Health & Fitness Tips

Colorful Choices
When choosing vegetables and fruits, go for a variety of colors. Eat at least 3 servings of dark green leafy vegetables, and red or deep orange fruits and veggies a day. Generally, the deeper the color, the more nutrients it contains. For example, choose spinach or romaine over iceberg lettuce.

A Workout Quiz
Are you able to carry on a free-flowing conversation while working out?
Do you stick to pretty much the same tempo and intensity throughout your workouts?
Do you hardly break a sweat?
Have you been lifting the same amount of weights since you started your exercise routine?
Do you wonder what people mean when they talk about muscle "burn", "fatigue" or "soreness"?

If you answered "yes" to just one of these questions, then you won't see optimum results from your workout program. Deciding to exercise is only the beginning. You then must learn how to do it efficiently. Think of your body as a car engine. You can either turn it on but then circle around the block, or . . . you can blast down the superhighway!

Eat Protein
Try to eat at least 1 gram of protein per lean pound of body weight daily. This is critical for people engaging in high-intensity resistance exercise because they increased amounts of protein to support muscle growth. Eat right and treat your body with respect. Proper exercise is great for you, but will not counteract bad eating habits.

Focus on Form
While you should always challenge yourself by increasing your weight, you must also perform the exercises using good form. Never sacrifice form for heavier weights. You'll benefit more from doing the exercise properly with a lighter weight, than doing it improperly with a heavier one.