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Is it Time to Change up your Walking Routine?

Walking is one of the best things you can do for your health and there are ways to change it up to make it even better!

Change speeds! This challenges your balance and your muscles more than maintaining one speed for the duration of your walk.

If you walk the same route everyday try reversing it or walking somewhere new. This also helps keep your brain stimulated.

Try to include inclines and declines,( as long as you can do it safely), to work your muscles differently. This can also challenge your balance and posture. Make sure on the inclines you can remain up tall instead of leaning forward.

To work another set of muscles (the backs of your legs), as well as coordination and balance, try to add in walking backwards, safely of course.

Interval walking is a great way to change up your routine. It has both cardiovascular and muscular benefits. Recent studies in Japan found it also improved sleep, mood, metabolism, decreased blood pressure, and reduced age regulated muscle loss. Working on walking faster also helps improve your muscle power and balance.

The Japanese study found 3 minutes of fast walking and 3 minutes of moderate walking for 30 minutes total to be most beneficial, but I would recommended starting out with shorter bursts of fast walking. Example: start with 30 seconds fast walking and then 1-2 minutes of moderate walking.

How fast do you have to walk? Well it is up to you!

For maximum benefit, aim for increasing your heart rate and having a harder time conversing/talking. You will be slightly out of breath. Fast is considered to be 70% of your maximum effort.

For moderate walking speed, you want to be able to catch your breath and be able to walk while having a conversation. Moderate is considered to be 40% of your maximum effort.

Interval walking can be done anywhere, indoors or outdoors. It can be done for any fitness/ walking level. Doing it 3-4 times a week is recommended. I personally think that interval walking makes the time go by fast but also it’s more efficient because you don’t have to spend as much time doing it to be effective!

As always, let me know if you have questions or would like help with changing your walking routine!

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Another reason to add planks and wall sits to your routine

If you have high blood pressure or would like to maintain your current blood pressure planks and wall sits can help! 

A large study done in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that wall sits and planks (isometrics) reduced blood pressure more than aerobic/ cardio exercise, High intensity interval training and resistance training. All of these exercise programs helped to reduce blood pressure but the isometric exercises had the most significant reduction in both systolic (top number) and diastolic (bottom number) blood pressure.

Planks and wall Sits (also known as wall squats) are isometric exercises. Isometrics focus on the tightening/contracting of a muscle or muscle group where the joints don’t move and the muscles don’t change length. This type of exercises uses only body weight in a static position to strengthen and stabilize. 

They key for doing these exercises correctly is to slowly breathe in and out as you do them. You do not want to hold your breather or strain. That would actually increase your blood pressure!

When done correctly, isometrics can improve blood flow through the muscles being used, in turn reducing blood pressure.

Now of course this doesn’t mean other forms of exercise aren’t important but this is good news for a simple way to improve Blood pressure. These exercises can be done anywhere, anytime and you only need a wall to be able to complete. 

Wall sits strengthen glutes(buttock), quads(tighs) and core.

Planks strengthen your back, shoulders and core.

These can be modified if needed. Planks can be done using a wall or counter instead of on the floor. If doing them on the floor you can modify to doing them on your knees and progress if/when able to.

Doing these 3 times a week and increasing how long you can hold them for and work toward doing it 4 times with rest in between is recommended. 

Of course there are always options to make these exercises more challenging such as holding  a weight for a wall sit or changing/varying positions for planks.

If you would like further instruction on how to do these exercises or have any questions contact A to Z Personal Wellness.

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Strength Training: A Prescription for Aging Well

If you aren’t strength training, you should be! It is never too late to start strength training and it will bring numerous benefits at any age. 

Whether you are inactive or active, like exercise or hate exercise, it can make an incredibly positive impact on your life. 

