the name indicates, cardiovascular exercises are good for your heart – they get the blood pumping and increase your heart rate

Good examples of cardio exercise: swimming, walking, light cycling, hiking, golf, water aerobics

Strength Training: improving the conditions of your muscles and bones can make daily activities easier and keep you mobile longer

Good example of strength training: tai chi, yoga, pilates, stretching often

Balance Training: exercises in this category are particularly important for seniors are they can improve muscle strength and prevent falls; additionally, the healthier and more physically fit your body, the less severe the impact of a fall will be.

Good examples of balance training: resistance training with light weights, weight machines, resistance band stretches

Besides the commonly espoused benefits of exercise, recent studies show that seniors who remain active after the age of 70 are less likely to experience age-related declines in mental functioning. Many studies have shown a strong correlation between physical activity in old age and reduced mental impairment, but clearly it is important not just to be active but to remain active as we age.

Additionally, some studies have even shown that exercise can reverse some of the effects that aging has on the brain’s capacities by creating new brain cells – research is still underway in this area, but it is possible that exercising could improve mental abilities in seniors.

The benefits of exercising extend far beyond the well-documented medical and health improvements – exercising can improve your ability to keep up with younger family members and grandchildren and can keep you more active in your community by increasing your mobility and energy level. Whatever your reason for staying active as you age, actives seniors will see varied benefits that positively impact all aspects of their life.

As with all health related concerns, consult a doctor before beginning an exercise regimen as they will be better equipped to recommend fitness routines and exercises that will suit your needs.

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A Startling Fact About the Benefit of Physical Activity

January 18, 2011 By Isaac Leave a Comment

How do you invest the least amount of time, and witness the greatest benefit of physical fitness? The answer to this question just might surprise you.

Most individuals are unclear of how powerful exercise really is. Too many people concentrate on all the work that goes into being physically active, and fail to pay attention to the benefits of exercise.

The benefit you reap from physical fitness programs far out weighs any investment of exercise time. As a matter of fact, the benefit of physical fitness can be realized with only a few short minutes each day of physical activity. It really does not take much time before you witness fitness results.

After realizing what a small amount of exercise can actually do for you, I am sure you will quickly put on your workout gear and become active.

So how exactly can you benefit from a regular, consistent, time efficient physical fitness program?

To realize how powerful staying active is you must know exactly how important the benefit of physical fitness really is.

Both your mind and body are positively affected by consistent physical exercise. First off, regular exercise can decrease your body fat, decrease your risk for heart disease, decrease blood pressure, and cholesterol. Secondly, your muscle strength and endurance will increase with regular bouts of physical activity.

As far as your mind is concerned, consistent exercise can decrease depression, and increase your self esteem. Thoughts of complete wellbeing can result from physical activity.

As mentioned, increasing self esteem is another reason why physical fitness programs are so crucial. Want to improve how you feel about yourself? Become more active, and reward yourself with the benefits of physical fitness.

As you can see, the benefit of physical fitness is surely powerful.

You are probably wondering if it is necessary to spend 5 hours a week on physical exercise. The answer is absolutely no. Even small amounts of exercise each day will enable your to see physical benefits. In other words, no hanging around all day in gyms is necessary for maintaining a physical fitness routine.

In order to reap the benefits of physical fitness all you really need to do is spend less than 1 hour a week being active. Break it down into 10-15 doable minutes each day. You can even break it down into 5 minutes in the morning, and 5 at lunch. Now 10 minutes out of your day for the benefit of physical fitness is worth is, isn’t it?

The key is to stay consistent. Some activities that will keep you physically active are housework, walking, gardening, biking, weight training, playing ball with the kids, and even parking at the furthest part of the parking lot.

You can always start easy, and stay consistent. Consistency delivers results!

For those who do not realize the benefit of physical fitness, read closely. For as little as 60 minutes a week, you will do your health, fitness, and quality of life tremendous benefit.

The benefit of physical fitness is absolutely overwhelming. Therefore, the small amount of time it takes to do is a drop in the bucket compared to what your will receive. Do yourself a huge health favor, and get on the best fitness program.

Protect your exercise results from all the fitness fiction swirling around by reserving your free subscription to the Wellness Word multimedia fitness newsletter.
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The Benefits of Staying Active as We Age

January 18, 2011 By Isaac Leave a Comment

There are a lot of people out there who believe that they’re now too old or too frail to exercise, or that they’ll injure themselves, if in fact, they do begin to work out in any way. In fact, the opposite is actually true. If you’re are over the age of say, 50 and considering exercising on a regular basis, you should know that you do far more harm to yourself by leading a sedentary lifestyle, than you could ever do exercising, properly that is.

As we age, we lose muscle mass. Over time, if we don’t maintain our muscle mass or add to it, we lose mobility. From there, it’s a vicious cycle; we feel too weak to walk, so we tend to not work out, and eventually, we lose all of our mobility. In addition, the continued movement as we age, keeps the mind active as well. Physical fitness leads to mental fitness.

Ideally, you want to prevent this from happening. However, even if this negative transformation has already begun, you can regain your mobility and mental aptitude by exercising on a regular basis. This doesn’t mean that you have to put in hours at the gym, banging away at weights. It doesn’t mean that you have to walk six miles a day, or climb a mountain using nothing more than your finger nails and determination. On the contrary, when it comes to weight training or resistance training, less is often more. With just 20-30 minutes a day of moderate exercise, you can regain your mobility and feel healthier and stronger than you have in years.

Of course, there are a number of health benefits that can be derived from exercise. Let’s have a look at a few of these benefits, and you can judge for yourself.

Look and feel younger Improved sleep Improved blood pressure Improved endurance Less chance of suffering a heart attack Less chance of suffering from a stroke Improved strength Improved flexibility More confidence

As you can see from the list above, exercise can have far ranging affects on almost every aspect of your life. If you’re just starting out, or haven’t seriously exercised in a long time, you should consider hiring a professional to help you along. A fitness and nutrition coach can do wonders to improve your diet and devise an exercise regimen that fits your lifestyle and goals.

It’s also important that you mix some stretching into your workout routine. No matter your age, stretching before working out helps prevent injuries. A good stretch, and warm up, will help get the blood flowing. It also prepares your body for the actual workout.

Exercise can actually help turn back the hands of time. With regular exercise, as least three times per week, you can actually repair most of the cardiovascular damage that accompanies aging. You can replace lost muscle, increase your energy, and feel great. Age doesn’t have to be a detriment to good health.

By now, everyone should know the importance of physical fitness and fitness training programs, but not very many of us recognize the true value of healthy meal plans as well. Irrelevant of the types of fitness training you use, be sure you have a balanced healthy diet to go with it.

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Jason J. Horsley is the CEO/Founder of eFitness for Life an online fitness and nutrition coaching solution that provides an affordable, convenient alternative to conventional, expensive dieticians and personal training. Through both eFitness for Life and Health and Wealth for Life, Jason is using his 15+ years in the fitness industry to help individuals across the globe not only look better, but feel better and live longer. The eFitness for Life team is made up of coaches/trainers around the US, working with clients throughout the world via the World Wide Web and the state-of-the-art eFitnessTracker software!

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