by What are the 10 tips you can give me to stay fit : As much as we would all like to strive to live healthier lifestyles, with all of the advice out there it can be difficult to know which healthy lifestyle tips are worth trying.
As part of our effort to help make life a little simpler for you, we’ve put together some tried-and-true diet and fitness strategies for reaching your goals.
Stay Hydrated
Be it spin class, boot camp or any other exercise class – it is always essential to stay hydrated in order to maximize your workout and achieve the best possible workout. While any type of fluid could work as a source of hydration – don’t settle for any old thing just for this purpose!
Electrolyte-loaded athletic drinks may contain unnecessary calories; therefore, water should usually suffice until exercising for over one hour, according to Jackie Newgent, RD and author of “The Big Green Cookbook.” According to Health.com.au.
But, if you are engaging in high-intensity exercise for extended periods, sports drinks can provide essential replenishment with their mix of minerals, electrolytes, and sometimes vitamins.
For those seeking something with less caloric intake but still flavor, Newgent pointed out there are lower-calorie sports drinks available at local groceries that might meet their needs.
Find a Workout Buddy
Find someone you can exercise with to stay motivated, but make sure they will inspire rather than discourage. Make a list of all of your exercise-loving friends, then determine who fits this criteria best, says Andrew Kastor of ASICS Running Coach in Health:
Can your friend meet regularly to exercise together?
Are they supportive (rather than opposed) to your goals?
Will your workout partner be able to keep pace with you or push you beyond your limits during key workouts?
If you find someone that fulfills all three requirements, start planning fitness plans together immediately. However, even if there is no one near by who could serve as your workout buddy, other means may still exist for exercising with others.
As an alternative, visit your local gym or recreation center to gather more information on group workout classes, personal training sessions, or exercise-oriented groups. Or ask family and friends if they know of anyone looking for workout partners.
Stock Your Fridge with Healthy Foods
Fruits, vegetables and lean meats can go a long way toward supporting your fitness journey.
There are even plenty of delectable, healthy snack options to take advantage of, like hummus, grapes and walnuts, and apple slices with cheese.
Additionally, certain key ingredients could make reaching your weight-loss goals much simpler. When shopping next time, remember to add Newgent’s top three diet-friendly items in your cart:
Balsamic vinegar adds low-calorie flavor to vegetables and salads without increasing caloric intake.
Protein and fiber-rich nuts provide satisfying satiety.
Fat-free plain yogurt provides a creamy and comforting source of protein.
Greek yogurt makes an ideal natural, low-cal base for salad dressings and dips–or as an alternative to sour cream.” According to Newgent.
Relieve Those Achy Muscles
After an intense workout, your legs may feel tighter and sorer than expected.
Cold water immersion may offer relief from post-fitness aches in the form of ice baths. This involves submerging your lower body in an icy bath (50 to 59 degrees Fahrenheit; you may have to add some ice cubes if it doesn’t get cold enough), for 10-15 minutes after exercise.
“Top athletes often use massage therapy as a method to alleviate soreness after training sessions,” Kastor notes. Those preparing for important races should consider scheduling one to two massages every month as part of their recovery strategy.
Note that immersing oneself in cold water can result in increased breathing, heart rate and blood pressure as well as faster heat loss than in air.
Cold water may force the body to work harder, which may not be ideal if one has certain health conditions such as heart problems. Ice baths should not be taken by those suffering from any of the following:
Cryoglobulinemia, in which antibodies in the blood thicken in response to cold temperatures, is an uncommon but serious disorder.
Heart conditions, impaired circulation, open wounds, Raynaud’s syndrome (a condition wherein blood vessels constrict due to cold temperatures or emotional stress) and Raynaud’s disease are among those conditions associated with poor health and need medical treatment.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes both exist.
Cold temperatures could aggravate dysesthesia symptoms (when normal stimuli such as touch are painful or uncomfortable) and lead to urticaria or hives.
