Josh Perez Fitness

As an adult, you need to exercise and maintain a good level of fitness for your health–to manage your weight, prevent diseases, reduce stress, and be able to accomplish normal activities of daily living, from carrying groceries to cleaning the house.

Children need to be fit for the same reasons as you. Physical activity has the same benefits, including better sleep, and in some cases, improved behavior and attention. So how much is enough for your child?

Developmentally, 6 to 12-year-olds should have the ability to perform more complex movements, develop hand-eye coordination, and understand rules for games and sports.

Experts recommend about 1-1/2 to 2 hours of physical activity for school-aged kids, including moderate-intensity activities like swimming, bicycling, outdoor play, jumping rope, and team sports. Younger children should focus on non-competitive sports and gradually move into competitive sports as they get older.

As a parent, try to plan for 30-60 minutes of structured, chaperoned, planned activity while providing plenty of sporting and activity equipment in your home. Allow time (60+ minutes) for unstructured play as well.

So often we daydream and think of some far-off goal that we would like to achieve. “I want to have 6 pack abs for summer, or ” “I want to run a marathon”, “I want to be more efficient at my job,” etc. It’s not difficult at that point to break it down into short-term goals… practice some new exercises in the evening, run on the weekends, or arrive an hour earlier at work. You get in a groove and suddenly you’re on the way to reaching that long-term goal.

However, there are so many other goals where that groove is tougher to find once you get started. You begin to feel overwhelmed or discouraged as you think about the long dark road ahead.

This is where medium-term goals and a reward system can really make a difference. A good medium-term goal can keep the “fire” burning. For the examples above you might set a medium-term goal to train 15 longer than normal, or to run a half marathon, or create one new idea that will help your co-workers. Some may take longer than others, but bridging the gap between short and long doesn’t make the long dark road seem endless.

You still might get bored and not feel the same enthusiasm as you did early on, and that is why it’s important to have a reward system. So, if you have your long-term and short-term goals, and you’ve just come up with your medium-term goal, it’s time to reward yourself for progress. An example: if you achieve 90% of your weekly goals, take yourself out to dinner. If you achieve the weekly goals a total of eight times, buy yourself a new toy. If you achieve a medium-term goal, buy something for your house. For achieving a long-term goal, take a nice long vacation!

You don’t have to go into debt to reward yourself… but I think the little extra money you shell out to stay motivated will be worth it in the long run. You’ll gain more than just having washboard abs in summer, running a marathon, or being better at your job; you’ll gain all that comes with it! Your life will have become enriched along the way and your self-esteem will skyrocket because you’ve reached something you’ve always dreamed about!

Not to mention that you will have a healthier and better looking you!.

I thought this was a great article that should be seen by everybody in the fitness industry.

Who’s to blame for the obesity epidemic? The suspects are many, from television to schools to parents. A growing number of people are arguing that one culprit – the food and beverage industry – is getting off relatively easy.

Fashion magazines, infomercials, and our own past failures seem to place all of the blame on the individual. We’re constantly reminded that we’ve screwed up, or that we’re not good enough, or that being overweight is the result of some personal defect.

Personal choice and personal responsibility play huge roles in building a healthy lifestyle. Nobody can do it for you, but throwing up your hands, feeling powerless, and blaming other people is no answer. But recognizing the effect that food and beverage marketing can have on your psyche, attitude and actions is important too. When you recognize what they’re doing, you can more effectively fight back and make your own informed decisions.

“The food industry is changing, but slowly,” says Dr. Kelly Brownell, author of Food Fight, a look at America’s obsession with food and what we can do about it. “Dieters can become ‘media literate.’ This means being vigilant to and upset about the multiple layers of persuasion the industry uses to get them and their children to eat unhealthy foods (not only the obvious food ads on TV, but product placements in shows and movies, pricing strategies, etc.).”

