Start To Be Great

       I always say it doesn't matter what shape you are currently in, you can start doing something now. It doesn't matter what you choose to do. You can go out to get your mail and walk down the block and back.  You can sit on the floor and watch TV and do some leg lifts or stomach crunches.  You can buy a stationary bike and peddle for a few minutes while watching the travel channel, pretending you are on vacation.  You know what matters here?  What matters is that you have started to do something, which means that you have started to care about your own well-being.  
      Little changes in your diet can make a big difference.  Eating more protein, more dietary fiber, less processed foods can make a big impact on how you feel and the fuel you are able to burn throughout the day.  I always say, "everything in moderation".  You don't have to give up things that you love, you just have to eat a smaller portion of them.
     No  matter what changes you make, they are positive changes.  Little changes can lead to bigger ones and you can achieve better health.  You just have to start today.


Just start...Dan

Anything Is Better Than Nothing

       I was watching The Today Show this morning, when they aired a story about a 20 second workout.  While normally, I would have turned the channel,  I watched the segment.  The author of the piece, theorized that a 20 second, high intensity workout, done at least three times a week is beneficial to your body and can help you to lose weight.  On the program, they ran up the stairs full blast at 20 seconds, they rode an exercise bike for 20 seconds at a high rate of speed, they ran at full blast on a treadmill for 20 seconds. This workout increases cardiac output and they actually broke a sweat doing it.
     I was skeptical, but then I thought, why not?  If this is all you can do during the week, you should do it.  While I personally believe it's great if you could walk or run around the park, walk around your neighborhood, walk, run or bike for about 20 minutes a day, a few times a week --anything, any little bit, any contribution to your fitness would be helpful.       My wife cringes when I say that "I cried the blues 'cause I had no shoes, til I met a man who had no feet".  One of my favorite sayings.  You were given a body, no matter how perfect or imperfect, to take care of and to use.  I have seen people with serious disabilities, pushing their limits to the extreme, to keep in shape and to remind us to take care of ourselves.  You can do something, anything, and it will help.

Do what you can....

Get Ready For Spring!

      My wife and I decided to do a 5k walk/run for the Colitis and Crohns Foundation last year in Ocean City New Jersey.  The year before that found us in New York City for me to do the stair climb to the "Top of the Rock".  I look for 5k races and things so that I can contribute to good causes and get a t-shirt and have some fun running.  My wife accompanies me to the ones that are by the beach or somewhere interesting.  She doesn't necessarily do the races, or take part in the events, but did walk in the Colitis and Crohns Foundation event.   She likes to cheer me on though.
     Lately,  the winter has me exercising on the treadmill and the bike we have in our spare room.  Tomorrow, the first day of Spring, will hopefully bring some changes in the weather that will make me want to head outside to run around the city.  Running around the city aggravates me though, the city does not enforce any parking laws, so cars are parked all over the sidewalks on Moosic Street, Green Ridge Street, Wyoming Avenue, all the main venues.  This is truly a source of anger and aggravation for me, as I feel that it is a slap in the face to all walkers, runners, handicapped people, students, etc.  I am going to work on this with the city this year, a goal for me.
      Welcome the first day of Spring by exercising.  If you do it inside on the treadmill or just doing some sit-ups while watching TV, do something.  Stretch on your floor, touch your toes, walk around your block.  The first steps are the hardest, but the most important.