Aerobics exercise is defined as “any activity that uses large muscle groups, can be maintained continuously, and is rhythmic in nature.” It is also defined as exercise that increases the need for oxygen. Other common layman names used include Cardiovascular exercise, cardio, cardio respiratory

Some examples of aerobics exercises includes jogging, running, dancing, skiing, rollerblading, bicycling, swimming, aerobics classes (both land and water), rowing, stair climbing, etc.

Aerobic exercises use continuous, rhythmic activity to strengthen your heart and lungs (which make up the cardiovascular system). When you exercise, the muscles demand more oxygen-rich blood and give off more carbon dioxide and other waste. This makes your heart beat faster to keep up. When you follow a program of regular aerobic exercise, over time your heart grows stronger so it can meet the muscles’ demands without as much effort. Both men and women can benefit from cardiovascular fitness. Regular aerobic exercise performed most days of the week reduces the risk of developing or prematurely dying from some of the leading causes of illness and death. Regular aerobic exercise improves health in the following ways:

• Reduced body fat and improved weight control
  
• Lower resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure
  
• Increased HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol)
  
• Decreased total cholesterol
  
• Improved glucose tolerance and reduced insulin resistance
  
• Decreased clinical symptoms of anxiety, tension and depression
  
• Increases maximal oxygen consumption (VO 2max)
  
• Improvement in heart and lung function
  
• Increased blood supply to muscles and ability of them to use oxygen
  
• Lower heart rate and blood pressure (including resting heart rate)
  
• Increased threshold for muscle fatigue (lactic acid accumulation)
  

When planning for aerobic exercise, keep in mind the F.I.T.T. principles (Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type):

Frequency: Number of Exercise Sessions Per Week
Aim for a minimum of 3 days per week with no more than 2 days between sessions. Gradually work your way up to 5 or 6 days per week. Frequency is especially important when it comes to weight loss. The more you exercise, the more calories you will burn. Do not forget the importance of rest and recovery- give yourself at least 1 to 2 days off each week.

Intensity: Speed or exercise workload
The recommended range is 60-85% of your maximum heart rate. This range is called the target heart rate (THR) zone. You can use your THR, the “Talk Test” or Perceived Exertion to make sure you’re working out in a good range (not too easy, not too hard). If you can comfortably answer a question during exercise, while still feeling like you’re exerting yourself, you’re in a good calorie-burning range. This range is ideal for the general health benefits that come with exercise, and for weight loss. See below for an explanation of how to monitor your intensity.

Time: How Long for Each Cardio Session
The recommended time for most people ranges from a minimum of 20 minutes (for simple general health benefits), up to about 60 minutes. Exercise duration should be built up slowly over time. The further you go over 20 minutes, the more calories you are burning, and the more weight you will lose. This 20 minutes does not include a warm up and cool down, which should be included in every exercise session. For example, you might warm up for about 5 minutes, do 20 minutes in your target zone, and cool down for another 5 minutes.
Of course, you might not start an exercise program with a lot of endurance, but you’ll slowly build up. Aim for reaching this time 3-5 days a week.

Type: Activities That Count
Any activity can count as cardio/aerobic exercise as long as it meets the 3 requirements of frequency, intensity and time, you can sustain your target heart rate for at least 20-60 minutes, and do the activity several times a week.

Things to keep in mind:
1. Time can be cumulative: You don’t have to do 60 minutes all at once. You can do several 10-15 minute mini-workouts each day and add them up.
2. If you can’t reach your target heart rate with walking, then add intensity by increasing speed or incline.

Tips To Get The Most Out Of Your Workout

• Choose an activity you enjoy. You are more likely to stick with it.
  
• Warm up for at least 5-10 minutes before starting your activity.
  
• Start slow and listen to your body. Go at a pace that feels good to you.
  
• Cool down at least 5-10 minutes at the end of your activity.
  
• Vary your exercise program to avoid boredom and plateaus.*
  

*Hitting plateaus is normal, especially if you have been doing the same routine for awhile. You should change your exercise routine at least every 6-8 weeks (if not all the time). Changing your routine is crucial to keeping your body/muscles surprised and constantly adapting. They’ll have to work harder, you’ll be challenged, and you’ll burn more calories and build more lean muscle in the process.

