Posts Tagged ‘Exercise’

 The best general answer to this 3 part question is this: any exercise is beneficial, do it whenever works best and do it as often as everyday but no less than 3 times a week.

Here’s my ideal exercise regime over the course of 7 days:

Monday: Yoga in the morning + 20-30 minutes cardio in the afternoon.
Maintains: Flexibility, mobility, lung capacity, cardiovascular fitness + smile enhancer 

Tuesday:  Urban Workout – a 40 minute total body workout
Maintains: General body strength, mobilty & flexibility, cardiovascular fitness + smile enhancer

Wednesday: Swim 1-2kms
Maintains: General body strength & cardiovascular fitness + smile enhancer

Thursday: Reformer Pilate’s in the morning & 20-30 minutes cardio in the afternoon
Maintains: General body strength with focus on core muscles, cardiovascular fitness + smile enhancer

Friday:   Urban Workout - a 40 minute total body workout
Maintains: General body strength, mobilty & flexibility, cardiovascular fitness + smile enhancer

Saturday/Sunday: Swim, bike ride, walk, kayak, surf or any other type of recreational activity on offer 
Maintains:Well-being, mother-daughter relationship, sense of fun & spirit + major smile enhancer!

Remember that is my ‘ideal’ week, it rarely works out that I do all of it however I adjust the following weeks regime to balance out what I missed the previous week.
It helps me to maintain my health on all levels – mental, physical and emotional. I am a huge believer in ‘intuitive exerise’ which means I might choose to swim instead of yoga if I felt I needed solitude and I might swap my swim for a workout if I felt the need for something a bit more dynamic and upbeat. 

The most important thing is that you do something, exercise must be a regualr non-negotiable part of your week, every week. 
You don’t have to ‘train’ like an athlete (unless you want to be one) - you just need to keep your body active so it can function optimally and keep that smile on your dial!   

Have a look at some of my really simple and short workout clips and there’s more coming!

Get moving my friend, I guarantee you’ll smile more everyday.  

…KEEP YOUR MIND ON THE MANTRA:

Exercise, Eat Well & Think Good Things

Living by this mantra will ensure that you keep smiling inside and out which means you’ll always be making good decisions which means you’ll be taking steps towards your goals and dreams.

It’s all about self care. 
Self care fosters positive body image, confidence and high self esteem. When you feel good about yourself you make good decisions about all aspects of life.
Self care is also great role modelling for your kids, staff, partners and anyone else you would like to have a positive influence on.

In a nutshell: Self care gives you the energy required (mentally, physically & emotionally) to live the life you want to live so KEEP YOUR MIND ON THE MANTRA and smile more!

PS. I’m on ‘A Current Affair’ tonight – doing a ‘Pantry make-over’. It’s on channel 9 at 6.30pm.  Click here to view the ‘Pantry List’ I used for the segment.    

Making time for exercise is essential to being a ’smiler’. It doesn’t have to be long and gruelling, just 30 minutes of moderate activity per day is the recommended minimum but 10 minutes is better than nothing so no excuses! 

In this workout I’m using ‘resistance bands’. They’re available in most sports stores or from physiotherapy suppliers. (email me if you have trouble finding them). The bands are super convenient because you can take them any where and they work! So get yourself some bands, set aside 10 minutes and join me for a quick workout. Click play now! 

Stay well hyrdrated throughout the festive season!

This time of year is challenging for many people on many levels.
The pressure to do everything and see everyone before the year is out can be overwhelming.
For loads of people there is an emotional stirring that starts around this time and continues to build right up until ’the day you’re supposed to be with your family/loved ones’ finally arrives.   
Financial stress, realitonship stress, work stress and emotional stress are all highlighted at this time of year but have no fear – there is a really simple way to manage it all.

The mantra. Exercise, eat well and think good things. It helps. I promise it helps.
Say it to yourself, apply it daily and notice how the heat you usually feel from the crazy season is no where near as fierce.

I know you have lunches and dinners and drinks and deadlines but if you keep your mind on the mantra you’ll manage it all with a smile.

EXERCISE:
Go for lots of little walks and filter out the pressures buzzing around your head.
Breath deeply when you walk to release tension.
Block out time for at least one decent workout session to get the endorphins flowing and keep your self esteem in tact.
If at home watching TV lie on the floor and stretch  – check out my 5 minute back care & stretching clip 

EAT WELL:
Keep up your fruit and vegetable intake and drinks heaps of water.
When out at functions use self disipline and refrain from scoffing all the deep fried food.
Too much alcohol over too many days will make you lethargic and cranky. Again, restraint is key.  
Keep the 80/20 rule in mind. ie. You can only over-indulge at 20% of the functions!!

THINK GOOD THINGS:
Think things whcih will keep your energy positive.
Think things which will best serve your health and well-being.
Think things which will best serve your reletionships.
Think things which will best serve your ability to ‘give and receive’ graciously.
Just think good things!

I wish you a very happy, healthy and fun festive season.  

This workout uses one of those big exercise balls which I know a lot of people have at home but do nothing with. If you don’t have one you can just do Smiler’s Quick Workout #1  which requires only your body.

You’re here now so you might as one do at least one round of the 3 simple exercise in the workout below. If you have the time do it 3 times through which will take no more than 10 minutes. And, if you don’t have the time – make it!

Greetings Smiler’s

Here’s the first of many Smiler’s Workouts I’ll be posting for you. The idea is that you do the 3 exercises I’m demonstrating continuously for 10 or so mins. You can do them after your daily walk!

If you have any questions about the workout just email me smiler@urbanworkout.com.au 

Oh and by the way, in my intro, you’ll hear me tell you that I’ll be doing 2 types of squats – I lied! I only do 1 type but I do promise to include many more in future clips. 