According to Dr. Brownell, we should pay particular attention to:

• Portion sizes that are getting out of hand
• Value pricing that encourages consumption
• Food and beverage marketing to children
• The presence of sugar (a 20 oz bottle of Coke has 15 teaspoons)
• Lifestyle choices that promote overeating, such as television and eating out
• Gaining easy access to healthy food

A good place to start looking at is in school. Many of us would be shocked to learn just how sugar-packed and calorie-laden school food really is. Menu choices are often very limited and surprisingly unhealthy. Faced with these choices every day, it’s no wonder more than 15% of teenagers are overweight. They can’t win this fight on their own. You have to help your schools make choices for them. Talk to your school boards and principals. Ask that soda machines be removed and that menus follow USDA nutritional guidelines.

Says Dr. Brownell, “School systems all around the country are taking on this issue, first by getting rid of soft drinks in vending machines. This movement is growing and will probably be joined soon by more organized efforts to get rid of unhealthy snack foods, improve school lunches, and increase physical activity.”

At home, it’s important to think critically about what you’re eating. People make mistakes all the time, thinking that they’re eating healthy when they’re really not. Mainly, it’s because they’re not paying quite enough attention. For example, Dr. Brownell cites parents giving their kids “sugared drinks with fruit in the name or sports drinks, thinking kids are getting something healthy,” is a common mistake, along with “eating whatever is in a bag, box, or bottle, thinking they are having just one serving,” when it could easily be 2, 3, or more.

It’s never too late to start. In fact, today you can take a few simple steps to make your kitchen healthier. Dr. Brownell suggests starting by immediately throwing out “soft drinks, sugared cereals, high calorie snacks, and almost any product with a cartoon character or celebrity attached.”

The food and beverage industry is a formidable foe. While the “5 A Day” vegetable and fruit program gets $2 million to promote its message, the Altoids mints brand alone is free to spend $10 million. With so much money and so many resources behind them, it’s easy to see how this could affect your food choices.

There are many tactics at your disposal to ensure a refreshed and invigorated feeling when you arrive. Believe it or not, nutrition is pretty basic. Step No. 1 – drink plenty of water. Dehydration can cause fatigue and make you feel just plain lousy. Yes, this will mean more rest stops and bathroom breaks. Trust us, it will be worth it in the long run. As a special note, alcohol causes dehydration. Drinking alcohol on the plane (or even the night before your trip) is not the wisest course of action. If you do order a glass of wine or two, make sure to match every drink with an extra cup of water.

Try eating an extra-healthy meal the night before leaving. Your body will be better prepared to handle the rigors of traveling. Load up on foods you think you might be skimping on during the trip, such as fruits and vegetables. Don’t go overboard on the calories; just make sure you’re getting as much out of your meal as you can, nutrient-wise.

We all know that rest area food and airplane meals aren’t so great. Either they taste horrible, or are so loaded with the bad stuff (fat, grease, sodium) that you know you’ll be doing your body a disservice by consuming them. So what can you do? Bring some food with you! That doesn’t mean packing an oversized cooler (although you can if you have room in the car). It means bringing small, easy to pack, easy to eat, nourishing foods. Items such as nuts, fruit, energy bars, granola, or raw veggies are simple snack ideas. Individually wrapped items are especially useful when traveling. Pull one out, munch down, and at the next stop, pitch the wrapper (in a trash can of course).

It’s key to eat at regular intervals throughout the day. Don’t skip meals just because you’re “making good time.” You’ll need the energy. When it comes down to it, use your head. Try to eat as healthy as you can, just as you would any other day.

1. Maximal Heart Rate – This formula does not take into account fitness level, medical conditions, etc. It is a good average but may be less accurate than other methods. Let’s use a 40-year-old as an easy-to-calculate example:

220-age= Maximum heart rate (the fastest your heart can beat)

(220-40=180 MHR)
60%-80% of this max is your THR zone:
60% of max: 180 x .6 = 108 beats per min,
80% of max: 180 x .8 = 144 beats per min.

