Part 3. Keeping It Up, Stepping It Up

Already doing 2 hours and 30 minutes a week of aerobic physical activity? Good for you! Do

you want to gain even more health benefits from physical activity? Slowly add more time to your

weekly routine.

Strive to double your weekly activity time. Work to be active 5 or more hours each week. This activity level can lower your chances of getting breast and colon cancer. Read the next page to find out how to add more effort.

Gaining more health benefits!

Advice to follow:

To get more health benefits, add more time

of aerobic physical activity.

• Try to move from 2 hours and 30 minutes of

moderate-level activities a week to 5 hours or

more a week.

Adding more effort

Instead of doing only moderate-level activities, replace some with vigorous aerobic activities that will make your heart beat even faster. Adding vigorous activities provides benefits in less activity time. In general, 15 minutes of vigorous activity provides the same benefits as 30 minutes of moderate activity.

Have you been walking for 30 minutes 5 days a week? On 2 days, try jogging instead of walking for 15 minutes each time. Keep on walking for 30 minutes on the other 3 days.

Would you like to have stronger muscles? If you have been doing strengthening activities 2 days a week, try adding an extra day.

To add more effort, try some vigorous activitie

Aerobic dance

Basketball

Fast dancing

Jumping rope

Martial arts (such as karate)

Race walking, jogging, or running

Riding a bike on hills or riding faster

Soccer

Swimming fast

Follow one of these activity and then realize your health and fitnees.

Thanks and Regards

Part 2. Making Physical Activity a Part of Your Life

Here are 2 examples for adding more activity

1. You can do more by being active longer each time. Walking for 30 minutes, 3 times a week? Go longer—walk for 50 minutes, 3 times a week.

2. You can do more, by being active more often.

Are you biking lightly 3 days a week for 25

minutes each time? Increase the number of

days you bike. Work up to riding 6 days a week

for 25 minutes each time.

TIPS:

If you have not been this active in the past,

work your way up. In time, replace some moderate

activities with vigorous activities that take more

effort.

Congratulations! You are doing some regular

physical activity each week and are ready to do

more. You may be feeling the benefits of getting

active, such as having fun with friends, sleeping

better, and getting toned. Are you looking for ways

to do more activities at a moderate level?

Activities for stronger muscles and bones

Advice to follow:

Adults should do activities to strengthen muscles and bones at least 2 days a week.

Choose activities that work all the different parts of the body—your legs, hips, back, chest, stomach, shoulders, and arms. Exercises for each muscle group should be repeated 8 to 12 times per session.

Try some of these activities a couple of days a week:

•

Heavy gardening (digging, shoveling)

•

Lifting weights

•

Push-ups on the floor or against the wall

•

Sit-ups

•

Working with resistance bands (long, wide

rubber strips that stretch)

Tip: Some people like resistance bands because they find them easy to use and put away when they are done. Others prefer weights; you can use common grocery items, such as bags of rice, vegetable or soup cans, or bottled water.

Planning your activity for the week

Physical activity experts say that spreading aerobic activity out over at least 3 days a week is best. Also, do each activity for at least 10 minutes at a time. There are many ways to fit in 2 hours and 30 minutes a week. For example, you can

do 30 minutes of aerobic activity each day, for 5 days.

On the other 2 days, do activities to keep your muscles strong. Find ways that work well for you.

Part 1. Getting Started

Start slowly
“The employee wellness program
at my work just started a new
lunchtime walking program. Some
of us walk at a good clip, while
others move at a slower pace.
I get to be outdoors, and I feel
more alert on the days I walk.”

Thinking about adding physical activity to yourlife, but not sure how to get started? Sometimes
taking the first step is the hardest part.

If you have not been active in some time, start at a comfortable level and add a little more activity as you go along. Some people find that getting active with a friend makes it easier to get started.

Is something holding you back?

Think about reasons why you have not been physically active. Then try to come up with some ways to get past what is keeping you from getting active.

Have you said to yourself . . . ?

I haven’t been active in a very long time.

Solution: Choose something you like to do. Many people find walking helps them get started. Before you know it, you will be doing more each day.

I don’t have the time.
Solution: Start with 10-minute chunks of time a couple of days a week. Walk during a break.
Dance in the living room to your favorite music. It all adds up.

It costs too much.
Solution: You don’t have to join a health club or buy fancy equipment to be active. Play tag with your kids. Walk briskly with your dog for 10 minutes or more.

Feeling good
“I recently bought an exercise bike
at a yard sale. I get up early in the
morning and ride. It feels good.
Sometimes I can squeeze in only
10 minutes before I take off for
my job. Even 10 minutes is better
than not doing anything.”

What can physical activity do for you?
You may have heard the good things you can gain
from regular physical activity.
Check off which of these benefits you hope to get
from active living:

• Be healthier
• Increase my chances of living longer
• Feel better about myself
• Have less chance of becoming depressed
• Sleep better at night
• Help me look good
• Be in shape
• Get around better
• Have stronger muscles and bones
• Help me stay at or get to a healthy weight
• Be with friends or meet new people
• Enjoy myself and have fun

Did you know?

When you are not physically active, you are more likely to:

• Get heart disease
• Get type 2 diabetes
• Have high blood pressure
• Have high blood cholesterol
• Have a stroke

Build up over time

Start by doing what you can, and then look for ways to do more. If you have not been active for a while, start out slowly. After several weeks or months, build up your activities—do them longer and more often.

Walking is one way to add physical activity to your life. When you first start, walk 10 minutes a day on a few days during the first couple of weeks.

Add more time and days. Walk a little longer.Try 15 minutes instead of 10 minutes. Then walk on more days a week.

Pick up the pace. Once this is easy to do, try walking faster. Keep up your brisk walking for a
couple of months. You might want to add biking on the weekends for variety.

How much physical activity do you need each week?

Advice to follow:
Aerobic
•
Adults should get at least 2 hours and 30 minutes each week of aerobic physical activity that requires moderate effort.
•
You need to do this type of activity for at least 10 minutes at a time.
Strengthening
•
Adults should also do strengthening activities at least 2 days a week.
•
Strengthening activities include push-ups, sit-ups and lifting weights

Tip 10: Plan quick and easy meals ahead

Healthy eating starts with great planning. You will have won half the healthy diet battle if you have a well-stocked kitchen, a stash of quick and easy recipes, and plenty of healthy snacks.

Plan your meals by the week or even the month

One of the best ways to have a healthy diet is to prepare your own food and eat in regularly. Pick a few healthy recipes that you and your family like and build a meal schedule around them. If you have three or four meals planned per week and eat leftovers on the other nights, you will be much farther ahead than if you are eating out or having frozen dinners most nights.

Shop the perimeter of the grocery store

In general, healthy eating ingredients are found around the outer edges of most grocery stores fresh fruits and vegetables, fish and poultry, whole grain breads and dairy products. The centers of many grocery stores are filled with overpriced, processed foods that aren’t good for you.

Shop the perimeter of the store for most of your groceries (fresh items), add a few things from the freezer section (frozen fruits and vegetables), and the aisles with spices, oils, and whole grains (like rolled oats, brown rice, whole wheat pasta).

Cook when you can

Try to cook one or both weekend days or on a weekday evening and make extra to freeze or set aside for another night. Cooking ahead saves time and money, and it is gratifying to know that you have a home cooked meal waiting to be eaten.

Challenge yourself to come up with two or three dinners that can be put together without going to the store—utilizing things in your pantry, freezer, and spice rack. A delicious dinner of whole grain pasta with a quick tomato sauce or a quick and easy black bean quesadilla on a whole wheat flour tortilla (among endless other recipes) could act as your go-to meal when you are just too busy to shop or cook.

