Work it off (volume two) ....

Diet and Exercise. This week we're going to focus on five more techniques and tips that will help you to maximize your time spent exercising.

According to a survey of 3,000 professionals certified by the American Council on Exercise, there are ten common mistakes that people are making as they are working out at the gym or at home. This week we'll take a look at the second five.

1. Not drinking enough water. If you've not heard this from us, be sure and check out the archives. Don't let thirst be your guide. Drink water well before thirst sets in.

2. Leaning too heavily on a stairstepper. Doing so can be harmful to your back and wrists. Try decreasing the intensity of the session to the point where you can keep good posture and only lightly rest your hands on the rails. Once you've mastered this speed, you can increase from that point on.

3. Not exercising with enough intensity. Assuming you are properly hydrated, your exercise should be intense enough to cause you to lightly perspirate. Check your heartrate to see that you are getting it into the target zone. If you don't know yours, first calculate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. Your target zone should be sixty to ninety percent of that number.

4. Jerking while you are lifting weights. Jerking weights is a sign that you are using too much weight or too many reps. An exercise must be done correctly to be beneficial. Jerking weights is your body's attempt to use your back to compensate for a lack of strength elsewhere.

5. Eating energy bars and drinking sugary sports drinks. These items are very helpful for extreme athletes who are working out more than two hours at a time. If you are like the average exerciser and you consume these items, you're really only creating more work for yourself down the road.

I mentioned this in a previous issue and want to mention it again. I really feared starting to workout again because of the soreness I had experienced in years past. I began to take R+ Alpha Lipoic Acid (http://www.ralapure.com) and my soreness was minimal. At age 43, it had been ten years since I had been to the gym and I expected the soreness to be worse than a decade before.

Do what works for you, but if the fear of not being able to tie your own shoes the day after your first workout is keeping you from exercise (like it was for me), you may want to give it a shot!

References:
http://www.acefitness.org/default.aspx American Council on Exercise
http://www.gannett.com Gannett News Service

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