Make Fitness Fun: Ideas and Resources

Exercise Tips | Nutrition Tips | Staying Motivated

Exercise Tips
The American College of Sports Medicine offers the following guidelines for healthy aerobic activity:

Exercise 3 to 5 days each week
Warm up for 5 to 10 minutes before aerobic activitiy
Maintain your exercise intensity for 30 to 45 minutes
Gradually decrease the intensity of your workout, then stretch to cool down during the last 5 to 10 minutes.
If weight loss is major goal, participate in your aerobic activity at least 30 minutes for five days each week.

For more information from the American College of Sports Medicine, click here.

Nutrition Tips
Changing Your Relationship With Food
Food is not only the method by which we feed our bodies. It is central to our social activities and family time. Food may play a "comfort" role when we are depressed, angry, or lonely. In order to have a healthy relationship with food, it is important that you be aware of how your emotions affect your eating.

Is the current relationship you have with food a healthy one? To find out, keep a written list of what you eat, when and where you eat, and what your emotional state is. Do you eat when you are lonely, or perhaps when you are watching television or maybe because you have a friend to binge with? Identifying such behaviors is the first step toward making positive changes.

Once you have identified your relationship with food, you can evaluate what behaviors may be harmful to your health and begin to make small changes over time. Generally a change in behavior will become permanent if you practice it for 6 to 8 weeks.

Decide what will be the easiest to change. Make those changes first. What impact will changing this behavior have on others around you? Is there someone who can support you in this behavior change? You are the best judge of what changes are best for you. For example, if you just cannot live without chocolate, then leave chocolate in your eating plan, just eat smaller portions less frequently.

If you find it difficult to change your relationship with food, ask for help. Registered dietitians and behavioral scientists can be strong partners in this effort. Remember, small changes over time can result in big changes toward a healthy life.

Click here to see more information from the Nutrition link. Or check out the Diet Center link.

Staying Motivated

1. Don't diet. Instead, begin to practice positive eating habits.
2. Only weigh once a week.
3. Drink 8 or more glasses of water each day.
4. Exercise regularly.
5. Don't graze. Eat at structured meal times.
6. Find time to relax every day.
7. Learn a new skill or find a new hobby that gives you satisfaction.

Click here to see more information from the Nutrition link. Or check out the Diet Center link. [back to top]