Before trying an ice bath, be sure to speak to a healthcare provider first in order to make sure it’s appropriate for you.
Curb Your Sweet Tooth
Cutting back on sugar consumption can help facilitate weight loss–individuals who consume less sugar typically have lower weights.
“To satisfy your sweet tooth without crossing over into overeating territory in late night hours, think ‘fruit first!’ said Newgent.
Enjoy a sliced apple topped with peanut or almond nut butter or try fresh fig halves spread with ricotta cheese for a delightful snack!
- How Else Can Reducing Sugar Be Beneficial?
- Limiting sugar, especially added sugars, may help with conditions like:
- Type 2 diabetes,
high blood pressure,
tooth decay
heart disease
Wear Comfortable Sneakers
Buy shoes that feel good: Kastor recommended purchasing shoes that were immediately comfortable when first trying them on.
Your feet swell throughout the day and settle down by early afternoon, so when shopping for sneakers it is wise to purchase when your feet are at their fullest size. Also make sure that there is enough space in each shoe to allow for movement of toes wiggle space but no more than necessary.
Kastor suggests that they should feel comfortable right off the bat, but will become even more so once you have covered 20 to 40 miles in them.
Pick Your Perfect Tunes
Running with music can help get your workout into gear and help find your groove. When choosing your playlist, think about what moves and inspires you – something that gives you energy or is uplifted you.
“I know several elite athletes who listen to what we would consider relaxing music, such as symphonic pieces, while participating in vigorous workouts,” stated Kastor.
Music during a workout has many benefits that are sure to make you feel better emotionally, improve performance and help increase oxygen consumption.
Know When To Weigh Yourself—And How Often
As soon as starting a diet or fitness routine, it’s natural to want to weigh yourself immediately. Newgent recommends doing this first thing in the morning before eating or drinking anything and before engaging in your daily activities.
If you’re wondering when is the right time and place for you to weigh yourself, set an alarm every week (ideally) and be consistent in taking measurements – don’t get discouraged by fluctuating weight results as weight changes are normal!
Keep Your Portions in Check
As part of a healthy eating regime, portion control can assist with weight management.
Portion control requires taking an honest and thoughtful approach to eating habits. For instance, if steak currently makes up more than half your plate, cutting its serving in half could help achieve better balance on your plate.
“Ideally,” advised Newgent, it would be optimal to aim to fill half your plate with either vegetables or a combination of both veggies and fresh fruit to ensure an array of proteins, fats, and carbs is consumed on an everyday basis.
Sip Slowly
Whenever possible, try drinking a glass of water between cocktails, according to Newgent. Doing this can help ensure that you remain hydrated and avoid feeling parched after each one.
Making water fun doesn’t need to be boring: “Make it festive by ordering the sparkling variety with lots of fruit wedges such as lime, lemon and orange in a martini or highball glass,” according to Newgent.
Plan Your Runs Ahead of Time
If you’re running in a 5K or 10K (or even just an ordinary run), or simply making sure your morning run goes as smoothly as possible, it is crucial to plan out what food to eat on race morning. Something nutritious yet easily digestible would be ideal!
Individual needs vary, but Kastor recommends starting the day right by eating something high-carb such as oatmeal with fruit or two pieces of toast with peanut butter or cream cheese spread on it.
Kastor suggests eating 200 to 250 (primarily carb) calories about 90 minutes prior to beginning a run.
Never worry about forgoing coffee on race day: According to Kastor, coffee helps improve athletic performances by making people sharper and providing extended energy levels.
Run Prepared
Make sure that when heading out on a run–whether on a track, trail, or during a race–that you bring along these essential items:
Use a watch or GPS tracker to log your total time spent running.
Bring along a music player (if available) and/or cell phone; both could prove handy if the rain arrives unexpectedly.
An ID bracelet that contains all your vital info may help.
