Sweating -- Your Body's Cooling System

Most people realize they sweat more when they exercise and that in order to stay healthy, they need drink water. However, many people aren't aware of how much water they need to drink and why it's important to so.
When engaged in physical activity, body temperature rises as much as 3 degrees. Your body's natural cooling system, sweating, kicks in to lower body temperature. Under extreme exercise and heat stress, a body can lose 1/2 a gallon of water per hour. If the lost water is not replaced, dehydration occurs and serious consequences may follow.
To understand what happens, I'll use the analogy of your car. When your car's cooling system is running smoothly, excess heat from the engine is transferred to the water in the tubes, which goes to the radiator to be cooled by the air. The cooled water goes back to be heated once again by heat drawn from the engine. If there is not enough water in the system to allow for proper heat dissipation, your engine overheats, your car stops running, and you are left cursing at the side of the road.
Now picture your body as the car-- your muscles are the engine, your skin is the radiator and your blood vessels are the water tubes that connect the engine with the radiator. When your cooling system is running smoothly, excess heat from your muscles is drawn into your blood vessels where is circulates to your skin. Evaporating sweat draws heat away from the blood vessels. The cooler blood then recirculates throughout the body, lowering body temperature.
When too much water is lost through sweating, your blood volume decreases. This decreases blood pressure which, in turn, reduces blood flow between the muscles and skin. To overcome this, your heart rate increases. Because less blood reaches the skin, heat loss is reduced and the body overheats. Just like your car, your body can quit running.
If you fail to replace the water you lose, you run the risk of becoming dehydrated. When a person is dehydrated by more that 4% or 5% of body weight, their exercise performance declines by 20% to 30%. Not only that, the impact of dehydration on the cardiovascular system can produce heart problems in people with coronary heart disease and diabetes. Dehydration is also hard on the kidneys.
How do you prevent your body from "breaking down"? It's simple. You need to put in as much water as is going out. Sweating is not the only way you lose water. Another is through respiration-- you lose water every time you exhale. This water loss increases as your physical activity increases because you breathe more. So if you are just replacing how much you are sweating out, it's not enough. Also if you just drink when you are thirsty, you aren't getting enough water because thirst alone isn't the best measure of a body's fluid needs.
Generally speaking, you should drink water before, during, and after exercise. Drinking about 2 cups (16-oz.) of water one hour before, and 1 cup 1/2 hour before is a good start. Then you should drink 1/2 cup to 1 cup or more, every 15-20 min. The amount depends on the air temperature, your body weight and how hard you are exercising. Drink up! Show the people you exercise with that you know how to keep your body running!

Staying Fit for Travel

Does your workout routine get out of whack when you travel? With a little planning and determination, you can maintain your fitness level no matter where you land. "Many people don't realize the benefits of exercising when they're traveling," says Angela Settle, a Chicago-based personal trainer, and creator of the video, 30-minute Hotel Room Workout. "It can help reduce trip stress, burn extra calories from business meals and help ease the transition into your routine back home. It can also help you maintain regular sleep patterns in foreign beds and minimize effects of jet lag." Even shorter-than-normal workouts can make a big difference. Getting creative with travel exercise will add variety to your wellness program. Settle offers the following tips for staying healthy and fit while on the road:
Do a Condensed But Intense WorkoutCreate your own 30-minute, in-room workout by choosing three lower-body exercises, like modified push-ups or chair dips. Warm-up for five minutes by marching or jogging in place, then follow with 10 to 20 repetitions of one low-body exercise and 10 to 15 reps of one upper-body exercise. Next, do one minute of jumping jacks or jogging in place. Repeat this same routine for a second and third set of exercises. After the three sequences, begin a variety of abdominal crunches, low-back lifts and stretches. Your personal trainer can help choose the right exercises for you.
Rehearse Your RoutineYou want a travel workout that's easy and automatic--so practice it! Be comfortable with your routine before traveling.
Get Active in AirportsFlight delays can benefit your health. Store your carry-on bags in a locker, and hike through the airport while waiting for your flight.
Bring Tubes, Bands and MoreBefore traveling, put any necessary exercise tools in your suitcase, along with favorite fitness videos, comfortable walking shoes, a bathing suit and any other gear you think you might need. Do not forget motivational items, such as written reminders from your trainer or an inspirational audiocassette.
Put in Pool TimeHotel pools work well for exercise. Jogging in the shallow end or dog-paddling in deeper water can elevate your heart rate. When you're traveling, every little bit counts.
Get a Jump RopeJumping rope is a great way to get a short but beneficial cardio workout--and it can be done in your hotel room. Another great alternative: Walk up as many flights of hotel stairs as possible.
Know Your DestinationConsider your destination in advance. Will you be close to a beach, shi resort, good hiking country? by planning ahead, you can come up with appealing adventures. (You may even want to stay extra days to exercise your interests!)
Plan to RelaxDo not expect relaxation to happen naturally while you're traveling. Bring soothing audiocassettes and do relaxation breathing exercises on the plane, before you go to sleep and after you wake up. Yoga and t'ai chi exercises also can help you relax at night and rejuvenate in the morning.
Pack Healthy GoodiesBring bottles water, raisins, fruit, vegetables, whole wheat crackers and other healthy snacks. Avoid alcohol, caffeine, soda and salty snacks, all of which dehydrate you. Drink eight ounces of water every hour to help tires, dehydrated muscles.
Ease Back Into Your RoutineDepending on how hard you worked out while traveling, gradually get back into your usual routine. You may want to use lighter weights or decrease intensity or duration of your cardio workout for a week or two before returning full force.

