Is Moderation Truly Key?

When approaching diets and lifestyle habits, it’s tempting take an easy way out by saying “everything in moderation.” After all, nobody likes going on strict diets, cutting out their favorite salty or sugary treats, or adhering to a rigorous exercise regimen. But is the moderation approach actually of any benefit?

The fact of the matter is that while tasty treats like cakes and candies may seem harmless in small quantities, most of us already get our daily recommended dose of sugar and then some from fruits, juices, and processed foods. In fact, reading the nutrition labels on many of the processed and pre-packaged foods we eat may yield some surprising revelations, and not just when it comes to sugar.

On the exercise side of the equation, moderation seems to limit the amount of physical activity we think is sufficient, leading many to think that a brisk walk or light sessions at the gym is enough to bring about health benefits. While any exercise is certainly better than none, however, the occasional walk won’t lead to significant results if the desired effects are weight loss or improved heart health.

So if not moderation, what’s the answer? Well, here’s where common sense comes into play. Science has pointed out again and again that sugar is damaging, leading to long term health problems such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes among others. While it may be impossible to cut out sugar altogether, efforts should definitely be made to limit sugar intake to the daily recommended amounts or less. When it comes to exercise, a minimum of three times a week for an hour each day is recommended, but the real benefits become apparent when those numbers are increased.

Looking for some fitness-related reads? Visit our online library at www.fittango.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, and available on all your favorite devices.

Is Moderation Truly Key?

When approaching diets and lifestyle habits, it’s tempting take an easy way out by saying “everything in moderation.” After all, nobody likes going on strict diets, cutting out their favorite salty or sugary treats, or adhering to a rigorous exercise regimen. But is the moderation approach actually of any benefit?

The fact of the matter is that while tasty treats like cakes and candies may seem harmless in small quantities, most of us already get our daily recommended dose of sugar and then some from fruits, juices, and processed foods. In fact, reading the nutrition labels on many of the processed and pre-packaged foods we eat may yield some surprising revelations, and not just when it comes to sugar.

On the exercise side of the equation, moderation seems to limit the amount of physical activity we think is sufficient, leading many to think that a brisk walk or light sessions at the gym is enough to bring about health benefits. While any exercise is certainly better than none, however, the occasional walk won’t lead to significant results if the desired effects are weight loss or improved heart health.

So if not moderation, what’s the answer? Well, here’s where common sense comes into play. Science has pointed out again and again that sugar is damaging, leading to long term health problems such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes among others. While it may be impossible to cut out sugar altogether, efforts should definitely be made to limit sugar intake to the daily recommended amounts or less. When it comes to exercise, a minimum of three times a week for an hour each day is recommended, but the real benefits become apparent when those numbers are increased.

Looking for some fitness-related reads? Visit our online library at www.fittango.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, and available on all your favorite devices.

Is Snacking Making Us Fat?

It’s tough to pinpoint exactly when obesity became an epidemic, even tougher when it comes to childhood obesity, but general consensus within the scientific community points to sometimes in the early 1970s. So what was the turning point? Was there one particular event to trigger the epidemic? Some point to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, a government released guideline to what foods we should be eating, released around the time obesity started becoming the norm rather than the exception. Others, like diet guru Jason Fung, claim it has more to do with snacking.

In an article published on Medium, Fung outlines survey results from 1977, which outlined eating habits. Back then, the most people ate were three meals a day: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Comparatively speaking, by 2004 most people were eating six times a day, with some people eating as often as ten times per day.

The problem isn’t an increased quantity of food, per se, but an increase in how many of our waking hours we spend eating. Whereas once breakfast would be at 8:00am, dinner at 6:00pm, and no after-dinner snacks, people now eat well into the late hours of the night or even into the early morning. This, in no small part, is due to snacking. With numerous studies showing that people who stop eating early in the day have better luck with weight loss and weight maintenance thanks to lower insulin levels, it may be time to rethink our snacking habits.