Let’s go over all the ways strength training can help you:

  • Improve your sleep
  • Increase cognition
  • Increase your energy and metabolism 
  • Increase longevity
  • Improve your posture
  • Increase your confidence
  • Maintain independence as you age
  • Increase bone density which reduces risk of osteoporosis
  • Preserve and enhance muscle mass which progressively decreases with age if you don’t do anything about it
  • Improve quality of life
  • Increase mobility
  • Better your balance which decreases risk of falling
  • Improve ability to do daily activities (things like carrying groceries, walking, getting up from a chair, getting up and down from the floor, going up and down stairs, housework, gardening, etc)
  • Manage and/or prevent chronic conditions such as arthritis, back pain, heart disease, depression, diabetes, osteoporosis and more!
  • Decrease blood pressure
  • Prevent injuries
  • Enhance your pickleball or golf game
  • Be an active grandparent

The good thing about strength training is that it doesn’t have to take a lot of time and it can be done anywhere.  2-3x/week is recommended. 30 minutes is recommended, but even 10 minutes can make a difference. There are many strength training exercises that can be done solely with your body weight. It is usually best to start with bodyweight exercises and then progress to adding resistance bands or free weights such as dumbbells, kettlebells, medicine balls, ankle weights  and suspension trainers (like TRX). 

Resistance bands are great because they are lightweight, don’t take up much space, are inexpensive, can be used at home or when traveling and can be used in a variety of ways targeting all large muscles groups. 

Strength training is not just for people that want big muscles or want to look good. It is for everyone and every body. It should not be painful so it is about finding ways to make it work best for you and your body. If you have good muscle strength you will be able to function at a much higher level (doing all the things you want and need to do) for much longer. 

If you are unsure of how to start strength training or if what you are doing includes strength training contact A to Z Personal Wellness.

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Tips for Traveling and Fitting Exercise in this Holiday Season

The holidays are right around the corner, which is exciting, can be stressful, very busy, and can throw us off of our routine. I know for me, it is harder to make time to exercise. It is even harder to keep up with an exercise routine if you are traveling. Here are some tips to keep exercising during this busy and fun holiday season.

If you are traveling by car, take breaks every 2 hours to to walk/stretch. This will help decrease aches and pains and keep your body happy. If in a car or a plane, pump your ankles (point your toes up and then down) to get blood flowing. Even if you are on a plane, try to move around/walk a little bit, at least every 2 hours.

Drink water! – I know I say this a lot, but while traveling it is easy to get dehydrated, especially if you are traveling by plane. Staying hydrated keeps your joints lubricated, gives your more energy and the list goes on with all of its benefits.

Keep your medications organized and stick to your routine. Being out of your normal routine can also cause a change in when you take your medications but it is best to take the same dose at same time to avoid any negative effects.

If you are staying overnight somewhere, make sure there is a night light or light switches that are very easy to access and that you have a clear path from your bed to the bathroom. This will help prevent tripping or falling in a dark and unfamiliar area.

Try to fit in exercises in short bouts if you don’t have enough time to do your regular routine. “Exercise Snacking” is great during the holidays. If you are in the kitchen cooking, do some marching in place or side stepping. Practice standing on one leg while you brush your teeth. Each time you stand up from a chair try to avoid using your arms so that your leg muscles do the work. If there are stairs where you are, try going up and down them 2, 3 or more times in a row or doing step-ups on the bottom step. Another option when driving places is to park farther away to get more steps in.

Examples of some exercises that you can do in a hotel, while staying at a friend or relative’s, or at your own home are:

Wall push ups

Squats

Heel raises

Toe Raises

Marches

Standing on one leg for balance

These can be done anytime throughout the day and they don’t have to be done all at once.

If you want to keep resistance exercises in your routine, resistance bands are easy to travel with because they don’t take up much space, they are light and you can use them for core, upper and lower body exercises.

You know the saying, “use it or lose it.” Don’t lose it this holiday season!

For an individualized exercise program or more exercise snacks that you can do anytime and anywhere during the holiday season contact A to Z Personal Wellness.

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Benefits of Small Group Training

Meeting with a personal trainer one-on-one may be intimidating to some people. It can also be intimidating to start a group fitness class that has a lot of participants. If either of these sound like you, you might benefit from small group training. 

There are many benefits to small group training, such as:

  • Exercise programs are designed by a personal trainer to meet your individual needs and goals
  • The small group allows for camaraderie which can also increase motivation, accountability and make it more fun 
  • The personal trainer is able to build a connection with each individual and give proper attention to each participant’s form and other needs which prevents injury, increases safety and effectiveness of exercises
  • Trainer can offer more personalized attention for modifications or progressions of exercises
  • You can meet new people or sign up with a small group of friends 
  • Some group fitness classes may be too easy or too hard but a small group training class will be just the right challenge for you
  • It can be more financially friendly which is always a welcome perk

If you have any questions or would like to know more about small group training offerings contact A to Z Personal Wellness.

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