Exercise principles you may not know

We all know the importance of exercise – managing weight, staying strong, and maintaining or improving our overall physical and mental health. Whether it is hitting the weights in the gym or running for miles in the park, the modest notion of “30 minutes per day, most days of the week” may not be much to avid exercisers but may be daunting to the rest of us.

Whether you are a novice or avid exerciser, how do you continue to keep it fresh in the gym? How can you challenge yourself? How do you break the monotony of your workout or overcome the plateau that keeps you from seeing even greater results?

First, we start with a review of some of the basics:

Aerobic training

Aerobic means with oxygen and refers to any exercise that involves oxygen consumption and the cardiovascular system in a manner, such as with running, jogging, brisk walking, rowing, swimming, biking, or even yard work. Aerobic training is used to improve oxygen consumption and the use of oxygen in the body’s energy-generating process. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends 20 to 60 minutes of aerobic exercise most days of the week in order to improve cardio respiratory fitness.

The intensity of aerobic exercise is gauged by using your heart rate, measured in beats per minute. For most individuals, an exercise heart rate of 75% to 90% of your maximal heart rate works. The easiest way to find your maximal heart rate (HR_max) is to subtract your age from 220. From there, take the given percentages to give you a range in which to keep your heart rate during exercise.

In general, once your heart rate starts climbing over the higher end, your body may require more oxygen than able to consume. If so, this point is known as the anaerobic threshold.

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Strength training

Anaerobic means without oxygen and, in general terms, refers to exercise that uses glucose as a fuel in the absence of oxygen. This occurs with high-intensity, short‑duration exercises that last a few seconds up to about two minutes, as found with intense strength training, i.e., hitting the weights. The anaerobic process can also occur in exercises of longer duration if the oxygen demand is greater than that being supplied, such as with sprinting.

When a muscle contracts when strength training, it is faced with a stronger than usual counterforce in order to build strength, anaerobic endurance, and muscle size. Strength training can be performed with various equipment found in a gym, including: dumbbells, weighted machines, medicine balls, resistance bands, and even your own body weight.

Strength training does more than just improve your strength. Benefits of structured, regular strength training include:

·      Increased muscular strength and size

·      Increased strength of tendons and ligaments

·      Potentially improves flexibility

·      Reduced body fat and increased lean body mass

·      Potentially improves blood pressure

·      Positive changes in blood cholesterol

·      Improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity

·      Improved strength, balance, and functional ability in older adults

·      Improves performance in everyday activities, such as stair climbing and even carrying grocery bags

·      Slows or reverses the decreased bone density and muscle mass resulting from aging, which is especially important for women at risk for osteoporosis

Note that not all strength training is anaerobic. Your body’s need for oxygen must be greater than that being supplied, i.e., your workout needs to be intense enough. Certain concepts, including super-setting, exercise pyramid, and burnouts can help you reach the threshold. Contact the Health & Fitness team for more information.

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Sets and reps

The trainer said, “Give me four sets of 15 reps and show me that form!” and you said, “Huh!?” Just for clarification, here is what the words mean:

Form: Each exercise has a specific form, a topography of movement designed for effective strength gain while maintaining safety.

Rep: Short for repetition, a rep describes a single cycle of lifting and lowering a weight in a controlled manner, moving through the form of the exercise.

Set: A set consists of several repetitions performed in succession. The number of reps per set and sets per exercise depends on the goal of the individual.

The ACSM position is that strength training of moderate intensity should be an integral part of any fitness program. The recommended minimum of a basic strength training program to help develop and maintain muscular fitness is one set of 8-12 repetitions of 8-10 exercises that condition the major muscle groups. This workout should be done two to three nonconsecutive days per week. Again, this is the bare minimum basic recommendation.

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Specific training principles

The above may be news for some and common knowledge for others. Nevertheless, now that we have the basic background information out of the way, here are several specific training principles you may not know to challenge your strength and/or aerobic workout. Note that some of these training principles may not be appropriate for beginning exercisers.

Training guidelines

With any aerobic and/or strength workout, it is very important to follow a few guidelines. Even the most basic of these are not always adhered by avid exercisers. Here are the facts to follow:

1.     Remember to warm up – to increase blood flow and mobility, especially to the muscles you will exercise.

2.     Stretch before and after exercise – to maintain or even increase flexibility and reduce the risk of injury

3.     To maintain good body mechanics go through the complete range of motion of an exercise in a controlled manner while maintaining a neutral spine. Never sacrifice form just to add more weight or repetitions.

4.     Don’t hold your breath during strength exercise. The key to breathing is to exhale on effort, i.e., breathe out when you move resistance against gravity and breathe in when resistance moves in the direction of gravity.

5.     For any strength exercise, keep strict form in controlling the lifting speeds where the slowest part of the lift occurs in the eccentric (lowering) phase. This is the phase in which resistance moves in the direction of gravity, e.g., lowering the bar to your chest in a chest press. This part of the lift is said to create the most “damage” to the muscle fibers, so during the recovery period (the amount of time between complete workouts, e.g., one to two days), the muscle will repair itself at a larger mass to adapt to the intensity of training.

6.     The intensity of your strength workout depends on a number of factors, including the duration of exercise, heart rate, the number of exercise sets and the number of repetitions within those sets, resistance used, and the rest between sets. You can vary the intensity of your workout to fit your activity level and goals. Contact Health & Fitness for more information.

7.     You can keep your heart rate in range during aerobic exercise not only through typical cardiovascular exercises, such as the treadmill or bicycle, but also by incorporating sets of strength exercises between long bouts of cardio, with very little rest between exercises.

8.     While heart rate is a good indicator of intensity for aerobic exercise, it is not a good way to determine your intensity when lifting weights. It is important to listen to your body based on an overall sense of feeling of exertion.

9.     Exercise sessions that last more than one hour usually have a higher dropout rate. Start off with shorter sessions and work your way up. Especially if you’re new to exercise, keep it light and work on technique before increasing intensity.

10.   As a general rule, each muscle that you train should be rested one to two days before being exercised further in order for the fatigued muscles to rebuild.

11.   "No pain, no gain." This statement is not necessarily true and can be dangerous. As always, consult with your health care professional before starting any exercise routine, especially if you have any health concerns.

常喝牛奶还可以传递健康讯息：最近一项研究显示，如果妈妈常喝牛奶，女儿也会跟着效法，而减少喝汽水等含糖饮料。有乳糖不耐症的妈妈，可用少量多次的方式，随餐饮用牛奶，增加体内乳糖酵素的活性，或改喝低乳糖牛奶。

可惜和偶的消化系统不兼容.

2.花椰菜  

富含维生素a、c，矿物质钾、钙、硒等，β胡萝卜素及纤维，热量低。多吃可以增强抵抗力，减少罹患心血管疾病及数种癌症的机率。  

原来不是装饰啊. 要吃.

3.香蕉  

虽然一根香蕉大概有120卡，却是维生素b6、c和纤维的良好来源，丰富的钾也有助于调节血压。香蕉含有的生物碱(alkaloid)能振奋精神，很适合当点心，补充热量。除了直接吃，也可以混合在果汁中，或加到谷类早餐里。  

做到.

4.柳橙汁  

喝一杯新鲜的柳橙汁，就可以摄取到超过每日建议量的维生素c。维生素c是重要的抗氧化物，能消除自由基，强化免疫功能，利于铁质吸收。柳橙汁还富含钾及叶酸，叶酸对育龄妇女相当重要，可以预防畸胎和直肠癌。  

喝的不多了. 吃鲜橙替代吧.

5.蔬菜沙拉  

最容易一次吃到多样蔬菜的方法，提供充足的维生素、矿物质和纤维。可以把数种绿色蔬菜混合后(例如富含维生素a、叶酸的莴苣和菠菜，纤维多的生菜)，再加上西红柿、红萝卜、小黄瓜。研究指出一天至少三份的蔬菜可以降低罹患癌症、心血管疾病和糖尿病的机率，对维持皮肤健康也有帮助，不过记得高热量的沙拉酱不要加太多。  

有吃.

6.花生酱  

坚果类中的花生，富含蛋白质、纤维、锌和维生素e，也是维生素b1、烟碱酸、叶酸的良好来源，其所含的单元不饱和脂肪酸，可以增加血液中好的胆固醇 (hdl)，降低坏的胆固醇(ldl)，保护心血管。忙碌时，涂上花生酱的全麦面包加上一杯脱脂牛奶，是方便又营养的一餐。  

酱紫?不是很肥嘛?偶还以为好吃的东东都不健康.