Fitting Fitness into Your Busy Schedule

Do you know about the benefits of exercise and the risks of inactivity, yet still find it difficult to incorporate physical activity into your lifestyle? If so, you are not alone. Most people have good intentions, but don't seem to find the time, or inclination to exercise. This article is written for you. When you are finished reading it, I hope that you will have found a few tips that you can use, and a way to help you to actually do them.
Your AutomobileWhich do you find more appealing: a) a two-minute drive with long stoplights, heavy traffic and a search for a parking space or b) a ten minute walk where you get to be outdoors and get a chance to slow down and take notice of things? I'm hoping that you preferred the second, otherwise you need more help than I can give you.
Why do we use our cars for such short trips? If safety isn't a concern, then probably it's just force of habit. Really, now, an extra ten minutes won't collapse your day's schedule. Think of the saving in wear and tear on your car--your starter motor will thank you. You know that the walk will do wonders for de-stressing you, so next time you hear that nasty little voice urging you to turn the key and hit the gas pedal--just lock the doors and hoof it!
If you do have to drive around to do errands, make sure to park in the farthest space in the parking lot. This forces you to get an extra few minutes in--remember it all adds up! You also will save a lot of dings and scratches to your car this way.
Your OfficeAt work, why don't you try hand-delivering messages instead of picking up the phone? It's a great way to limber up muscles that have gotten stiff from sitting too long. Also, the recipient of your message would probably appreciate talking with you in person.
The simplest way to increase your physical activity at work is...if there is an elevator, don't use it! If your office is higher than the fifth floor, you are allowed to take the elevator--but only to the floor that is 3-5 floors below yours! Accept the fact that people will give you odd stares. Oh, well. They are concerned with convenience, while you are concerned with staying healthy.
Bring your walking shoes and turn your coffee break into a "stress-reduction and revitalization break". It really isn't that hard to do. Remember, this isn't a cardio workout--you won't get sweaty and have to change your clothes if you walk at a moderate pace for ten minutes. It's best to keep your shoes at work. Every Monday bring five pairs of socks to work and on Friday bring them home. Try to come up with a few different walks. Assess how your body and your mind feel before and after your walk. The benefits will spur you on to continue the habit.
At HomeModern technology has taken the physical activity out of chores. I'm sure that you're happy not to have to mow the grass with a push mower or to use a washboard for clothes. That's o.k. But you need to replace that lost physical activity with something else. When watching television, use commercial breaks to climb the stairs five times. Take "physical breaks" from the desk or computer to tone your muscles for five minutes with some easy strength-training exercises. With a little creativity, you can think of some ways to combat being a high-tech slug and move around more!
In order for you to actually incorporate any of these ideas, you must first change your attitude about them. If the "little voice" in your head automatically dismisses a potentially good one for you, remember not to listen. Usually it's a feeble excuse to keep things as they are.
"Not enough time" is the primary excuse for remaining inactive. You Do Have Time! Five or ten minutes isn't going to effect anything. If it is, you are in serious need of some time management consulting. "Too tired" is the second most common excuse. Sitting all day will make you feel tired and sluggish. A little physical activity will blast oxygen to your brain and muscles, thus revitalizing you. Also, it is one of the best ways to combat excessive stress and anxiety--our bodies were designed to use physical activity as a response to stress (fight or flight).
For any of the other excuses you come up with, just remember, they are only that. Acknowledge them for what they are—and do it anyway. Think of how important it is to your health that you add this crucial physical activity into your lifestyle.
Think Physical Activity, Not ExerciseDo you find yourself making excuses for not exercising? Here are some tips to make it a more enjoyable experience. Do you find that you say to yourself "I hate to exercise"? That's o.k. Many (or most) sedentary people feel this way. If that's the way you feel then don't exercise. All you really are trying to do is increase your physical activity. You must change your attitude if you are to succeed. Don't think exercise, think physical activity. And when you think of physical activity, think of a fun recreational activity that just happens to include moving your body.
