Is Yoga Good Or Bad For You?

I've been asked many times if Yoga is good or bad for you.  For the continuing eduction requirements for my ACE certification I took a Yoga instructor course. I learned a lot.

I just wrote an Enzine Article called "Is Yoga Good Or Bad For You" it's a pretty in depth article.

I share a short history of Yoga. The different branches of Yoga. A few different kinds of Yoga and their focuses. I share precautions to take so you don't get hurt practicing Yoga and alert you to a few poses that cause problems for a lot of people.

If you want to learn some great information about Yoga please use this link to see the article. It's a really good one...

http://ezinearticles.com/?Is-Yoga-Good-Or-Bad-For-You?&id=5169659

                              You can also listen to it on my podcast   http://lynnhahnpodcast.libsyn.com/

Your fitness expert

Lynn     www.getrealfit.org

Exercise Balls Can Be A Good Way To Get Some Exercise At Work

Working on a computer all day can really put a dent in your fitness goals. Studies show that the exercise you get between exercise sessions is just as important as your scheduled workout.

Having an exercise ball as your part-time chair at the office can do wonders for your core body and your posture. You can also use it to do wall squats and such. If you have any back issues check with your doctor before you try using a ball for you office chair.

It's very important to take it slow if you decide to give an exercise ball a try. Your body is working pretty hard to maintain your balance when you're sitting on an exercise ball. your abdominal muscles and back muscles are active trying to keep you upright. They can tire easily if you haven't been strengthening them a few times a week during regular strength training workouts so starting out very slowly is wise.

I wouldn't suggest sitting on the ball for your full 8 hours. That's too much of a good thing. You could very easily over tax your muscles and get injured. Getting 20 to 30 minutes a day on your ball is a better plan. Start with a few 5 minutes sessions and then work your way up to a few 10 minute sessions. Having a good ergonomic chair for your primary chair is a better idea than relying on the ball.

Getting the right size ball is crucial. Your feet should be flat on the floor and your thighs should slope downwards rather that at a 90 degree angle. If your desk is 29-30 inches and you're of average height and weight a 65cm ball should be a good fit. If you're under 5'3" a 55cm ball might be more appropriate. If you're over 6'3" a 75 cm ball may be a better size.

There is some controversy about using a ball as an office chair and for most people with back issues it's generally not a good idea but for healthy individuals using a ball in moderation it can be a very useful way to add some exercise to your work day.


Your fitness expert

Lynn    www.getrealfit.org

If you'd like to use this post on your blog you can get it from Enzine Articles free!

http://ezinearticles.com/?Exercise-Balls-Can-Be-A-Good-Way-To-Get-Some-Exercise-At-Work&id=5156419

Strength Training Is The Number One Way To Slow Down The Aging Process

Aging starts at birth! At the age of about twenty-five you start to lose muscle mass. It's up to you to slow down that process by strength training. Strength training is the number one action on my how to slow down aging list.

Most people start losing a significant amount of muscle mass at the age of fifty. It's almost 4 times the amount you lost when you were twenty-five. There's a term for it, sarcopenia. Strength training becomes a must at this age if you want to slow down the aging process.

Muscle mass is very important for your well-being. It's active tissue so it burns calories. Muscle mass also makes you strong and independent.

You need to make a few changes when you do strength training after the age of fifty. Your joints are more prone to injury when you're older. You lose elasticity and moisture in your joints so they get injured more easily than when you were younger. Taking the amount of weight you lift down a bit is very important.

I'm not a big supporter of body building so I do not encourage my clients to lift heavy weights even when they're young. I am a big believer in moderation. When you're young a moderate amount of weight for your larger muscles for most women is between 10 to 20 pounds. As you age keeping your weights at 10 pounds for your larger muscles is what I suggest.

Older women need to eat a little more protein. You need that to help your body deal with the aging process. If you add strength training to your weekly schedule eating a little more protein is needed to help you build muscle. The average woman needs about 5 ounces of protein per day. Taking that to about 5.5 ounces is a good plan.

One thing you need to be careful about when having that little extra protein is to make sure you get your needed liquids. Protein can dehydrate you. Your body uses more fluids to digest protein than it does carbohydrates so you need to drink more fluids to avoid getting dehydrated. You can become constipated if you eat too much meat so try to vary the types of proteins you use.

When you do strength training you use glycogen for fuel. You have a limited supply of that fuel. It's important to keep your strength training sessions under an hour. That's about the amount of time it takes to use your glycogen storage. If you go past that time your body will need to find glycogen from somewhere. It generally breaks down your muscle mass to create glycogen. That defeats the time you spent building muscle.

You also want to strength train every other day. It takes about 48 hour to replace your glycogen storage and you build muscle on your rest day so you need to have a rest day.

