What is exercise?
Exercise contributes to daily energy expenditure, which is the number of kilojoules a person burns. Each day exercise can help to balance out the energy we consume from our food intake.
The duration, frequency and intensity of exercise are factors to consider when estimating the number of kJs burned and how physical activity and specific types of exercise can play a role in general health & well being as well as specifically, weight loss/gain and management.
We all need to engage every day in some form of physical activity whether it is deliberate/organised activity or incidental movement from daily life such as moving from here to there or putting a plate on the sink. In discussing "exercise", most people think of the former as in incorporating a walk into daily routine or doing a class at the gym. In this post, this form of exercise will be discussed.
As with the diet, a "balanced" exercise programme throughout the week will provide numerous benefits - physical such as maintaining muscle mass; physiological such as improving digestive or heart function; psychological such as "clearing the head" and change of environment to improve mood.
Recommendations are for adults to do 150–300 minutes of moderate and/or 75–150 minutes of vigorous activity per week.
Overall, this equates to approximately 30–60 minutes a day of moderate physical activity/exercise, or 15–30 minutes a day of vigorous physical activity/exercise.
Moderate exercise refers to anything that is not exhausting, and you get light perspiration e.g., fast walking, easy bicycling, easy swimming.
Vigorous exercise is where your heart beats rapidly and you sweat more than lightly e.g., running, football, soccer, Zumba, vigorous swimming, squash, heavy weight training.
A balanced weekly exercise plan should include:
Cardio 30 - 45 minute daily of moderate level, 15 - 30 minutes vigorous level. As well as helping to burn fat, it also improves and maintains the health of the heart, and oxygenates cells.
Strength training, 2-3 times per week preferably spread over 5 days to allow for muscle group recovery. This includes activities that build strength, endurance and size of muscles using resistance such as lifting weights or doing push-ups. See a qualified trainer to set a programme for you, weights and repetitions or join a group class.
Stretch, this should occur after the muscles have warmed up to avoid damage. If you do cardio and/or strength exercise, stretching the muscles after the class is a must. Your gym will have a stretch regime for you to follow. Other forms of stretch include yoga, Pilates and Body Balance.
If you don't want to join a gym or sports club, then buy, borrow or rent a DVD, view/download from tablet/smartphone app; outside is "free", take a couple of cans of baked beans and start walking using these as hand weights.
Check out your local Council and Community Library for free or inexpensive groups such as walking groups. If you live near a beach, walk in the sand for a muscle workout and then have a swim.
Engage the children and dogs, they both need a walk....
Don't let the excuse "I don't have time", or the weather set you back. Find the time, you will be pleased you did.
Exercise and IBS
There’s evidence that physical activity may reduce symptoms of IBS.
In a 2011 study, researchers found that exercise decreased the severity of symptoms in people with IBS. On the other hand, less physical activity was associated with more severe IBS symptoms.
Another 2018 study found similar results. More than 4,700 adults completed a questionnaire, which assessed their gastrointestinal disorders, including IBS, and physical activity. After analyzing the data, the researchers found that less active people were more likely to have IBS than those who were physically active.
Additionally, a 2015 study determined that yoga scientifically improves symptoms in people with IBS. The experiment involved 1-hour yoga sessions, three times a week, for 12 weeks.
While researchers are still learning how exercise manages IBS symptoms, it’s likely related to:
Stress relief. Stress can trigger or worsen IBS symptoms, which may be explained by the brain-gut connection. Exercise has a positive effect on stress.
Better sleep. Like stress, poor sleep could trigger an IBS flare-up. But physical activity can help you get better sleep.
Increased gas clearance. Regular physical activity could improve your body’s ability to get rid of gas. This could decrease bloating, along with the accompanying pain and discomfort.
Encourage bowel movements. Exercise can also promote bowel movements, which may ease your symptoms.
Better sense of well-being. When you exerciseregularly, you’re more likely to adopt other healthy habits. These habits could minimize your IBS symptoms.
For full article and references see
High-intensity exercises aren’t recommended for IBS. Examples include:
running
competitive swimming
competitive cycling
More intense activities can aggravate your IBS symptoms, so it’s best to avoid them.
Exercise and Leaky Gut Syndrome
One of the main aims of exercise that aids in recovery related to LGS is more to do with reducing inflammation, aiding digestion and therefore allowing the body to heal itself. As LGS can result in other digestive issues such as IBS, a holistic approach is best.