WalkingWalking is the easiest and most popular way to increase your physical activity. If you think walking would be something you might want to do more of, but haven't got around to it on a consistent basis, you need to think of ways to make it fun. I'm going to throw a phrase at you that I will use again in this article: If it's Not Fun, it's Not Done.
Find an interest of yours that could be taken into the walk. How about strolling through the neighborhood to check out the gardens? Or who got a new car? Or what houses are being refurbished? I'm sure you can think of something. Remember to tell yourself this is the reason for the walk.Are there birds you would like to know the names of? Buy a bird guide and use that to identify the ones you see on the walk. Keep track of how many different species you see.
Who says you have to move the same way throughout the walk? I don't know about you, but I find that walking the same way all the time isn't very fun. For variety, I like to do intervals of something different: walk faster (by taking shorter, quicker steps), walking sideways, (right foot behind left, left, right in front of left--then face the other way and left behind right, etc.) and walking backwards (hey, it's great for the front of the thigh and for improving balance). My 71 year old mom, when first attempting backwards walking, thought it was a little strange. Now she does it at the end of each walk--and gets a kick out of the looks she receives!
Do you have a piece of cardio equipment that is currently being used as a clothes rack? Do you like to watch movies? (and what do these two questions have in common?) Get videos to watch when you're on the treadmill, bike, stairclimber, etc. Buy, swap with friends or rent from the library (you get them for a week). Then only watch that movie when you are on your cardio machine. This is a great way to stick to your workout and to make it a lot more fun. You'll find that when you are absorbed in a movie, the minutes fly by. As the suspense increases, so will your speed. You may even find yourself staying on a little longer just to see the end of a scene.
Strength Training, the Most Time-Efficient Way to Better Fitness I'm sure that you have come across articles telling you how great strength-training is (a.k.a. resistance training, weight training). Well believe them, because they are true. If you're looking for a really quick, easy and efficient way to better fitness, this is it. You can add muscle or tone up what you already have, effectively drop extra body fat, and prevent or even reverse certain diseases, all in 1/2 hour, twice a week! You don't need fancy equipment, elaborate exercises, or a membership at a gym. There is a simple, safe and inexpensive ways to train at home...the Portable Strength-Training Kit
Family Recreation--Quality Time and Better Health in One ActivityWhat types of things does your family do for recreation? Watch television? Have a barbecue? Why not replace a few hours a week of your more sluggish activities and try something a little more physical. If it's important for your family's health, can't you arrange your priorities and squeeze in some physical fun? Then you will truly be spending some quality time. Kids aren't very interested in doing something that's good for their health. They need a better motivator (and so do you). Remember, If it's Not Fun, it's Not Done.
Walking is a good physical activity for starters. Try using the techniques mentioned before. Also, you can add things like follow the leader--each family member gets to lead for 5 minutes. Set rules ahead of time for what is allowed. Ideas are: walk "tightrope" on the curb, walk up and down on the curb, hop to sidewalk lines, weave in and out of trees--there are lots more.Have each member of your family come up with four ideas.
If you are lucky enough to live near a state park or forest area, hit the trails in a fun way. Use nature walks as a way of counting how many different birds, animal, flowers, etc. that you can find. After deciding on a category and going over an identification guide, give each family member a check-off list on each walk (don't say "hike"). Decide on a healthy reward for the member with the most sightings.
How to Stick With Your Physical Activity PlanI hope that you've found a handful of ways to add a little more physical activity into your lifestyle. Now you need to come up with a few ways to make sure that you do them.
The Contract
Personal trainers love to use contracts to get clients to commit to their plans. We find them to be useful for targeting the type and amount of physical activity to be done in a certain time frame, with a reward named for compliance.
When giving Family Fitness Workshops, I find that the contract is very popular. (If you are single, simply make one out for yourself and possibly some friends) First, have your family brainstorm physical activities with a duration of 30 minutes or more that they would enjoy and that can realistically be done. Come up with a minimum number of sessions you would like to perform in a month. Next agree on a healthful reward (go to the movies, buy a new video, cd, etc.) Then fill out the contract and have each family member sign it. Post it in a visible place.