Good Foods and Bad Foods

How do you tell the difference between a good food and a bad one? The answer is that there are no bad foods. I believe in everything in moderation. One chocolate chip cookie isn’t going to do you any harm at all; it’s the rest of the box of cookies that really does the damage! If you can eat one and be satisfied, great—lucky you! Most of us mere mortals cannot resist the temptation and just have to delve deeper into the package.

There are, of course, healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and if you educate your stomach and palate and get used to low-fat foods, even chocolate loses its appeal—I promise! Speaking as someone who used to devour two or three chocolate bars a day, I always considered myself lucky that I rarely gained weight; that is, until I got to 30, when, it seems, all my bad habits finally caught up with me. Suddenly I had to start watching what I ate, and chocolate was the first thing to go. It took me about four weeks to stop wanting a chocolate fix, but now I don’t even miss it. I have strayed a couple of times, only to find that I still can’t have just one chocolate on its own. So for me the only way to do it is to not have any at all. As for other so-called bad foods such as fast foods and french fries, if you have them only once in a while, you won’t suddenly put inches on your thighs after just one meal. If you develop a taste for them and have them regularly, however, the inches will start to pile on.

Are You Pushing Yourself Too Hard?

You want to strengthen your muscles to help you in everyday life, so you don’t need to lift heavy weights and suffer resulting pain. With aerobic exercises, you should always feel comfortable and able to do more; with strength exercises, you should feel really challenged by the end of each set. When you do the exercises—although I have suggested the number of repetitions you should do—you may need to vary this to suit your own ability. If you are doing ten repetitions of something and then stopping, that represents one set. At the end of the set, if you feel as if you could have done a few more, then you have not worked hard enough. If you don’t really challenge the muscle, it won’t improve. If ten is the absolute maximum you can do and the last one is painful, then you are working too hard and should stop at eight or nine. complete it properly. You should avoid this stage since your muscles are likely to be very sore a day or two later and you may injure yourself. It is very important when doing strength work that you work to fatigue, not failure.

There is a difference between fatigue and failure. Fatigue means that the muscle feels tired after you have completed the set and that you feel you have really achieved something. This is the level you want to aim for. Failure means that the last exercise (repetition) in the set was painful and that you couldn’t complete it properly. You should avoid this stage since your muscles are likely to be very sore a day or two later and you may injure yourself. It is very important when doing strength work that you work to fatigue, not failure.

The toning exercises I have devised can easily be done at home. They should take approximately 15 minutes or less, including some warm-up and stretching exercises. There are two programs, although some of the exercises are the same in both. The programs have been carefully designed to balance muscle strength evenly to promote good posture.

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Choose Your Exercise

Because of the obvious limitations of this article, I am going to suggest that you choose your aerobic exercise from the following list. Choose two aerobic activities and do these twice per week. Make sure you use your exercise chart to schedule them so that you don’t keep putting them off. Think of your exercise sessions as appointments that you must keep.

Power Walking. This involves both taking longer strides than you do when you walk normally and moving your arms as well as your legs, so that you can build up some momentum.

Jogging. Do this at a comfortable level that you can maintain. If you start to get breathless and unable to speak, reduce to a power walk. Make sure you wear some good running shoes, particularly if you are running on a concrete surface.

Swimming. When swimming, make sure that you use your legs as well as your arms. Try keeping your arms by your sides and just using your legs for some of the time. It doesn’t really matter which stroke you use; choose the most comfortable for you, or better still, vary it every few lengths.

Cycling. Cycle at a comfortable level and try to choose a route that you can manage without stopping. Make sure you know what is around the corner. It may feel great going down a hill, but don’t forget that you will have to get up the other side. Always wear a safety helmet and make sure that your bike is in good working order before you leave.

Stationary Cycling. This is one of the few workouts where it is possible to take your pulse rate fairly accurately. Pedal for at least five minutes, until you can feel you are perspiring and slightly breathless. Now take your pulse to see how hard you are working, using the maximum training heart rate guidelines. If you get bored, try putting the bike in front of the television and watching a video or a favorite program.

Stair Climbing. Step machines are relatively new, but very valuable, additions to home exercise equipment. As with stationary bikes, you can place them in front of the television or exercise while listening to music. They are available with frames to hold on to, or in smaller versions that have just the footpads. If possible, go for the larger variety, as the range of leg movements is greater. If not, make sure you try to use your arms as well.

Bench Stepping. Bench stepping involves stepping up and down on a small bench. Always choose a step that has adjustable heights since you may need to start out at four or six inches, as opposed to the maximum height of eight inches. Most steps come with an instructional video—if your step doesn’t, you should buy one in order to ensure you are using a good technique. Although the step has been associated with knee injuries, improper step techniques have been responsible in almost all cases. Practiced properly, it is an excellent form of cardiovascular exercise. You could also join a step class, but make sure that the instructor teaches you properly.