Focusing on reducing pain, coordinated nerve and muscle action and releasing endorphins and other natural body pain relief.
Here are some tips,
Prone Cobra
The prone cobra is a great exercise for opening up and increasing mobility in the thoracic spine. This one exercise can greatly increase your energy levels.
Hip Extension
This is another exercise that is great for the nervous system, especially if you haven’t exercised properly in a while.
Wood Chop
This exercise is great for increasing intra-abdominal pressure which can stimulate digestion. It’s also great for stress relief.
for the full article on how to do the exercises
Exercise and Overall Health
Exercise and a healthy Heart
Maintaining your heart rate is very important for your overall health.
These are the best exercises that help reduce heart rate and give rise to a better lifestyle:
Brisk walking
This particular exercise has been termed as a "natural" exercise as this is what we are conditioned to do. Whether we walk on a treadmill or really get some miles "under our feet" on the track, this happens to be one of the best ways to stay healthy and fit and maintain our heart rate.
Also, this type of exercise can be made enjoyable by wearing comfortable walking shoes, easy clothes, listening to some music. You can do it early in the morning, evening, or even take a late night stroll.
Running
This is another activity that the human body is conditioned to do or perform. Although it poses a greater challenge as compared to walking, running is a good exercise for maintaining your body and overall heart rate.
Apart from that, running helps in reducing weight which in turn decreases the risk of heart problems being developed, for instance, heart attack or any other ailment.
It is recommended that beginners should add in 1 to 2 minutes of running for every 5 minutes of walking to stay fit and once you get into the "zone," one can increase or adjust this time span accordingly.
Swimming
Although a leisure sport for some people, being in water can also play a key role in helping reduce and maintain your heart rate at an optimal level. The water provides multi-directional resistance hence assisting in improving your muscle strength.
In addition to that, swimming is also a safer alternative as compared to walking or running if you are suffering from joint problems.
Cycling
This cardiovascular activity is a low impact exercise that you can do in the gym, or you can even take out your cycle and go on an average paced ride. This would enhance the blood flow to the heart hence helping in a healthy pumping of the heart and also marinating your wellbeing.
Interval or circuit training
For every 3 minutes of cardio, you should do one strength training exercise or a higher-level intensity burst of cardio for 1 minute. Another alternative can be to choose a few strength training exercises and then doing a few rounds of each.
Yoga
This form of relaxing exercise provides a calmness to your body which in turn leads to lower blood pressure, more elastic blood vessels thus leading to a healthier heart.
Core workouts
These exercises help strengthen muscles, provide flexibility and tone the body hence allowing a healthy heart rate to develop which does not increase by doing common tasks, even when doing something as basic as climbing up the stairs.
Being active all day long
By continually working all day long, you as an individual are conditioning your body to work and exercise hence leading your body to become accustomed to that particular routine. This helps one stay fit, maintain one's health which in turn leads to a stable and healthy heart rate.
Breathing exercises
By keeping yourself in cool and comfortable surroundings, one should let their body relax. By allowing yourself to calm down both internally and externally, one can then start slow, but deep breathing exercises which would lower your blood pressure, allowing you to completely relax and lead to you maintain your heart rate.
Strength training
An overlooked issue, but exercising with weights or resistance, for example, doing push-ups or sit-ups can be beneficial for our cardiovascular system. Strength training done for 5 to 10 minutes, several times in a week is sufficient for maintain a healthy body and lowering your heart rate.
Exercise, Anaemia and Fatigue
When looking at exercise and anaemia, you are looking at two main things – exercising if you are anaemic and preventing anaemia when exercising.
If you are an athlete exercising at a high level e.g. competitively, and a female in menstruating years you are at a higher risk of anaemia, add moving to a vegan diet, and your risk becomes higher.
If you attend a gym, speak to the trainers about any health risks that you have regarding anaemia in order for them to design a programme for this.
You require energy to do any form exercise, so if you are deficient in iron, folate and/or B12, your energy levels will be lower, you will succumb to fatigue sooner and can risk injuring yourself.
Exercise can cause tears and if you are running on a regular basis, capillaries can tear, increased bruising may be seen and failing to heal.