Therefore the TARGET HEART RATE range for a 40-year old, working at 60-80% (up to 85% for very fit people) of his/her max heart rate is 108-144 beats/min.

2. The Karvonen Formula – This formula is one of the most effective methods used to calculate your target heart rate. It factors in your resting heart rate (RHR), which is a good indicator of your state of fitness. You’ll need to determine that number by doing the following:
Prior to getting out of bed in the morning, take your pulse on your wrist (radial pulse) or on the side of your neck (carotid pulse).
Count the number of beats, starting with zero, for one full minute.
To help assure accuracy, take your resting heart rate three mornings in a row and average the 3 heart rates together.

((MHR – RHR) x Intensity) + RHR = Target Heart Rate

For example, Linda is 40 yrs old, has a resting heart rate of 75 and is just beginning her exercise program (her intensity level will be 50-60%)*.

220-age = Maximum heart rate (220-40=180 MHR)

MHR-RHR= 180-75 = 105

Linda’s minimum training heart rate:
105 x .50 (Min. intensity) + 75 = 128 beats/minute

Linda’s maximum training heart rate:
105 x .60 (Max. intensity) + 75 (RHR) = 138 beats/minute

Therefore, as a beginning exerciser, Linda’s target heart rate range is 128-138 beats/minute.

High blood pressure is the wicked – and common – offspring of modern living. One single invention epitomizes why high blood pressure is so familiar in today’s world and is so easy to develop. That invention is the fast food drive-thru window. Fast food chains such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Jack in the Box, and In and Out, give us the majority of this disease. But it isn’t their fault, it is our own for making poor choices and enjoying the possibility of convenience.

While we can’t lay all blame for 50 million cases of high blood pressure at the feet of the drive-thru inventor, you’ll know everything you need to know about this disease by asking three drive-thru related questions:

Where are you? In your car. Sitting. Sitting around is a leading cause of high blood pressure. People who are physically active have a 20-50% lower risk of getting high blood pressure than people who are not active. You don’t have to be a marathon runner to benefit from physical activity. Even light activities, if done daily, can help lower your risk.

What are you ordering? Fast food. These menu items are usually high in sodium, low in vegetables and fruit, and super-high in fat – all problems for someone trying to avoid high blood pressure. A smart diet can drastically reduce your numbers.
Why are you even in the drive-thru? You’re short on time.

Time-crunched, hectic lifestyles contribute a great deal to high blood pressure. Stress is literally a killer. Lifestyle choices and stress reduction are keys to getting it under control.

Super Size Me is an Academy Award-nominated 2004 documentary film, directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. The film is closely linked to Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation, a book written somewhat earlier, that examines the impact of the fast food industry and the huge agribusiness companies on the health of the individual consumer. Spurlock’s film follows a 30-day time period (February 2003) during which he subsists entirely on food and items purchased exclusively from McDonald’s, and the film documents this lifestyle’s drastic effects on Spurlock’s physical and psychological well-being and explores the fast food industry’s corporate influence, including how it encourages poor nutrition for its own profit. During the filming, Spurlock dined at McDonald’s restaurants three times per day, sampling every item on the chain’s menu at least once. He consumed an average of 5,000 calories (the equivalent of 9.26 Big Macs) per day during the experiment.

You may have high blood pressure and not even know it. While 50 million Americans suffer from this affliction, 70% don’t have it under control. Another 45 million are at high risk of developing it. That’s a lot of people.

As gym members seeking a more suitable way of life, we all tend to get our sugar cravings. If your looking for something sweet, unwrap a stick of sugarless gum instead of a piece of candy.

A Glasgow Caledonian University study found that chewing gum can actually help diminish your body’s craving for sweets. More useful research showing that along with the gum chewing, repetitive jaw movement help increases blood flow to the brain, which will improve your focus and concentration.

Refer to my Fitness Products – Deals and Fitness Products – Store for your savings on all things fitness.