Chapter 5: Health and Fitness Tips
Despite the importance of living healthily, you don’t need to spend a lot of money to enjoy it. You only need the right information that’ll help you stay healthy and fit. This chapter will highlight and explain some simple but effective health and fitness tips that will improve your experience.
One of the reasons people get angry, frustrated, tired, and depressed is prolonged periods of inactivity. On the other hand, active people often feel energetic, experience a better mood, and enjoy a better overall life. So, even if you don’t have any reason to be motivated to stay active and participate in an exercise, remembering its impact on your mental health might turn the tide in your favor. Meanwhile, there are many cascading impacts of being mentally healthy, including excellent interpersonal and professional relationships. It also gives you the platform to demonstrate your best ability when you are required to perform.
Many people feel discouraged about regular exercise because they assume that it means that they have to hit the gym or run 25 km daily. On the other hand, there are countless lighter activities you can leverage, such as yoga, swimming, walking, and riding a bicycle. In fact, playing with the kids and cleaning up the house is a form of exercise. So, it isn’t until you squat double your bodyweight before you can stay active. Start your day with exercise to set you in the right mood for the rest of the day.
It is recommended that you only do strenuous activities such as sprinting and weightlifting three times a week. At most, it shouldn’t be more than five times a week. Let the remaining days be for lighter activity. This approach ensures that you’ll be able to continue the routine. Besides, excessive strenuous activities can have negative impacts on your muscles.
Maintain Ideal Mobility and Flexibility Levels
Normally, people in their 20s are supposed to be more flexible. Still, many individuals had lost a lot of flexibility during that period of their lives compared to when they were five years younger. For such people, it is unimaginable to think about how much tighter they would have become in the 4os and 50s. The good news is that you can turn things around if you are having issues with your flexibility. You can enhance the mobility and flexibility levels of your joint as long as you are willing to do it. At least, you should be able to touch your toes. Regular exercise will help you in this regard.
Leverage Flexibility and Mobility Workouts
If you’ll be able to improve your mobility and flexibility, you need to take deliberate steps. There are workout routines that can help you in this regard. For example, you can start your workouts with five to ten minutes of stretching. Ensure that you focus more on the tight areas during this exercise. You should also consider doing mobility and flexibility work on the days when you are less busy. This approach will enable you to improve faster and get in the groove quickly whenever you start the workout routine.
Studies keep pouring in that prove that strength training, including lifting heavy weights, offers multiple weight benefits. It increases energy levels, maintains weight, and enhances glucose metabolism. Therefore, there are more than enough reasons you should consider strength training. Note that you can use your own kettlebell, dumbbell, barbells, and bodyweight to strength train. Going to a gym can help you because you’ll find experts there.
Besides, you will find other people like you that are doing the same thing, and that will inspire and motivate you. Still, you can train in your house if you are focused and disciplined enough. It gets better if you can find a friend that will train with you. You’ll challenge yourselves, and the added competition will encourage you to do more. Note that the friend doesn’t have to be an expert trainer. As long as he or she is interested in staying fit like you, you have found the right partner.
The BMI calculator is one of the best ways you can calculate your ideal body weight. Indeed, some people feel that BMI can be misleading. Yet, unless a person possesses unnaturally huge muscles due to steroids, the BMI offers a reasonably accurate calculator of your ideal body weight. You should check it from time to time to evaluate how much weight you have lost or gained during a period. It’s not every time that it is obvious that you are gaining or losing pounds. Your mirror might not tell you the true story. Still, you can monitor your ideal weight by checking your BMI.
Keep Healthy Bodyweight and Bodyfat Levels
Diabetes, hypertension, and heart attack are devastating diseases no one wants to contract. However, the reality is that many people in the world today are living with these ailments. One of the risk factors for these illnesses is gaining extra fat. Therefore, you are doing yourself a lot of good when you are involved in activities that can help you maintain healthy bodyfat levels. Note that gaining extra bodyweight in the form of muscle enlargement can also have negative impacts.
Extra weight, whether muscle or fat, has to be carried around by your joints. So, it might start affecting your joint health in the long run, especially when you are growing older. It’s in your best interest to avoid gaining excess weight when you’re younger to avoid the repercussions in your old age. Stay healthy today for a better future.
A balanced diet is a meal that contains all the required nutrients in the right proportion. Our body needs a variety of nutrients to carry out its functions adequately. Note that every food group is needed by the body. You only have to be careful with the quantity you take. Some nutrients are only needed in small amounts. They are called micronutrients, while macronutrients are needed in large quantities by the body. You need to know the ones to eat more and the ones to consume less to maintain your health. For example, you should consume more protein and fewer carbs.