If you have any concerns, you need to see your GP, get blood tests and work from there. Consulting with a nutrition healthcare professional e.g. sports dietitian or nutritionist and your personal trainers is vital to prevent further anaemia and injury.
The following is taken from the article directed at personal trainers Anemia And Exercise: Pumping Iron or Depleting It? (nfpt.com)
For the full report go to:
Can exercise cause anemia?
Despite physical activity being touted as a healthy way of life, clients who regularly engage in intense exercise bouts may actually place themselves at a higher risk for developing anemia. Researchers at Florida State University published a study in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism suggesting that exercise might induce a blocking effect, inhibiting the body’s ability to absorb iron.
Several conditions have been known to induce iron loss during exercise. Mechanical forces, such as a heavy foot strike (blood cells breaking as a result of running), can lead to exercise-induced hemoloysis. Iron loss often accompanies excessive sweating during extremely intense training. Injuries substantial enough to initiate the body’s immune response are a catalyst for inflammation, adding to the potential of decreased iron absorption.
Can exercise help anemia?
Recent research performed at the Ohio State University Medical Center indicates that regular physical exercise can lead to improvements in anemia, most notably by helping to offset chronic fatigue. However, performing the right kind of physical activity is key. Endurance (aerobic) exercises promote blood cell formation, a process known as hematopoiesis; more blood cells equal an increase in hemoglobin.
If you take on a client whose fitness level is relatively low, it is prudent to start with short training sessions of 10 to 15 minutes, gradually increasing workouts by 5 minutes every 2-4 weeks. If the client responds well, aim for a goal of 30 – 60 minutes, 3-4 days each week.
At least twice a week, a strength-training program can be introduced. A safe starting place is offering 1-3 sets of exercises for the major muscle groups, with 10 to 15 repetitions per set.
Exercise Precautions for Anemic Clients
The anemic client can be coached to understand what fatigue feels like in his own body, thereby knowing when not to push himself too hard when exhaustion sets in. Frequent breaks can help restore energy in the middle of workouts and allow the body to regain strength. Once again, remind the more athletic client to prepare for increased muscle soreness due to an excess of lactic acid buildup in the bloodstream.
The National Academy of Sports Medicine recommends individuals living with chronic anemia abstain from exercise in the presence of chest pain. Anemia can sometimes bring on rapid heart rates or a dangerous irregular heart rhythm.
High-intensity exercise coupled with dehydration may increase the risk of a sickle cell crisis. Trainers might be proactive in moderating a client’s intensity level, making sure he remains within his established safe target heart-rate zone.
Prevention and treatment if fatigue is due to anaemia, needs to be addressed by diet and a check to determine if anaemia is due to any medical cause eg. internal bleeding.
You can continue to do some form of movement but you need to address underlying conditions before returning to regular, more intense exercise.
Yoga, light supported exercise, stretches, and walking will keep you active without exerting beyond your current condition.
Exercise, Viruses, Illness in general - Do I exercise when I am ill?
Short answer is yes and no!
Firstly, you need to let your body divert its energy into supporting your immune system and healing itself regardless of whether you have a bacterial infection eg. gastrobug, a viral infection eg. cold, a rash or hayfever/sinus/asthma. Secondly, if you are exercising with others, don't share your bugs!
This is especially so if you attend a public gym. Other patrons don't want to risk illness and the staff certainly don't! I used to work at Curves and I didn't hesitate to follow someone around the circuit with a bottle of disinfectant! The 1.5m rule is still in play at at gyms. Follow your gyms rules.
However, Exercise/Activity does help with mental health as it releases endorphins - "Happy Hormones", so going for walk in the fresh air will certainly be of benefit. A happy brain will result in a happy immune system and a happy overall you. Get some sunshine, activated vitamin D will also help with mind and body. Children and dogs will also benefit from a walk and fresh air. Obviously with current pandemic still in play at so follow your countries guidelines on this.
Illness will pass with self care and you can get back to the gym or other group exercise asap.
If your gym is still closed, you can set up your own home gym and if possible, stick to times that you would usually go. If home with children, include them. The dogs still need walking, check permitted activity in your country.
Exercise and Type 2 Diabetes
This topic focuses on Type 2 diabetes, however, all types of diabetes treatment and management requires an exercise/movement programme. I would recommend that once you have had a full check up with your GP/Diabetes Nurse educator, you need to consult a Personal Trainer who can then assist you with a suitable exercise plan for you and your needs. You need to enjoy the exercise and be able to fit it into your life.