How to change your cardio routine:

1. Change the type of exercise you usually do (for example, start running instead of swimming or divide your time between the two activities).
2. Change the duration of your exercise. Try to increase your minutes or occasionally have a shorter (but more intense) workout.
3. Change the intensity of your workouts. This is something you can adjust on a daily basis. This includes working at an incline or harder level, sprint work, distance work, maintaining intensity, or interval work (shifting between fast and easy/recovery intervals).
4. Change all three (or a combination of two) of the first examples for added variety.

Precautions:

• Check with your doctor first if you have a chronic condition, are overweight, a smoker, or if you are middle aged or older and have never exercised.
  
• Instead of trying to exercise through an injury, give it time to heal.
  
• Reduce exercise intensity in response to very hot or humid environments or to altitudes above 5,000 ft.
  
• Especially when it’s hot or cold outside, drink water before, during and after exercise to stay hydrated.
  
• Avoid strenuous aerobic exercise during viral infections such as the flu or upper-respiratory tract infections.
  
• Avoid continuing exercise if you experience chest discomfort, lightheadedness or dizziness.
  

There are various types of training methods, depending on personal preference. Use each of the methods periodically to add variety to your workouts.

• Continuous Training: This is the most common method of sustained aerobic exercise for fitness improvement. There are two types:
  • Intermediate Slow Distance-generally 20 to 60 minutes of exercise designed to improve cardio respiratory fitness and reduce body fat.
    
  • Long Slow Distance- 60 or more minutes of continuous aerobic exercise, typically used to train for sports such as long-distance running.
    

Interval Training: Repeated intervals of exercise (such as jogging or running) interspersed with intervals of relatively light exercise (such as walking). The idea is to add intensity in short bouts that you could not sustain throughout the entire session. This type of training provides a means of performing large amounts of high-intensity exercise in a short period of time. (If you consistently keep a moderate intensity during your cardiovascular conditioning, your body adapts over time, and you’ll find yourself on a plateau.)

• Circuit Training: Working through a series of exercise stations (which could also include strength training), with relatively brief rest intervals between each station. The purpose is to keep the heart rate elevated near the aerobic level without dropping off. The benefit of circuit training is that it is a complete workout- both cardio and strength, which saves time. The number of stations may range from 4 to 10. Here is an example of a beginner circuit training workout:
  

Warm-up / Stretch
(15-20 repetitions ea exercise)
1. Squats
2. Elbow to knee crunch
3. Push-ups
4. Hamstring flexion w/ Swiss ball
5. Plank
6. Lunges
Repeat circuit
Cool down / Stretch

• Aerobic cross training: An individualized combination of all aerobic-training methods, characterized by a variety of intensities and modes. An example of this type of workout would be: In a 40 minute workout, warm up by jogging for 10 minutes, swim for 20 minutes, then cool down by jogging for another 10 minutes. Combining these kinds of activities into one workout at steady or various intensities is a great method of fighting boredom and plateaus.
  

Have fun with your aerobics sessions in this festive season to burn off the extra calories from all the festive food.

Keep in touch!

Yours in sports & fitness,

Albert

berdytan@singnet.com.sg
+65 91110270

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 chicken breast halves
  
• Pinch of salt and pepper
  
• 1/4 cup olive oil
  
• 10 ounces sliced mushrooms
  
• 1/2 can cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup
  
• 250ml chicken stock
  
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
  
• 10 ounces water chestnuts sliced
  
• 3 tablespoons chopped green bell pepper
  
• 1/2 teaspoon leaf thyme, crushed
  
• 1/2 teaspoon leaf basil
  

PREPARATION:

Wash chicken and pat dry; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat; cook chicken slowly until browned, turning to brown both sides. Remove chicken pieces to a baking dish.

Add mushrooms to the skillet and sauté until tender. Add soup to skillet then slowly stir in wine and chicken stock. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover baking dish with foil and bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer, until chicken is tender and juices run clear. Serve with ½ small bowl of hot cooked brown rice.

Stretching is one of the most neglected aspects for improving our overall fitness, preventing injuries and during rehabilitation.

