4 Excellent Reasons To Get Fit

4 Excellent Reasons To Get Fit

People have a hundred and one reasons why they don’t start working on get fitter today – most of which are not valid, including not having enough time, a common excuse.

Everyone can find the time to exercise and eat right. It is just the motivation to get moving has to be greater than the excuses not to.

If the not enough time issue is holding you back just start out with some form of exercise and tell yourself you will do it for 5 minutes. That 5 minutes will progress to 10 minutes, 30 minutes and so on as you begin to feel and see the benefits of your exercise plan.

Your long term goal should be to exercise for 30-45 minutes at least three times per week including some cardio getting your heart rate up to 70 percent of maximum predicted.

Your maximum predicted heart rate is calculated by subtracting your age from 220, then multiplying by 0.70

So for someone 50 years of age, the maximum predicted heart rate would be 220-50= 170 x 0.70= 119

A typical scenario is a visit to the doctor reveals some health related issue that triggers something in your brain to get your act together and start doing what it takes to get fit and live a longer healthier life.

You will also experience the following benefits from your get fit program:

Lose weight

To lose one pound of weight in a week, you have to burn 3,500 more calories than you eat in that week. Most people get in trouble with their weight because they are eating far too many calories for the number of calories they burn.

Excess calories are stored as fat.

If you break that 3,500 calories per week down into a daily amount – 500 calories – it is more manageable. Eat 250 fewer calories per day and burn off 250 more calories by doing some exercise.  Skip the latte in the morning or the can of pop loaded with sugar and you probably reduced your calorie count by at least 250.

Walk at 3.5 mph for an hour and you burn 298 calories. There is your 500 + calorie deficit with just those two small changes.

Following the above diet and fitness plan will help you lose a pound a week, but you will also have more energy, get toned and boost your self esteem.

Strengthen your bones

As you age, you start to lose bone density at the rate of 10% by age 50 and if sedentary, another 10% each 10 years thereafter. By including some weight training into your exercise program, you can help slow bone loss as you grow older. Weight bearing activities help in the remodeling of bone. Consider having your vitamin D level checked and taking supplemental vitamin D and calcium.

Women should be taking 1000-1500 milligrams of supplemental calcium per day.

If your bone density test reveals the development of osteopenia (thinning) or osteoporosis your doctor may recommend you take medication to help your bone harden.

Tone up muscles

With toned muscles, not only will you look better, but your balance will be better and you’ll maintain flexibility in your joints. Weight training can help build muscle which will then help you burn more calories even at rest. And if you burn more calories, you’ll have an easier time maintaining your weight.

Stronger muscles will help stabilize your joints and decrease your risk of falling especially as you age.

Reduce your risk for certain diseases

Your risk to develop heart disease, Type II diabetes and some types of cancers, including colon and breast, increases significantly if you are overweight and out of shape.

As your Body Mass Index increases, so does your risk of a heart attack or stroke due to narrowed or blocked arteries.

Narrowing of the arteries in your heart causes the heart to work harder and over time may weaken your heart muscle. The weakening of your heart can lead to congestive heart failure with fluid backing up into your lungs.

If your heart has to work harder to pump blood through narrowed passages, it increases your blood pressure, which will increase your risk of stroke, eye disease and kidney problems.

If you already have Type II diabetes and you are overweight, the effects of diabetes will diminish (or in many cases go away entirely) if you lose weight. At the very least you’ll have to take less medication and possibly get off medication all together.

Start taking action to get fit, today. Putting it off until you feel up to it or motivated may be too late.