Tip 9: Limit sugar and salt

If you succeed in planning your diet around fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and good fats, you may find yourself naturally cutting back on foods that can get in the way of your healthy diet—sugar and salt.

Sugar

Sugar causes energy ups and downs and can add to health and weight problems. Unfortunately, reducing the amount of candy, cakes, and desserts we eat is only part of the solution. Often you may not even be aware of the amount of sugar you’re consuming each day. Large amounts of added sugar can be hidden in foods such as bread, canned soups and vegetables, pasta sauce, margarine, instant mashed potatoes, frozen dinners, fast food, soy sauce, and ketchup. Here are some tips:

• Avoid sugary drinks. One 12-oz soda has about 10 teaspoons of sugar in it, more than the daily recommended limit! Try sparkling water with lemon or a splash of fruit juice.
• Eat naturally sweet food such as fruit, peppers, or natural peanut butter to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Salt

Most of us consume too much salt in our diets. Eating too much salt can cause high blood pressure and lead to other health problems. Try to limit sodium intake to 1,500 to 2,300 mg per day, the equivalent of one teaspoon of salt.

• Avoid processed or pre-packaged foods. Processed foods like canned soups or frozen dinners contain hidden sodium that quickly surpasses the recommended limit.
• Be careful when eating out. Most restaurant and fast food meals are loaded with sodium.
  
• Opt for fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned vegetables.
• Cut back on salty snacks such as potato chips, nuts, and pretzels.
• Choose low-salt or reduced-sodium products.
• Try slowly reducing the salt in your diet to give your taste buds time to adjust.

Tip 8: Add calcium for strong bones

Calcium is one of the key nutrients that your body needs in order to stay strong and healthy. It is an essential building block for lifelong bone health in both men and women, among many other important functions.

You and your bones will benefit from eating plenty of calcium-rich foods, limiting foods that deplete your body’s calcium stores, and getting your daily dose of magnesium and vitamins D and K—nutrients that help calcium do its job.

Recommended calcium levels are 1000 mg per day, 1200 mg if you are over 50 years old. Take a vitamin D and calcium supplement if you don’t get enough of these nutrients from your diet.

Good sources of calcium include:

• Dairy: Dairy products are rich in calcium in a form that is easily digested and absorbed by the body. Sources include milk, yogurt, and cheese.
• Vegetables and greens: Many vegetables, especially leafy green ones, are rich sources of calcium. Try turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, kale, romaine lettuce, celery, broccoli, fennel, cabbage, summer squash, green beans, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, and crimini mushrooms.
• Beans: For another rich source of calcium, try black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, white beans, black-eyed peas, or baked beans.

Tip 7: Put protein in perspective

Protein gives us the energy to get up and go—and keep going. Protein in food is broken down into the 20 amino acids that are the body’s basic building blocks for growth and energy, and essential for maintaining cells, tissues, and organs. A lack of protein in our diet can slow growth, reduce muscle mass, lower immunity, and weaken the heart and respiratory system. Protein is particularly important for children, whose bodies are growing and changing daily.

Here are some guidelines for including protein in your healthy diet:

Try different types of protein. Whether or not you are a vegetarian, trying different protein sources—such as beans, nuts, seeds, peas, tofu and soy products—will open up new options for healthy mealtimes.

• Beans: Black beans, navy beans, garbanzos, and lentils are good options.
• Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and pecans are great choices.
• Soy products: Try tofu, soy milk, tempeh, and veggie burgers for a change.
• Avoid salted or sugary nuts and refried beans.

Downsize your portions of protein. Most people in the U.S. eat too much protein. Try to move away from protein being the center of your meal. Focus on equal servings of protein, whole grains, and vegetables.

Focus on quality sources of protein, like fresh fish, chicken or turkey, tofu, eggs, beans or nuts. When you are having meat, chicken, or turkey, buy meat that is free of hormones and antibiotics.