Today, we shall look at how an activity so simple can help us go a long way in our quest to a healthier and fitter body during time of rehabilitation.

During the rehabilitation process, choosing the right type of stretching will have a tremendous effect on the speed of your recovery, while choosing the wrong type could lead to further injury and a very slow recovery.
The recovery process of a soft tissue injury can be broken down into a number of phases and it’s important that the right type of stretching be employed for each phase.

The First 72 Hours, without a doubt, the most effective, initial treatment for soft tissue injury is the R.I.C.E.R. regime. This involves the application of (R) rest, (I) ice, (C) compression, (E) elevation and obtaining a (R) referral for appropriate medical treatment.
Where the R.I.C.E.R. regime has been used immediately after the occurrence of an injury, it has been shown to significantly reduce recovery time.

R.I.C.E.R. forms the first, and perhaps most important stage of injury rehabilitation, providing the early base for the complete recovery of injury.

However, during this phase of the rehabilitation process NO STRETCHING should be used at all. This is not the time to start stretching. Concentrate on the R.I.C.E.R. regime and avoid all stretching or any activity that puts stress on the injured area. Stretching during this early stage of the rehabilitation process will only cause more damage to the injured tissues. Avoid stretching during the first 72 hours.
After the first 72 hours most of the initial swelling will have subsided and you can start with some gentle active rehabilitation techniques. The most effective treatment at this stage is the use of heat and massage, but including light, gentle static and passive stretching exercises after your heat and massage treatment will help to dramatically speed up the recovery process. So what is static and passive stretching?

• Static stretching is performed by placing the body into a position whereby the muscle (or group of muscles) to be stretched is under tension. Both the opposing muscle group and the muscles to be stretched are relaxed. Then slowly and cautiously the body is moved to increase the tension of the stretched muscle group. At this point the position is held or maintained to allow the muscles to lengthen.
  
• Passive stretching is very similar to static stretching; however another person or apparatus is used to help further stretch the muscles. Due to the greater force applied to the muscles, this form of stretching is slightly more hazardous. Therefore it is very important that any apparatus used is both solid and stable. When using a partner it is imperative that no jerky or bouncing force is applied to the stretched muscle. So, choose your partner carefully, they must be responsible for your safety while stretching.
  

The important point to remember during this phase of the rehabilitation process is light, gentle stretching. Never do any activity that hurts injured area. Of course you may feel some discomfort, but never push yourself to the point where you’re feeling pain. Be very careful with any activity you do. Pain is the warning sign; don’t ignore it.
After about 5 weeks of rest, the next phase will be to regain all the fitness components that were lost as a result of the injury. Flexibility, strength, power, muscular endurance, balance, and co-ordination will be the primary focus.
Stay with the static and passive stretching exercises as mentioned above, but also include PNF Stretching.

• PNF stretching, or Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation, is a more advanced form of flexibility training that involves both the stretching and contraction of the muscle group being targeted. PNF stretching was originally developed as a form of rehabilitation and to that effect it is very effective. It is also excellent for targeting specific muscle groups, and as well as increasing flexibility, (and range of movement) it also improves muscular strength.
  

Once you’re over your injury and have started to regain the fitness components that were lost during the injury process, it’s time to focus on making the injured area stronger and more flexible that it was before the injury occurred. To do this, the best types of stretches to use are dynamic and active stretching exercises.

• Dynamic stretching uses a controlled, soft bounce or swinging motion to move a particular body part to the limit of its range of movement. The force of the bounce or swing is gradually increased but should never become radical or uncontrolled.
  
• Active stretching is performed without any aid or assistance from an external force. This form of stretching involves using only the strength of your opposing muscles to generate a stretch within the targeted muscle group. The contraction of the opposing muscles helps to relax the stretched muscles. A classic example of an active stretch is one where an individual raises one leg straight out in front as high as possible and then maintains that position with out any assistance from a partner or object.
  

Make stretching a definitive part of your fitness regime and habit and you’ll go a long way, achieving your fitness goals with a lower risk of getting injured.

Till I write again, have a great day ahead!