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Adjusting Your Goals is the Key to Fitness Success

Getting into the gym and starting a workout plan can be a daunting task at the best of times. For the uninitiated, many exercises can be intimidating, not to mention confusing. A complete workout plan with properly executed exercises can be elusive for beginners, and it’s natural to find yourself low on motivation at first. One of the key factors to sticking to a new workout plan is setting clear, achievable goals, but every bit as important as setting those goals is adjusting them as you progress.

Your body needs time to adapt. Everybody is different, and some body types are better suited to specific exercises than others. You may have a 150lb bench press set as a goal, but for some people a bench press can cause pain or discomfort. Give your body some time to adjust and adapt, and reevaluate those goals as you progress.

Sometimes you have no choice. Setbacks happen to the best of us, and injuries can occur both in and out of the gym. A full recovery is often achievable, but an injury can be your body’s way of saying that a limit has been pushed too far. It could be the load or the type of movement, but no matter what the case workout plans and goals should be adjusted accordingly to prevent future injuries.

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Staying Fit for Life: How to Make Sure Exercise Sticks

It’s around that time of year: Gyms that were packed at the start of January are looking emptier and emptier as people already begin to abandon their new year’s resolutions. It may have started strong with the best of intentions, but why is exercising regularly so hard to keep up? Here are three ways to make sure you stick to exercising so that you can stay fit for life.

Start slowly. Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes people make when first hitting the gym is charging in guns blazing, working their muscles to the max until they can barely move. The problem is, the body hasn’t had time to adapt, and in no time that gusto will gave way to soreness and fatigue. Starting out slow and giving the body time to catch up is the only way to make sure the body adapts and accepts the new routine.

Ask yourself why. Before even hitting the gym ask yourself why you’re doing it. Is it to drop ten pounds? Or is it to make a commitment to a significant lifestyle change? Odds are if the goal is short term, the motivation won’t be there to make it work for the long haul.

Plan and schedule. It’s not enough to pop into the gym when time permits, things will get busy and your exercise time will be the first thing on the chopping block. Devoting time to exercise and making sure it takes priority is the only way to make sure the new routine sticks.

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Regular Exercise: It’s Not Just About the Physical Benefits

Exercising regularly is an important part of a healthy and balanced lifestyle, and many of us may think that’s mainly because of the physical benefits that it brings. While it’s quite true, regular exercise does provide a number of physical benefits such as a healthier body composition, better cardiovascular health, and an increase in energy, it also provides numerous mental health benefits that are every bit as important. Here are just three of the many mental health benefits of regular exercise.

Feeling better. Exercising releases endorphins, and those endorphins help contribute to better moods and just generally feeling better. Regular exercise has also proven to be helpful in treating depression and anxiety, as it can help relieve tension and stress.

Improved concentration. The same endorphins that help improve mood also help improve concentration, and that often translates to feeling sharper and more efficient at whatever task is at hand. Regular exercise also helps promote the growth of new brain cells.

Better sleep. Exercising regularly has a positive effect on our circadian rhythms, which regulate our sleep cycles, and can help prevent insomnia and generally improve quality of sleep. Better sleep translates into increased energy and mental acuity, which in turn has a beneficial effect on mood and concentration, not to mention on physical health as well.

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Gym Habits That Are Worth Getting Into

Exercise is vital to a balanced and healthy lifestyle, and for many of us, that means hitting the gym on the regular. But life gets busy, sometimes we skip, and even when we’re there we may not give it our all. Fear not, these three simple gym habits are well worth getting into to maximize every moment you spend at the gym.

Start with cardio. Conventional gym wisdom dictates that workouts start with warm-ups then weights, with cardio saved for the end. However, this way of thinking can often lead to cardio being skipped altogether on more tiring days. Combine that warm up with cardio to ensure your heart never misses out on the exercise it needs.

Go even if you don’t do anything. We all run low on motivation once in a while, and that’s perfectly normal. While it may be tempting to skip the gym every once in a while, that exception to your routine can quickly become a habit, and may even lead to dropping your regimen altogether. Even if you don’t have the energy to do anything, head to the gym anyway. The simple act of going will at least keep the habit routine, and may even motivate you to work out just a little.

Bring a buddy. Everything's better with a friend, and working out is no exception! Having a gym buddy will not only motivate you to push your hardest, but it will also keep you accountable for days you may be tempted to skip.

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