Eating For Health

So many people say they will exercise more as the new year starts.   Always good intentions, they join a gym, go a few times and by late February or early March they stop going or go to the gym rarely.   But one doesn’t have to “go to the gym” to exercise and burn off calories.   Engaging in some simple, everyday activities can put some exercise in your day and help burn off some calories.   Going to the gym is fine and I go a few times a week. But one can also “exercise” in many ways throughout the day.   The goal is to be more active, Sit Less and Move More .   Shape and Self have some ways to “Burn More Calories In A Day”.   Here are a few:    1.  Cook – who ever thought one could “work out” by cooking a meal?   But when you cut, chop and dice you are burning up some calories.    Shape estimates about 128 calories before you sit down to eat. 2.   Cleaning – add in some 25 minutes of cleaning – scrubbin...

Exercise.   Who has time to fit exercise into their day during the holiday season?   And what are the guidelines for how much exercise we should get each day?   A frequently asked question from my students is “How much exercise do I need each day?”   Well, recently, November 2018 to be precise, the federal guidelines on physical activity were updated.   So, what are the latest recommendations and who sets those guidelines anyway? Who sets the guidelines for exercise? The federal government sets guidelines for what we should eat at MyPlate.   A number of federal agencies worked together to update the physical activity guidelines including:   Centers for Disease Control, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, National Institutes of Health and the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.   The guidelines were first issued in 2008 and November, 2018 is the first time the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans h...