Healthy Exercise Tips

It’s important to warm up before exercise, but don’t forget to cool down too – it’s just as important. If you stop abruptly, blood and tissue fluids can remain trapped in muscles, preventing metabolic wastes and lactic acids from being flushed from the system and leaving you stiff.

Sleep might just seem like lying down, but a good sleep pattern benefits not only your exercise regime but your health in general. Most people need around 7 hours of sleep per night, getting maximum benefit from a regular sleeping pattern (going to bed and waking up at the same time each day), as your body can regulate itself efficiently. Sleep is a time of rebalance, allowing physiological and psychological rest as well as letting the body redistribute fluids and salts. It is claimed by some doctors that the human body can survive longer without food than it can without sleep.

If you’re starting weight training, it can be more beneficial to break your workouts down into smaller, focused workouts, toning and strengthened certain muscle groups each day. This allows each group a decent bit of attention and is even suitable for hectic lifestyles, as well as giving your muscles time to recover if you cycle your regime. Ensure you rest properly as part of your regime – this is when the body actually undergoes most adaptation, and means next time you work out, you’ll be ready and limber.

Make sure your diet gives you enough energy, protein and vitamins, as well as plenty of water. It is recommended that you visit a doctor before you embark on any major physical regime. Finally, don’t expect results overnight – resistance training can make fundamental differences to your body and shape, and this should take time. However, with enough time spent regularly and safely, effects are usually noticeable within a matter of weeks.

Beware of over-training. Less is often more, and if you drive yourself into the ground you can do yourself more harm than good. If your resting pulse is unusually high or you find yourself getting tired when you didn’t before, you should ease down your regime. What’s more, over-training can put you off exercising and dampen your enthusiasm – a little abstinence can strengthen your resolve, as long as it’s done for the right reasons. It’s rebalance, as opposed to complacence.

While regularity can help with your routine, it can bore those who yearn excitement – so why not shake things up for a bit of a variety in your workouts? Mixing things up can avoid reaching plateaux and make workouts more enjoyable. Try the following tips to add a little spice:

Sports drinks can aid your workout as they are designed to provide sufficient energy and hydration to allow you to train harder and for longer. An effective drink will be isotonic (consisting of the same mineral balance as the water your body requires) and replace the carbohydrates, water and salts lost during exercise. Some points to consider are: