When You Should Not Exercise

Exercise is wonderful for keeping your body and mind in great condition. However, there are times when it’s okay to take a break from exercise or change your routine to accommodate your needs.

Illness
Sometimes when you’re suffering from an illness, you need to take a break from your exercise routine. Pushing yourself to exercise when you have an infection can make the infection worse and even cause you to become easily injured.

At the very least, you may need to scale down your workout to fit your strength. For example, if you normally go for a jog, you may want to go for a walk instead or shorten the length of your route.

Injury
When you have a physical injury, you need to treat it with care. For example, continuing to run on a sprained ankle could lead to a fracture. If you have an injury that causes pain to your body, that’s a signal that you need to take it easy.

You may want to take a couple of days off from your exercise routine altogether. However, if you’re bound and determined to continue exercising, you may want to choose activities that won’t affect the injured area.

For example, if you have an injury to your upper body, focus on activities that use only your lower body and vice versa.

How do you make a decision about changing your workout? The best way to make a decision is to talk to your healthcare provider. If you’re being treated for an illness or injury, ask your doctor if you should make changes. He or she will be able to direct you on how much your routine needs to change and for how long.

Working out when you’re sick or injured can have disastrous effects. Instead of keeping you in shape, you can end up making your illness or injury worse. Taking a short break may be all you need to get healthy and be able to jump right back into your routine.

But if you intensify your illness or injury by continuing to work out, you may end up having to take a bigger break.

Dieting Do’s and Don’ts

Dieting can help you to feel good about yourself, have more energy, and become healthier. However, some things you can do may make you feel worse and sabotage your success. Here are some dos and don’ts of dieting.

Don’t weigh yourself every day. While you may feel tempted to look at the scale on a daily basis, you may become frustrated when you see an extra pound on the display. It’s normal to fluctuate because of factors like water retention and hormonal fluctuations.

Do weigh yourself weekly. Weighing yourself once a week at about the same time will give you a better picture of your progress. Read more

Don’t Stuff Yourself During the Holidays

The holidays are nice times for families to get together and celebrate the occasion. These celebrations consist of pleasant conversations and a table full of various foods fit to feed an army.

The food looks and smells so good – it’d be great to have your fill of each dish, wouldn’t it? Most people can attest to the fact that they go into the holiday dinner knowing they’ll overeat when they see the array of scrumptious food. We tend to eat more at holiday dinners for a few reasons. Read more

Vital Safety Tips for Using Exercise Equipment

Now that you’ve committed to an exercise program, you’re ready to hit the equipment. Whether you’re working out in a commercial gym or on equipment at home, it’s important to follow proper safety procedures.

If you’re a member of a commercial gym, it’s a good idea to ask for a tour of the facility before you get started with your workout. Have a staff member or trainer take you through each machine and show you how to use it properly.

Make sure that every time you work out you adjust the machine for your height and the appropriate amount of weight. If you see a machine that is in disrepair, make sure not to use it and report it to the staff immediately. Read more