Healthier Living in Today's Complex World
For decades the mantra for healthier living was a balanced diet and exercise. This is still true today, but the type of exercise and food recommended has changed. Cardio and long-term endurance type exercise, which was the recommendation in the past, has been shown to cause shrinkage of the muscles and organs, such as heart and lungs, to reduce the workload on them during these extended periods. Then, when you require a burst of extreme exertion, in a panic type situation, the body lacks the needed reserves and could easily suffer a heart attack. Also, prolonged exercise causes the body to burn fat, which would appear to be a good thing. However, as soon as the exercise is over, the body wants to replenish the fat that was used up during the exercise and spends the next 20 to 24 hours storing more fat than was ever burned during the exercise. The result - a net gain in stored fat.
The new recommendation by the experts is: short, high intensity type exercises, such as three or four 2 to 3 minute bursts of very high intensity workouts (the type does not matter, whatever you prefer is fine), but exercising as if your life depended on it, with 2 minute rest periods in between. This will cause an anaerobic metabolism, as the body is unable to meet the oxygen demands of the high intensity bursts of exercise. It also means that the body starts using ATP, the energy stored in your muscles for use in panic situations. Then, when you stop exercising, the body will spend the next 20 to 24 hours trying to replenish the ATP used up, in other words, your body will build muscle tissue. The energy needed for this will come from burning fat stored in the body. So for the next 20 to 24 hours after high intensity exercise you will burn fat and build muscle tissue.
One Caution:Do not start this program at the "as if your life depends on it" level. The idea is to start at a level you are comfortable with (whatever that level may be) and then slowly, over weeks, or months, or even years (depending on your level of fitness when starting) increase the intensity until you reach the limit of your body's ability. Any exercise will do, including putting in your earpiece and dancing to your favourite tune, as long as you do it vigorously.
I can vouch for this from personal experience. When I stopped endurance type exercises and began high intensity ones 3 years ago, I lost 5 pounds the first week, then gained it back over the next two weeks. This was because fat was being changed into muscle tissue, which is heavier than fat. However, 1 year later I had lost 30+ pounds to reach my optimal weight and I have been staying at that weight for the last 2 years. The system is definitely working for me.
Of course, I also eat mostly non processed (and wherever possible organic) food to give the body what it needs and to avoid the toxic substances that are contained in many of the highly processed foods.
I also take vitamin and mineral supplements to make up for the depleted nutrients in today's food supply. Even organically grown food contains far fewer vitamins and minerals than in the past, due to the soil depletion and fertilization practices of modern-day farming. So supplementation is highly recommended to keep your body healthy and strong.
I will be posting more information on healthy living and what to avoid in today's drug and chemical filled marketplace, so stay tuned for more in future postings.
A word of caution: I am not a licensed Dr., Nutritionist, or health care specialist, so before implementing any drastic changes in your lifestyle, such as described above, make sure to consult a licensed Physician or health care professional as to the safety of such changes for yourself.
Till next time then, I hope you'll stay happy and healthy and that this information was informative and helpful.
If you'd like more information, visit my websites at easyestweightloss.com and
smoothyoungskin.com or call me at 641-715-3900 Extension 166229# and leave a brief message. I'll get back to you as soon as possible.
For more information visit my websites at easyestweightloss.com and smoothyoungskin.com or call me at 641-715-3900 Extension 166229# and leave a brief message. I'll get back to you as soon as possible.
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