If there is excess glucose circulating in the blood due to pancreatic fatigue, reduced or exhausted supplies of Insulin and the glucose is not being used as fuel in the cells, exercise can assist in managing Type 2 diabetes through weight loss (if needed), reduction of stress levels (conscious or unconscious stress), decreasing cortisol levels and generally improving mood.
There are many reasons and benefits to introducing an exercise programme into your Type 2 diabetes management plan
Exercise should involve Resistance training, Cardio and Stretch/Relaxation.
See discussion above for information on exercise types.
See discussion below for more information on weight loss
Summary
Exercise and weight loss
I shall start by encouraging all to move - physical activity covers both organised exercise and sport as well as movement to keep the body functioning and incidental exercise such as housework, shopping and moving from point A to point B.
When people want to lose weight they automatically assume that if they join a gym and do heaps of cardio, they will lose weight. This is true if you have not been exercising and have been consuming too many calories.
But what if the "eat less, move more" adage isn't working for you?
The topic at the top of this page discusses types of exercise and the balance is vital. Did you know some bodies store food instead of using for energy right there and then when they exercise and the brain "thinks" it needs to hold on to for another day... your brain doesn't realise that you are exercising to lose weight not running away from danger!!!
It is important then to do exercise (organised/set) to match your brain as well as your body...this is a combined effort with gym staff/PT and dieticians and nutritionists specialising in sports nutrition.
You need to decide what do you want to do?
Losing weight with correct exercise routine is realistic....
Remember too - its not just the kilograms - make sure you measure your waist circumference and you % body fat. Try to do this monthly to catch any 1- 1.5Kg gains and to know when you reach your preferred weight, centimetre and body fat % (note realistic weight and weight loss is not the same as our preferred gold standard weight!).
Weight bearing Exercise - how does it relate to vitamin D, calcium and bone health and weight loss & maintenance?
Weight-bearing exercises (such as dancing, running, skating) help to build bone density and mass in childhood and adolescence, lowering vulnerability to osteoporosis later in life. Research has shown that physical activity during childhood and adolescence has a positive relationship to bone density. In girls, the bone tissue accumulated during the ages of 11 to 13 can set them up for good bone density post menopause when oestrogen levels decrease. Oestrogen is a factor involved in bone density and osteoporosis prevention. (https://www.healthandbone.ca/.../osteoporosis-prevention)
There are two types of osteoporosis and general bone health exercises that are important for building and maintaining bone density: weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercises. Weight-bearing exercises include activities that make you move against gravity while staying upright. Weight-bearing exercises can be high-impact or low-impact. High-impact weight-bearing exercises help build bones. When we do muscle strengthening exercises, the movement against the bone stimulates new bone growth. So, it is important to do both types of exercises for bone health. (https://www.nof.org/preventing-fractures/exercise-to-stay-healthy/weight-bearing)
Physical activity should include weight bearing exercise (like walking or tennis) and muscle strengthening (resistance) exercise (such as lifting weights). Making sure you get enough calcium-rich food each day. Plus enough vitamin D, which helps the body to absorb calcium. (https://daa.asn.au/.../smart-eating-fast-facts/medical/osteoporosis)
Weight-bearing Exercises
These exercises include activities that make you move against gravity while staying upright. Weight-bearing exercises can be high-impact or low-impact.
High-impact weight-bearing exercises help build bones and keep them strong.
If you have broken a bone due to osteoporosis or are at risk of breaking a bone, you may need to avoid high-impact exercises. If you’re not sure, you should check with your healthcare provider.
Examples of high-impact weight-bearing exercises are:
· Dancing
· Doing high-impact aerobics
· Hiking
· Jogging/running
· Jumping Rope
· Stair climbing
· Tennis
Low-impact weight-bearing exercises can also help keep bones strong and are a safe alternative if you cannot do high-impact exercises.
Examples of low-impact weight-bearing exercises are:
· Using elliptical training machines
· Doing low-impact aerobics
· Using stair-step machines
· Fast walking on a treadmill or outside
Muscle-Strengthening Exercises
These exercises include activities where you move your body, a weight or some other resistance against gravity. They are also known as resistance exercises and include:
· Lifting weights
· Using elastic exercise bands
· Using weight machines
· Lifting your own body weight
· Functional movements, such as standing and rising up on your toes
Yoga and Pilates can also improve strength, balance and flexibility.