Yours in sports & fitness,
Albert
berdytan@singnet.com.sg
+6591110270

Once you’ve committed to getting in shape, there are several things you can do to ensure you’ll achieve your desired fitness goals. There are also some things you should avoid to ensure you stay on the path to fitness and positive lifestyle chabge. Here are some key points that will help you:

Do’s

• Write down your fitness goals. You’re more likely to stick with a program once you have set some specific goals.

• Always strive to eat a well balanced diet that includes ample servings of vegetables and fruit.

• Assess your current fitness level before starting an exercise program. By doing so, you’ll be able to establish goals that meet your specific fitness needs.

• Consider talking with your health care provider before embarking on a fitness program, particularly if you are struggling with a health condition such as diabetes or obesity.

• Supplement your diet with essential fatty acids. You can do this by eating two servings of fish per week.

• Choose alternatives to satisfy your cravings when possible. Consider frozen fruit over ice cream or opt for a mini dark chocolate instead of the whole candy bar.

• Always stretch before and after your exercise routine.

• Don’t over do it! Try doing too much at once and you’ll burn out swiftly. Slowly increase the intensity of your workouts.

• Diversify your workout routine. If you do the same exercises day after day, you’ll quickly tire and are more likely to drop out.

•Work out with a professional trainer, this is the sure way to success.

• Keep healthy snacks available at all times. You’re less likely to grab junk food if something good for you is readily available.

Don’ts

• Over-train. Your body needs time to recover in between workouts.

• Skip breakfast. Eating breakfast will jump start your metabolism and provide you with the energy you need to get through the day.

• Skip stretching.

• Set unrealistic goals. A healthy rate of weight loss is about 1kg per week. If you have 25kg to lose, don’t expect it to come off overnight, you’ll set yourself up for disappointment.

• Compare your successes and failures to others. Everyone is unique, and what works for some may not work for others.

• Work out randomly. Work out regularly to maximize the benefits you’ll reap from a consistent fitness routine.

• Give up. Consider talking to a professional fitness trainer in times of discouragement.

• Forget to reward yourself on occasion.

“It is time for us all to stand and cheer for the doer, the achiever - the one who recognizes the challenge and does something about it.” - Vince Lombardi

Till we speak again. Have a great day ahead.

Yours in sports & fitness,

Albert Tan

berdytan@singnet.com.sg

+65 91110270

No matter how many obstacles you run into, what matters is that you’re able to overcome each of them.

A mistake people make when trying to get healthier is that when they fall off a bit or something happens, they think they “have to start over”. Wrong! When missteps do happen, a better strategy is to simply take two steps forward. You’re still ahead of where you were before, far beyond the starting line.

In tennis, losing one point isn’t the end of the world. It happens to the best of them. In fact, if you can consistently win a few more points that you lose, you may still win the game. With healthy eating and exercising, as long as you’re consistently out-stepping your steps back, you’re ahead of the game. If you expect perfection (and many of us do), you’re setting yourself up for big disappointments and guilt.

Guilt can be debilitating to your healthy habits. When you mess up (or even when things are messed up for you), it’s natural to feel guilty. At that point, you have a choice: to let that guilt plummet you into a cycle that could spit you out worse off than before, or to accept the step back and say “where do I go from here?” Of course, consistent success is still something to strive for. You don’t want a never ending roller-coaster cycle that goes up and down. You should always work hard to keep those steps back from happening. But it helps to be prepared with a plan and a positive attitude for when they do happen.

You might want to look at your current program and see why it’s allowing those landmines to stick around. Use it as a learning process. Ask how you can keep that misstep from happening again.

• Take a walk in the park to clear your head.
• Take a break if you think you’re trying too hard.
• Return to the basics. Are you making it too complicated and tough on yourself?
• Plan ahead for irregularities in your schedule, pack healthy snacks.
• Stay aware of what you’re doing. • Remind yourself of your success so far when you need a boost.

Unlike people who run 10km today because they should have run two yesterday, staying in the game doesn’t necessarily mean doing a lot more to make up for a blunder.

Just make a commitment to do things as right as possible as much as you can.

Have a great day ahead!!! Catch up with you soon.

Yours in sports & fitness,

Albert

berdytan@singnet.com.sg

+65 91110270