*Please consult your physician before starting any exercise program.

 

Okay, so you clicked the mouse to get here and that means you did all the exercise you need to for today, right? Wrong! You know you need more than that!

 

Regular exercise is necessary for good health and weight maintenance. And, not only does exercise help you lose weight or maintain weight, it also contributes to healthy bones, joints and muscles! Can you believe it? All these benefits from something so fun! Exercise is a great way to reduce stress, increase the strength of your heart and lose weight.

 

Exercise does not have to be difficult or hurt to benefit your body, mind and spirit. Now, some of you are sitting here and thinking, “But, I don’t exercise.” Well, that might not be entirely true, and do you want to know the best part – it’s never too late to start! Did you clean your home today? Yes? Guess what, you exercised! Did you wash your automobile? You did! Guess what, you exercised! You see, just because you didn’t go to a gym and spend hours on an exercise machine, doesn’t mean you didn’t exercise. Here are some other examples for you:

  • Walking

  • Yard work

  • Dancing

  • Swimming

  • House work

After talking to a healthcare professional about your weight, you may be told that you need to start an exercise routine to manage your weight, such as walking or bike riding. Don’t worry! Exercise is nothing to be scared of. Why? Because you’ve been doing it all along! Those walks to the mailbox you take each day – how about taking that walk down the block next time? Done washing the car – how about a great arm workout waxing it now? You see, exercise is all around you. You just didn’t know it – until now!

 

How intense is your exercise?

 

Now, of course walking to the mailbox or washing the family car took energy, but you have to make sure that you're getting in the right kind of exercise as well, and by "right kind" we mean - intensity. Okay, so now you're probably wondering, "how do I know how intense my exercise is?" Well, we've got the answer.

 

One of the easiest ways to monitor the intensity of your exercise is by using the ratings of perceived exertion or RPE scale. Whether you are walking, biking, swimming or running, your exercise intensity should be within a comfortable range.

 

Perceived exertion is how hard you feel your body is working. It is based on the physical sensations you experience during physical activity, including increased heart rate, increased breathing rate, increased sweating and muscle fatigue. By using RPE, you will learn to evaluate your internal comfort zone and know when you’re ready to kick it up a bit and increase your intensity.

 

During activity, use the scale of perceived exertion to assign numbers to how you feel. Self-monitoring how hard your body is working can help you adjust the intensity of the activity by speeding up or slowing down your movements.

 

Perceived exertion is assessed by using a 0-10 chart to rate the feelings caused by your exertion. For example, sitting quietly in a chair would have a rating of 0. Walking at a pace that you feel is moderate might increase the rating to a 3. The rating of your exertion should be independent of the pace you think you are walking; it is entirely dependent on the feelings caused by the exertion, which means it is all relative to your own feelings.

10 Point Scale


0 – Nothing at all (sitting on the couch)
1 – Very Light
2 – Fairly Light (comfortable, can maintain for long time, little effort)
3 – Moderate (still comfortable, but breathing harder)
4 – Some what hard (sweating, but can still carry on a conversation with little effort)
5 – Hard
6       
7 – Very Hard
8       
9
10 – Very, very hard

You can increase your exercise intensity as you feel you are ready. It should be a natural progression as your body becomes more physically fit.

 

Time to Develop Your Plan

 

Here are the U.S. Department of Health's recommendations for physical activity to help you make up your own exercise program:

  • Children and adolescents should do one hour or more of physical activity every day.         

  • Adults should do two and a half hours per week of moderate intensity activity, or one hour and 15 minutes per week of vigorous intensity activity, or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous intensity activity. Aerobic activity should be performed in episodes of at least 10 minutes, preferably spread throughout the week.

  • Older adults should follow the adult guidelines. If this is not possible due to limiting chronic conditions, older adults should be as physically active as their abilities allow.

Remember these few things about exercise:   

  • Make it simple 

  • Make it realistic              

  • Make it happen               

  • Most importantly, make it fun!

Exercise is one of the most important commitments you make is to YOUR health and wellness.

 

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