Note of caution
However, certain positions may not be safe for people with osteoporosis or those at increased risk of broken bones. For example, exercises that have you bend forward may increase the chance of breaking a bone in the spine. A physical therapist (physiotherapist) should be able to help you learn which exercises are safe and appropriate for you. (https://www.nof.org/preventing-fractures/exercise-to-stay-healthy/weight-bearing)
Your gym staff can assist in choosing appropriate exercises for general weight bearing. Get children involved in team or individual weight bearing sports/exercise from an early age.
Exercise, Vitamin D and Depression
Another link to exercise and vitamin D relates to the mental aspect and depression. Exercise releases “happy hormones” called endorphins. These help with mood and you may also benefit from the social aspect of attending a group activity from a walking group to a group exercise class at the gym or dance studio. Doing exercise outdoors also improves vitamin D levels and mood. Keeping your bones strong will mean you can get out and enjoy life!
Muscles, Strength and Food - some background information on how this relates to exercise
NB: 1 Calorie = ~4.2 KJ/ 1 KJ = ~239 Calories
Firstly, there are 3 types of muscles in the human body - skeletal, cardiac (heart) and smooth. All have to be fed and exercised to maintain healthy tissue and cells and for the overall functioning of the body. For example, Skeletal muscle helps us move, from small to large movements, maintain positions, involved in metabolism and bone strength. Cardiac muscle, well keeps us alive! Pumps blood around the whole body supplying nutrients, hormones and oxygen to cells and then helps with return of by products, waste products and carbon dioxide for use, re-use or removal. Smooth muscle is found in the digestive, circulatory, urinary and reproductive systems to name a few. On the whole it moves substances such as food, water and other products around, through and out of the body.
We could use the term "exercise" for all the functions that all three muscle types are involved in. The rest of this blog relates to skeletal muscle in terms of food and exercise.
Structure of skeletal muscle
Cells of a muscle are called muscle cell or muscle fibre. Groups of these form larger and larger components eventually making up what we see as a skeletal muscle. We can look in the other direction and see the cell is composed of smaller units that make the muscle contract (then relax).
How does a skeletal muscle assist with metabolism/fat burning?
They can but may be not to the level we have been lead to believe! The body naturally burns (metabolise) more KiloJoules per day to maintain a 1kg of muscle than it does to maintain a 1kg of fat. Therefore, technically, the more muscle you build, the more KJ your body will naturally burn (metabolise) each day at rest.
So, if you build up muscle, in theory you can increase your metabolism and therefore burn more fat.
(Remember its fat you are most likely needing to lose with weight loss NOT muscle mass.)
Research shows that every 2.2Kg of muscle burns about an additional 17-28 KJ per day. This equates to if you wanted to burn 420 KJ extra per day, then you need to add a solid 22-44Kg of muscle to your body — and that’s a lot of muscle.
What are the facts?
· Your body DOES burn more KiloJules maintaining muscle than it does maintaining fat.
· This means that, the more muscle you build, the more KiloJoules your body will naturally burn each day on its own.
· Which means that building muscle DOES increase your metabolism.
· This means that building muscle definitely has the potential to help you lose fat.
1kg muscle vs 1kg fat (adipose tissue)
We've all heard the saying "muscle weighs more than fat" and often used after exercising, when the scales have gone up! As the illustration indicates, 1Kg of muscle weighs the same as 1kg of fat BUT the main difference is Fat occupies more space than muscle.
This is why, when taking any body measurements, you need to measure body fat % and centimetres. The scales are only partially useful as they don't distinguish body components, just an overall weight.
Food and muscles
Certainly proteins will assist in muscle development, nutrition and maintenance but you also need to include fats and carbohydrates in the diet. I would advise that if you are undertaking weight gain/strength, endurance exercise, you increase whole food protein intakes not via supplements- either sold as whole proteins or amino acids.
What to consume also depends upon what you actually want to do in relation to protein, carbohydrates and fat.
Exercises for strength building a muscle gain
I would prefer to suggest that if you wish to build muscle via exercise, that you see a Personal Trainer. Weight gain/strength, endurance does involve weights, kilograms, machines and repetitions and you need to get the correct amounts for your body, gender, age and outcomes.
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