When running in bright sun conditions, wearing sunglasses is recommended to reduce glare, decrease squinting, and release tension in your shoulders – giving an added performance boost as relaxation helps conserve energy during runs.
Don’t Stress if You Go Beyond Your Calorie Needs
An effective eating plan includes several characteristics. One such characteristic is staying within your daily calorie needs when selecting food and beverages to eat and drink. 15 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Healthy Eating for a Healthy Weight.
If you find yourself overindulging on calories one day, don’t be too concerned; remember it takes many calories for us to gain one pound of body fat and that “an off day does not usually result in significant weight gain,” noted Newgent.
What you do on the following days and nights after an off day is of paramount importance, especially as starvation and excessive exercise aren’t healthy solutions to an off day.
Whenever you veer off track, set yourself a personal reminder (e.g., on a sticky note or mobile device) so that when the next mealtime arrives you eat more mindfully and focus on keeping an exercise schedule healthy and on meal planning for home and on-the-go meals.
Add Some Spice to Your Food
Dieting can easily become routine, even when we load our diet with colorful fruits and veggies. But having spices, fresh herbs and citrus available for cooking purposes is one way to break out of this routine and expand our palates16
“It is amazing what adding some spice, herbs, lemon zest or lime juice can do to elevate a dish–and your diet,” Newgent stated.
Consider including some of the following spices in your cooking:
Cayenne Pepper, Oregano, Garlic Powder, Thyme Powder, Paprika, Tumeric Powder and Chili Powder should all be used together. Bay Leave should also be added for flavoring purposes.
Know When To Make Changes to Your Exercise Routine
If your weight plateaus or your muscles don’t appear fatigued after physical activity, it may be time to increase its intensity.
Take this into consideration if you decide to alter your running regimen: “Generally speaking, increasing the mileage by 5-10% each week for events of half marathon length or greater is recommended,” according to Kastor.
You should switch up your routine if it has become monotonous; whether that means using an elliptical, cycling, or exercising with a workout DVD repeatedly. While these methods of exercise can all provide great ways to workout, adding variety will only serve to benefit.
Alternate your workout sessions between HIIT, cardio and Pilates exercises so you have more variety during your week. Dedicate certain days/times specifically to different activities so as to enjoy more variety throughout your time spent working out.
Swap Out Your Shoes When Necessary
Though we know running shoes can start wearing out after covering 300 to 350 miles, many runners hold onto their favorite pair despite its wear-and-tear damage for too long – this could be detrimental.
Kastor notes that ultraviolet light can break down glue and other materials found within shoes over time, prompting it to be recycled even if your sneakers only have 150 miles on them but have been worn more than two years ago – they may already have begun decomposing and will require replacing soon enough.
Choose a Supportive Sports Bra
Understanding what to look for when purchasing a sports bra can be helpful, ensuring you choose an appropriate style based on the exercise activity you intend on undertaking.
Deena Kastor, American marathon record holder and 2004 Olympic marathon bronze medalist told Health: “For optimal performance in running sports bras, the ideal garment should have ample room in the chest area so your ribs and diaphragm can expand effectively while remaining form-fitting,” as Deena has found through personal experience and research.
Just make sure that the cup is constructed from soft compression fabric that feels good against your skin – look out for descriptions that use terms such as “breathability” and “compression.”
Relieve Those Side Stitches
Experienced exercisers know the feeling: A sharp pain just below the rib cage that often appears when exercising hard is known as “side stitch,” also medically known as exercise-related transient abdominal pain (ETAP).
Side stitches can be an extremely uncomfortable source of discomfort when they prevent you from finishing an exercise routine. Some suggested ways to help ease their ache include taking steps such as:
Deep breathing
Applying pressure directly on the area that hurts
Stopping Exercise
however, has proven the most successful approach for relieving side stitches.
Preventing side stitches from occurring altogether may also be possible; waiting two to four hours after eating or drinking large quantities may help, as could limiting how often your torso moves (or at least having support (e.g. a wide belt) during movements of that body part.