Keeping your muscle mass is one of the most important thing to do to slow down the aging process. If you strength train every other day, keep your sessions under an hour, and use lighter weights you should be strong and able to enjoy your "golden years".

Your fitness expert

Lynn    www.getrealfit.org

If you'd like to use this post on your blog you can get it from Enzine Articles free!

http://ezinearticles.com/?Strength-Training-Is-The-Number-One-Way-To-Slow-Down-The-Aging-Process&id=5130244

You Are Beautiful

Women are so great! We come in many sizes and colors. I struggle with the pressure that's put on us to have ripped abs and perfect hips.

I see a lot of my fellow fitness folk pushing the six pack abs and the "be skinny in 10 days" promise and it saddens me...well it actually makes me mad!

Women don't have to have perfect hips and ripped abs to be beautiful, valuable or even healthy. If you're born with the type of body that easily acquires ripped abs and you have small hips great. If not, so what!

I believe in becoming the best you can be. That's why I called my company "Get Real Fit". I wanted to support women in being who they are and becoming the best that they can.

I'm not fancy or flashy. I'm a small town gal but I sure know how to put together a good workout and I've done my homework so I have lots of great information to share. The information is grounded.

I love the Ivory Soap commercials that show "real women" promoting their products. Those women are gorgeous! The are full figured and proud of it.

There are lots of girls that are developing eating disorders and low self esteem because they want to be what is being pushed off as beautiful. Being healthy is beautiful no matter what size or shape.

I had an eating disorder for many years because I felt I wasn't thin enough. It took a lot of hard work to overcome that problem and I still struggle a bit with it. I have not gone back to the behavior but only because I work hard every day not to.

My rule is to eat as healthy as possible and get your exercise. Embrace your own beauty. I get pretty passionate about that. I can't help it. I've seen so many women unhappy with their bodies it truly makes me cry. I allowed myself to fall prey to that kind of thinking at one time and it's "stinking thinking".

Wanting to be healthy so you can enjoy your life and give to those around you makes sense that's where I try to get my thoughts focussed.

This is a subject that I could go on and on about. It's why I do what I do.

Your fitness expert

Lynn    www.getrealfit.org

What Are You Doing On Your Weekends?

Getting out with family and friends is so important. You can get in some great exercise going to fun functions. My husband and I got about 2 hours of walking done today. We walked to the Wings and Wheels festival in Wenatchee Washington. Then we walked around looking at all the cool airplanes and cars.

My favorite plane!

My favorite car! Hey it's a matching set...

The latest studies show that what you do in your spare time determines how fit you are. If you sit around all weekend after sitting around all week and only exercise for 30 minutes 3 times a week you will not get fit. I'm so glad they are finally talking about that. I've been singing that song for a long time. You do need your 30 to 60 minutes of exercise 3 to 6 days a week but you also need to keep moving as much as you can during the day. 

People were out with their kids and dogs. If you look around your town you should find some fun things you can do other than just going to movies...I am a movie nut but my husband and I  do walk around the mall before and after the movie. My husband is an exercise fanatic too. 

Sunshine, beautiful cars and planes and plenty of walking what a great day! 

Your fitness expert

Lynn    www.getrealfit.org

Why Can't I Lose Weight?

Often women over eat due to "wrong thinking". I had a friend when I was growing up that had extra weight she was struggling to lose. She always said that she didn't eat very much.

She really didn't eat very much at meals. She ate while she was cooking, while she was shopping and when she was bored.

One day when she was cooking, eating and complaining about her weight I pointed out to her that she was eating quite a bit while she was cooking our meal. Her answer was, "it doesn't count".

Her thinking was that the only calories that count were the ones she ate at meals. The sampling at the store, tastes while cooking and little bites while bored didn't count toward her daily calorie intake.

The interesting thing was when I started working with clients I saw that she was  not alone in her thinking. When my clients would journal their food it looked like they weren't eating enough. When I asked them if they tasted food while they cooked, took samples at the stores and if they took little bites of food when they were bored the response was, "am I suppose to write that down too?". "Yes!" would be my reply.

All the food you put into your mouth counts as your daily intake. Your body doesn't know if you're sitting down for a meal. It just knows that there's food coming in and it needs to burn it or store it.

I realize tasting food while you're cooking is needed sometimes but keeping it to a minimum and really just tasting the food is important. Those calories do count. Chewing gum while you cook can help prevent the extra nibbling that goes on when cooking.

Next time you're at the store and you're offered a sample think twice! Ask yourself this question," do I really want to add this to my days calories?". If you do then help yourself but know that you need to eat a little less at your next meal.

All the food you put in your mouth does count. Being aware of that could help you lose the extra pounds you want to go away.

Your fitness expert

Lynn      www.getrealfit.org