After a long winter of reduced activity or inactivity you might be tempted to get outside and train as soon as the weather improves. You may also be tempted to exercise at the same level you did at the end of the last season. But such enthusiasm often leads to early season injuries. If you changed your routine for the winter, you need to get back into shape slowly. Here are some tips to keep in mind as you head out the door this spring.
*Slow but Steady. Don’t succumb to the weekend warrior syndrome. Try to get some exercise 3-4 times per week on alternate days. One of the best ways to get injured or sore is to go hard all weekend and do nothing during the week.
*Monitor Your Level of Exertion. Use the perceived exertion scale, the talk test, or the heart rate range to help you determine an appropriate intensity level. Stay at the lower end of the scale (11-13) and build up over several weeks.
*Increase Your Training Slowly. Increasing training (mileage, time or amount of weight lifted) more than 10 percent per week increases your risk of injury. To avoid this, increase your training gradually over the weeks.
*Avoid All-Out Efforts Until You Build a Solid Base of Fitness. Depending upon how much inactivity you had over the winter, it could take as long as 6 weeks to re-establish a solid fitness base. Start your exercise program with slow, steady aerobic sessions. When you add intervals or all-out efforts, make sure you allow enough rest and recovery (at least 48 hours) between those hard effort training days.
*Follow a Training Program and Keep Records. If you really want to build back up to optimal fitness, it helps to establish a training plan and stick with it. There are many training programs for all types of sports and having one is not only good motivation, but it helps keep you from doing too much too soon.
*Cut Yourself Some Slack. If you took the winter off, don't expect to be back to peak fitness in a week or two. It's ok to go slow and just enjoy being outside again. There's plenty of summer left, so don't worry about going a bit slower in the beginning.
*Train With Others at Your Fitness Level. If you can find a few people with the same fitness level and goals as you it can help kept you progressing at a good pace. Training with those who are farther along will only encourage you to overdo it, get injured or feel ‘behind’ in your training. Workouts with more fit people can be motivating and help you improve, but only after you have a good solid base to work with. Otherwise they can be harmful.
*Remember to Have Fun. Keep in mind that this is Spring Training which is a time for fun, light-hearted exercise. You aren't competing and you aren't burnt out yet. So just relax and enjoy your activity.
From Elizabeth Quinn,
Your Guide to Sports Medicine.
http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/conditioning/a/032204a.htm
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Thursday, March 13, 2008
How to Eat More and Weigh Less
It sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? Is it really possible to eat more and lose weight? A diet plan called Volumetrics suggests that this holy grail of the dieter is indeed possible.
Volumetrics is an eating plan developed by Dr. Barbara Rolls, a nutrition researcher at Penn State. Her discovery is that each day, in our efforts to feel satiated, we all eat about the same weight or amount of food. What this means is that if you choose to eat foods that are packed with calories (calorie dense), then you are going to gain weight.
Of course, the opposite is also true: If you consume the same volume or weight of less calorie-dense foods, you'll still feel full and satisfied and you'll also lose weight.
A food's energy density can be found by dividing the weight of the portion in grams by the calories in that portion. Look at your food labels: for example, one cup of Cheerios has 100 calories and weighs 28 grams. The energy density of a cup of Cheerios, then, is 100 ÷ 28 = 3.5.
Energy density is divided into four categories:
Very low energy density: 0 - 0.5
Low energy density: 0.6 -1.5
Medium energy density: 1.5 - 4.0
High energy density: 4.0 - 9.0
The goal of the Volumetrics plan is to eat less of — but not avoid altogether — the high energy-dense foods, while eating more of the very low and low energy-dense foods. That way, you can eat the same volume of food you always have (or even more), while maintaining or even losing weight.
Higher energy-dense foods include such items as chips, cookies, bagels, nuts, oils, and high-fat meats. Vegetables, fruits, skim milk, beans, and lean meats are all lower energy-dense foods.
Try calculating the energy density of some of your favorite foods to see if you can swap some less energy-dense items into your diet.
© 2007 Johns Hopkins University. All Rights Reserved. This article from Johns Hopkins University is provided as a service by Yahoo. All materials are produced independently by Johns Hopkins University, which is solely responsible for its content.
Volumetrics is an eating plan developed by Dr. Barbara Rolls, a nutrition researcher at Penn State. Her discovery is that each day, in our efforts to feel satiated, we all eat about the same weight or amount of food. What this means is that if you choose to eat foods that are packed with calories (calorie dense), then you are going to gain weight.
Of course, the opposite is also true: If you consume the same volume or weight of less calorie-dense foods, you'll still feel full and satisfied and you'll also lose weight.
A food's energy density can be found by dividing the weight of the portion in grams by the calories in that portion. Look at your food labels: for example, one cup of Cheerios has 100 calories and weighs 28 grams. The energy density of a cup of Cheerios, then, is 100 ÷ 28 = 3.5.
Energy density is divided into four categories:
Very low energy density: 0 - 0.5
Low energy density: 0.6 -1.5
Medium energy density: 1.5 - 4.0
High energy density: 4.0 - 9.0
The goal of the Volumetrics plan is to eat less of — but not avoid altogether — the high energy-dense foods, while eating more of the very low and low energy-dense foods. That way, you can eat the same volume of food you always have (or even more), while maintaining or even losing weight.
Higher energy-dense foods include such items as chips, cookies, bagels, nuts, oils, and high-fat meats. Vegetables, fruits, skim milk, beans, and lean meats are all lower energy-dense foods.
Try calculating the energy density of some of your favorite foods to see if you can swap some less energy-dense items into your diet.
© 2007 Johns Hopkins University. All Rights Reserved. This article from Johns Hopkins University is provided as a service by Yahoo. All materials are produced independently by Johns Hopkins University, which is solely responsible for its content.
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