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Enjoy the Mews!
Running for Success
Running isn’t just for runners anymore. Running just three days a week for 30 minutes
has been proven to help maintain healthy weight as well as improve attitude and
motivation. In short, running can help
you become happier, healthier and more successful to. Here’s how.
For Health
Running is not just an athlete’s sport. Although you probably won’t win the Boston
Marathon, running can be a very healthy activity whether you choose to compete
in races or not. In order to achieve
optimal health benefits from running, you will want to work yourself up to a
level of being able to run at least 30 minutes at a stretch, three or four days
a week.
The best part about running is that you can do it
anywhere with just a pair of good shoes.
Go to your local running store and have them fit you into the right pair
to ensure that you don’t cause injury from inadequate shoes. The key here is not to have the cheapest
shoes, the most expensive shoes or the nicest looking shoes, but to have the
right shoes for your feet.
For Attitude
Running, above many other sports, can help develop a
happier, healthier attitude towards life.
If you can motivate yourself to get out there to run three days a week,
you can do anything. Most people find
that after they have been running for a few weeks that it becomes
addicting. You will enjoy the control
you have over yourself and will crave more.
It can be most rewarding when you get out on the streets in inclement
weather and brave a drizzle or windy day.
The lessons you learn from running will help you be a more positive
person and will teach you that anything is possible if you put your mind to it.
If you run with a negative attitude, you’ll find that
you won’t get very far or you will walk a great chunk of the way. In order to convince yourself to keep on
running, you’ll find yourself telling yourself positive things, looking forward
to the hills and forcing yourself to think that running is your favorite
activity, even if it isn’t. The amazing
thing that will start to happen is that you will start to believe it. After awhile, you won’t be forcing yourself
to run, you really will enjoy it and look forward to it.
Once you reach this level, you will find yourself with
a more positive attitude towards just about everything. Running is one of the best attitude
adjustments there is. Once you start to
look forward to running up those hills because it is going to make you stronger
and faster, you’ll find yourself thinking positively about all aspects of your
life such as dealing with problem clients at work. Instead of getting irritated, you will begin
to think about what you could say to calm them down, make them happy and move
on to the next client.
For Motivation
After you conquer the first 30 minutes of non-stop
running, you will probably find yourself wondering if you could run further or
faster. Most people can find a 5k or 10k
race within driving distance almost every weekend and this can help you gauge
how fast you can run. These races can
serve as a great motivator for you and your newfound hobby. Run your first one without regard for time,
just finish. After that, you will
probably find yourself looking to improve your personal best and you will
easily be able to find more races whenever you are ready to challenge yourself.
Cycling to your way to fitness
To gain benefits from cycling you don’t have to be
super fit, an athlete or anything of the sort.
The benefits of bicycling are great and it is a fun way to get that much
needed exercise.
Weight loss and bicycling
If you are trying to shed a few pounds, dieting alone
very rarely works out in the long term, however doing more exercise on a
regular basis works wonders. If you cycle on a daily basis then it will not
only help you burn a large number of calories during your workout but it will
also raise your metabolism and help you burn more calories throughout the
day. Cycling along a flat road or path
at 12 mph will help you to burn off roughly 450 calories an hour, and even when
you stop your metabolism is still speeding ahead, helping to you burn calories
quicker.
Not only can cycling help you to lose weight and keep
it off, it is also beneficial health wise. By cycling at least 20 miles per
week you can help to reduce the risk of developing heart disease by half
compared to those who don’t cycle.
Health benefits of bicycling
Cycling is classed as an aerobic form of exercise;
this is a type of exercise that is particularly beneficial to the lungs and
heart. Your lungs expand with the effort of pedaling, which allows you to get
more oxygen into your body; this in turn makes your heart beat faster to send
the oxygen throughout your body. If you develop powerful lungs and a strong
heart then you are well and truly on your way to fitness.
Just by cycling a few miles per day you will soon
begin to feel fitter and healthier, you will see your muscles beginning to
tone. You thigh, backside and calf muscles will gain the biggest benefit from
cycling, as these are the muscles that you will use the most, but overall you
will find yourself in much better shape.
Perhaps you will find that you no longer get winded walking up a flight
of stairs. However, the best part is,
that the more you bicycle, the more you will enjoy it and look forward to your
next outing.
Bicycling can also be beneficial when we are feeling
down or if we suffer from stress, anxiety or depression. When we exercise we
release what are known as endorphins into our bloodstream, endorphins bring
about a feeling of happiness and contentment and are a great way to combat
stress and depression. Cycling can be done almost anywhere by anyone, if you
live in towns or the countryside there is always somewhere to bicycle. It
doesn’t have to be expensive and is a relatively safe sport, when you follow
the few simple guidelines and can be enjoyed as a family.
Here are a few simple tips to help you get the most
out of cycling
Always carry a
puncture repair kit
Make sure you
take a water bottle with you especially on long rides in the countryside
Keep your tires
pumped up to the required level to make cycling easier
For safety
always make sure you wear a bicycle helmet
Always have
lights and reflectors on your bike to make sure you are seen
When cycling
at night wear bright colors or preferably some sort of reflective material
Pilates for back pain
The most essential thing that those who suffer from
back pain can learn is awareness of the neutral alignment of the spine and the
strengthening of the postural muscles to support the alignment. For those
people with back pain caused by the degeneration of discs and joints, or poor
posture, a Pilate’s exercise program can be beneficial to easing the problem.
Most back problems are caused by bad posture; this can
be sitting, walking or standing. This causes us to lose strength in our
postural muscles over time and gets worse until eventually you cannot even
correct your posture if you want to. Pilates is an exellent form of exercise to
remedy this problem too.
What is Pilates?
The Pilates method is a form of exercise that focuses
on using the core postural muscles to help keep the body balanced and support
the spine. It is a method that teaches awareness of breathing and alignment of
the spine. In helping to prevent and alleviate back pain the system also strengthens
the deep torso muscles.
While Pilates is a simple form of exercise you
shouldn’t underestimate the impact that it can have, Pilates can help to
develop support for the deep postural muscles of the trunk. It brings an
awareness of the importance of neutral alignment and leads to the shoulders and
hips being suppler.
Pilates has roots in ballet and dance and as such some
of the movements used in the system can be particularly challenging and
difficult, however there are some exercises that can be learned and practiced
at home between guided sessions. As when beginning any new form of exercise it
is important that you seek the advice of your doctor before commencing, the
instructor guiding the Pilates session should also be qualified.
One-on-one sessions may be the answer
For those who have significant back problems it may be
advisable to have a few one-on-one sessions with an instructor qualified in
Pilates and especially in treating those with back pain. While this is more
expensive than attending a class it can be worth the extra expense to learn the
exercise correctly by having one-on-one guidance.
While the exercises in the Pilates system should
challenge you mentally and physically, they shouldn’t cause you to struggle
with them. If an exercise is causing you pain then it could be that you are not
performing it correctly or it could be too difficult a position for you. You
should make sure that you never put too much excessive stress on the
intervertebral discs and avoid mental or physical fatigue.
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