7.番薯  

番薯富含钾、纤维、维生素c，还有重要的抗氧化物质β胡萝卜素，有益皮肤健康。用番薯代替饭，可以增加纤维质的摄取。  

噢? 小时候喜欢吃烤地瓜. 现在没的吃. 也不怎么吃了.这个是地瓜还是土豆? 不清楚.

8.鲑鱼  

深海鱼中的omega-3脂肪酸，可以降低血液中坏的胆固醇，保护心血管，一周吃一到两次鲑鱼可以预防心脏病，滋养免疫系统。omega-3脂肪酸还可以增加安定性的前列腺素，有助于平稳心情。芬兰的研究指出，一周至少吃一次以上鱼的人，罹患忧郁症的机率较低。如果处于怀孕或哺乳期，鲑鱼中的脂肪酸还能帮助胎儿大脑和神经系统的发育。  

桃花流水鲑鱼肥. 偶流的是口水.

9.全谷片早餐  

一碗就含有多种维生素、矿物质与膳食纤维，又提供足够的热量。搭配牛奶，则能补强蛋白质和钙质，是相当不错的早餐组合，也可以做为点心或宵夜，很适合常偏食或没空好好吃饭的妈妈们补充营养。  

等偶做妈妈的时候一定努力做到.

10.瘦红肉  

育龄期的妈妈们要特别注意铁质摄取，尤其在生完小孩后两年内，铁质容易不足，可能导致贫血。红肉中的铁质以血红素状态存在，身体的吸收率较高。最好选择腰部及四周饱和脂肪较少的部位，一天不超过一份(约55公克)，相当于一个巴掌大。  

怎么又是育龄妈妈? 难道不是写给偶的啊?

11.酸奶  

吃一杯240毫升的酸奶，所吸收的钙质约占每日建议量的三分之一，低脂或脱脂酸奶还是蛋白质和钾的好来源。最好选择原味的，调味酸奶通常含有过多的糖。注意酸奶包装盒上的标示，确定是“活菌”或“生菌”，这些细菌有益肠道，促进消化吸收；强化免疫系统，对抗坏菌。  

研究发现，每天食用两杯(一杯为240毫升)活菌酸乳酪的人，得感冒的机率降低了25%，花粉热及过敏的症状也少了许多。而常食用含有嗜酸乳杆菌的酸奶，能减少阴道念珠菌感染的机率。  

有吃有吃.

12.蛋  

对于劳心劳力的妈妈们，蛋所提供的蛋白质，不但品质佳，而且容易被人体利用，对肌肉组织生长和修复十分重要。蛋也是维生素d的良好来源，可以帮助钙质吸收。蛋黄的胆固醇较高，对于健康的人来说，一天一个蛋不算过量，如果医师建议需要节制胆固醇，则每周不要吃超过2～4个蛋黄。  

这个简单.

13.蔬菜汤  

一次摄取许多矿物质、维生素和纤维，而因为大部份是水分，热量较低，利用蔬菜的风味，还可以减少盐分、味精。红萝卜、马铃薯、洋葱、高丽菜等都是很适合的材料。  

嘻饭.

14.西红柿酱  

西红柿中的抗氧化成分茄红素，已被证实能减少动脉阻塞，降低罹患心血管疾病的机会，而经过加热煮熟成西红柿酱后，更能提高茄红素的抗氧化效果。大部份罐装西红柿酱中还含有维生素a、c和纤维。  

不妨利用铁制器具加热西红柿酱(如加在意大利面时)，酸性成分会溶出少量的铁，提供补充铁质的额外效果。  

嘻饭番茄pasta

15.豆类  

也许不起眼，豆类却是蛋白质、铁、纤维良好来源，脂肪含量低，有助于降低胆固醇，并含有叶酸、钾、锌等，营养价值很高。豆类皮中的黄酮类 (flavonoid)化合物，是相当有力的抗氧化物，研究指出，多吃豆类能降低罹患子宫颈癌的危险。豌豆、四季豆、菜豆当蔬菜吃，红绿豆煮成五谷饭，黄豆、黑豆可以打成豆浆，让豆类常在你的食物清单上。

豆浆算数嘛?偶喝豆奶,一举两得嘛?

(鸣谢S同学)