Fuel for Fitness
If you want to increase the intensity of your next workout, make sure you eat food that will give you energy and keep you going strong.
Start race day off right by starting your day with a high-carb meal to figure out which foods best suit your digestive system.
Try starting the day right with a whole-grain English muffin or bagel with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese for breakfast, followed by a well-rounded meal post-workout to aid recovery.
Kastor noted his ideal meal was one to two slices of French toast with fruit on the side, as its protein-to-carbohydrate ratio provided ideal recovery benefits.
Say Goodbye to Peer Pressure
Even if you’ve been eating healthily and exercising, staying on track may be challenging if your partner, coworkers, or friends don’t share your healthy eating habits.
If your partner enjoys pizza, consider ordering one with more veggies and less cheese – you could pair this meal with a fresh side salad to complete it!
At work, when it’s baked goods day, instead of bringing something too sweet for baked goods day, you could bring baked pears with cinnamon or mini fruit-and-nut muffins as alternatives to brownies and blondies.
Savor Your Carbs
At times, cutting back on carbs may help you reach weight loss. Before writing dinner rolls and chips off as possible sources of resistant starch sources, keep this in mind: brown rice, pumpernickel bread, and even potato chips contain resistant starch!
Starch has long been seen as an aid in weight management by keeping us feeling full for longer, meaning less snacking is necessary to feel satisfied.
What Is Resistant Starch?
“Resistant starch” refers to starches that cannot be broken down by digestive enzymes in the small intestine and therefore forms part of complex carbs, making up their composition.
Use Sunscreen for Outdoor Workouts
Outdoor exercise offers many health benefits, but with that comes exposure to harmful UV rays.
For maximum sun protection while still enjoying yourself in the sunshine, look for:
An SPF 30+ sunscreen should be worn during outdoor activity to provide adequate UV protection.
Lip balm with SPF 15 or higher should be chosen.
Be wary of sunscreens labeled “water resistant,” as these must undergo rigorous tests to evaluate their efficacy. Furthermore, according to FDA policy there are no such thing as waterproof sunscreens; eventually all will wash off and become ineffective.
Switch up your wardrobe by opting for an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) rating of 30 or greater; to meet Skin Cancer Foundation “Seal of Recommendation,” while traditional white T-shirts only have UPF 10 protection rating.
As the sun’s rays are at their brightest between 10 am and 4 pm, plan a pre- or post-work workout session to take advantage of this peak period.
Opt for Healthier Snack and Fast-food Options
Avoiding that 3 p.m. stomach growl can be difficult. While snacking between meals is fine, some options might be healthier than others – as often as possible try having fruits, veggies or snacks rich in protein on hand to tide you over until dinner time arrives.
However, if fast food is the only choice available to you, access its nutrition facts online before ordering anything. “Nearly every quick-service restaurant offers at least one healthful menu item,” according to Newgent; these might include salads, chili or grilled chicken among others.
Protect Yourself from Chafing
Chafing is caused by moisture and friction; to avoid another flare-up of this irritation, try anti-chafing products.
Anti-chafe sticks and moisture-wicking fabrics such as Nike, Asics and Under Armour’s quick-dry shirts may help, so save them for use during long runs or hard workouts when the chance of chafing increases.
Up Your Fiber Intake
Fiber, along with protein and healthy fats, is one of the essential nutrition elements to keeping you satisfied throughout the day. If you’re trying to lose weight, fiber can be your go-to ally!
As for adults, the ideal daily intake of fiber should range between 21 grams to 30 grams.
Work Out Consistently
Consistent exercise sessions throughout the week or on specific days can bring many advantages.
Researchers of a 2020 review discovered that for individuals with overweight or obesity, regular morning workout sessions were positively associated with weight loss experiences as well as creating exercise habits.
Acclimatizing to physical exercise may take time and practice; planning to workout at a set time or place can be extremely beneficial to your health.