Enjoy!

Thanks to Don, my business partner at Urban Workout,  for his help with getting this together. 

My ultimate objective as a health & well-being professional and as co-owner of ‘Urban Workout’ is to get people to live by my daily mantra ‘Exercise, Eat Well & Think Good Things’.  

On the exercise side of this my goal is ‘to get people to exercise every day for the rest of their lives ‘ which often raises eyebrows because to a lot of people that seems unachievable. Of course sometimes things do get in the way of planned exercise but with the ’exercise everyday mind-set’ you’re committing to doing something and that’s what matters most. 

Exercising everyday is not as difficult to achieve as you think and here’s why… 

Exercising everyday does not neccessarily mean going to the gym to slog it out for an hour, nor does it have to mean scheduling in kid-free time or earlier starts.  

Exercising everyday just means making time to move your body for as little as 5 – 10 minutes at a time as often as possible throughout the day. This mind-set has worked a treat for all my clients who claim they “don’t have the time to exercise” or “just want to get a bit healthier not become a fitness freak”.

The motto I live by is ’something IS ALWAYS better than nothing’ and it’s true. For people who have basically been completely inactive for most of their adult life the idea of 30 or more minutes of exercise just does not seem achievable – but a 10 minute walk is and they know they can’t make an excuse for it either. It’s a start and that’s all we’re after to begin with - ‘a small change which can easily be integrated in to your current lifetsyle’.

What I know about this approach is that it is achievable so people do it, then, as their fitness and energy increases so does their desire to do “a litttle bit more“.  When they tell me this I feel euphoric because I know their exercise mind-set has shifted and they realise how essential exercise is to their health and well-being – they feel happier and they don’t want that feeling to go.

So, if you’re a ‘non-exerciser’ or a ’spasmosdic exerciser’ this is especially for you – start by incorporating 5 – 10 minutes walking 2- 3 times throughout your day and never stop.

Take Home Message:  MOVE MORE – SMILE MORE!

Here is my ‘ideal week of exercise’ which best suits my current age, health status, fitness needs, lifestyle & goals. I say ‘ideal’ because I rarely get to do everything on the list but it gives me loads of flexibility to do what my body/mind tells me I need most on any given day with the time I have available.   

Strength workouts: Minimum 2 per week + 1 Pilates reformer class. Being physically strong is SO important to me. I have a ‘dodgey’ lower back, I am knock knee’d plus I spend a lot of time at a computer so postural strength is essential. I also know that when I am physically strong I cope really well with stress.

Most weeks I do get my 2 strengths works in, at the very least I do one. I only use free weights, resistance bands/tubes and body weight. I enjoy my strength workouts.

Cardio workouts: Minimum 3 per week. I smoked for over 20 years so cardiovascular exercise was something I avoided. Now I have to say I don’t mind it because it makes me feel so good.

My top 3 cardio workouts are 1. 30 – 45 minutes at the studio on the cross trainer, bike, treadmill, rower & stepper 2. swimming 1-2kms 3. 1 hour fast walk. I always have music going and use the time to reflect and plan. I also love to play tennis, kick a footy and ride my bike. This summer I want to do sea kyaking and I would love to dance more.

Flexibilty & Mobilty:  Minimum 2 x 20 minutes yoga style stretching and mobilising per week. On a good week I will do a yoga class on Monday mornings plus a couple of other sessions either at the studio or at home, even if it’s in front of the tv. As my body ‘matures’ I respect the need to keep my muscles long and my joints mobile. 

This type of exercise also helps to keep my mind clear and my nervous system calm – something most of us need in our busy urban lives.  

That’s my ideal week, what’s yours?

Whatever you do, do something everyday and enjoy it.

Smiler. x

There are always articles on the reasons why people don’t exercise which I is not at all helpful for anyone who really does want to get in to the exercise habit.

Please, let your desire to move more be reinforced by my top 10 reasons for becoming a regular exerciser:-

1. You’ll have more energy. Physically & mentally. If you are seriously out of condition it can take up to 8 weeks for this to be realised but it will happen, I guarantee it.

2. You’ll have more emotional tolerance. Being a regular exerciser helps the brain to balance out stress hormones so you’ll be able to manage stress better.

3. You’ll like yourself more. Self esteem increases the moment you start exercising because you are honouring yourself.  Self care = self love, it’s as simple as that.

4. You’ll feel more desirable. When your self esteem increases your sex appeal and libido increases. Self confidence nurtures sexuality which is something to be celebrated don’t you think!

5. You’ll want to eat well. Exercising regularly makes you mindful of your health in general so you will become more selective about what you put in to your body. Food is fuel my friend.

6. You’ll sleep better.  If you are a light, restless or reluctant sleeper then this may well be the best motivation for becoming a regular exerciser, it really does help you sleep well.

7. You’ll be robust. When you are a regular exerciser you always feel healthy and strong. You are less likely to get sick and if you do get sick it takes less time to recover and feel well again.  

8. You’ll lose your baggage. I am referring to excess body fat but I also know that as this decreases so does the emotional baggage attached to it. It is a very gradual but extremely valuable process.

9. You’ll want to do more. Your zest for life will bloom with everyday you exercise. You’ll feel the desire to explore new interests which will open up many exciting doors – carpe diem! 

10. You’ll be happier. Exercising releases ‘feel good hormones’ which help you to think good things. This is what fosters the constant feeling of ‘happiness’  which is what we all desire the most.

My wish is for you to have a healthy attitude to daily exercise because this is the key to living a smiley life.

Smiler