exercise as therapy

exercise as therapy

Exercise is now recommended for more than sports conditioning. Health providers are recommending it for therapy for everything from obesity to depression.
There once was a time when you saw someone exercising or working out that you could assume they were either training or conditioning themselves for participation in sports, or simply for their own physical health benefits. While that is still often the case, exercise is now used for so much more than training, or even physical health improvement.
Exercise is now looked to to help treat and prevent illness. Exercise therapy has been defined as any regular physical activity that is performed to improve health, but "health" can encompass mental as well as physical health. Here we will look at various ailments and see how exercise therapy can aid in the healing or prevention of them. It is important to note that before beginning any exercise routine you should consult with your physician as to what would be appropriate for you.

Obesity: We've always known that more physical activity can help us burn those calories and either shed or prevent the onset of a few extra pounds. Daily physical activity helps to offset the daily caloric intake. To prevent weight gain, exercise as a brisk daily walk will do the trick. If your goal is not simply to prevent weight gain, but to lose what is already there you will want to progressively increase that walk, both by distance and by speed. If you are extremely overweight or out of shape do not jump into strenuous aerobic exercise. Studies have shown that the health benefits of exercise can be achieved with low intensity exercises such as stairclimbing, walking and even gardening. Low intensity exercises not only give the benefits of burning calories, they also improve strength, flexibility, cardiovascular function and your mood!
Diabetes: Physical activity has actually been proven to help those suffering from diabetes. Exercise does this by improving circulation in the body and lowering blood sugar levels. Some that have suffered from diabetes were able to reduce their insulin intake after starting and sticking with an exercise program. Others that began a program when they were borderline diabetics were able to stay off medicines completely. One study has shown that when diabetics added weight training to their exercise regimen their blood sugar levels began to stabilize and their medication worked more efficiently.
High Cholesterol: When we think of fighting high cholesterol, we immediately think of changing our diet, which is definitely one of the first things we need to alter. But along with adding proper nutrition to our lifestyle we should add an exercise program. How will exercise help? Exercise raises the HDL (good) cholesterol in our bloodstream. The HDL helps clear away the LDL (bad) cholesterol. Any exercise will raise HDL levels even a little, but if you want to reap the true benefits of exercise's cholesterol lowering capabilities, it is recommended that you get 30 minutes of vigorous exercise three to four times a week. Caution: The problem with this is that many people with high cholesterol have been only moderately active for some time so it is best to start out with something simple like brisk walking. Again, it is very important to speak with your physician before adding exercise to your daily routine.
High Blood Pressure: Being physically active can reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure by as much as 52%. The best exercise therapy to begin with for those with hypertension is walking.
Stress: Exercise has long been known to be a stress reducer. Why? Vigorous activity increases our pulse rate and blood flow and helps use up the adrenaline in our bodies that is put there in stressful situations. Although vigorous or aerobic exercise works best for stress reduction, even a walk or brisk walk will help alleviate stress.
Depression: Exercise can help people beat depression for a number of reasons, some of which we can prove and understand, and some of which we can't. What is proven? Physical activity and exercise causes the body to release endorphins, which are naturally occuring chemicals in the body that are known to elevate moods. Other ways exercise can help overcome depression are speculative, yet real to all of us who have experienced them. Our moods are lifted after activity because we've accomplished something we set out to do, which increases our self-esteem. Perhaps we are in a better mood because we are improving our physical appearance and condition, or simply because exercising takes our mind off the problem that was causing our depression in the first place. Regardless, we do know what can't be scientifically proven, and that is that exercise can raise our spirits.
So we've seen how exercise can be used as therapy in a variety of situations, but what exercise is best? That should be decided by you and your care-giver, who knows your overall health and what your limitations may be. But let's take a look at just some of the many forms of exercises that are commonly used as therapy.
Walking: Walking is probably the easiest way for a sedentary person to begin an exercise program. Anyone can do it regardless of money or space constraints and it usually is ok regardless of most physical conditions, but check with your doctor first.
Aerobic activity: Any activity that raises the heart rate and sustains it for at least 20 minutes is considered aerobic, whether it's jogging alone or dancing with a class. If you are looking to greatly improve cardiovascular function or lose weight, aerobics are usually recommended. For optimum cardiovascular benefits, exercise must become a permanent part of a daily/weekly routine. However, it is imperative you get approval from your physician before starting an aerobic program, especially if you have been sedentary.
Weight training: Weight training helps build muscle tone, condition the body, and reduce stiffness. For years it has also been known to strengthen our bones and help prevent osteoperosis or bone loss in post menopausal women. As mentioned previously, it has also been claimed to regulate blood sugar in diabetics.

There are many other forms of exercise that can be explored if you are looking for a type of exercise therapy. There is everything from water aerobics or aquacize to T'ai Chi or Tae Kwon Do in the martial arts fields. When choosing an exercise as therapy you need to first consult your doctor and together determine the results you are looking for. Do you want to improve your mental well-being? Then any form of physical activity will do. Are you looking to increase muscle tone or improve cardiovascular function" Then your therapy needs to get more specific. Be sure to choose an exercise therapy that you will enjoy and be able to stick with. Above all, remember that regardless of the results you are seeking from your therapy, any exercise is better than none.
Now the next time you see someone jogging down the street remember, they may not necessarily be training for the next local marathon. They may be trying to lower their cholesterol, get their blood sugar in check or simply forget about their stressful day.

Must have Shoes for every Woman

Must have Shoes for every Woman

You wont ever hear a woman say she has too much of clothes, love and shoes. Yes, shoes! Every woman loves shoes, and here are a list of must have shoes in every woman?s life?

Marilyn Monroe once said, " I don?t know who invented high heels, but all women owe him a lot." Marilyn Monroe certainly loved her shoes and so does every single woman on the face of the planet. Ask any woman and she will simply say a woman cant have too many shoes, and in spite of there not being any extra space in her closet she will still go shopping for shoes. So it is easy to say that women and shoes have an ongoing love affair. But there are some shoes that are an essential in every woman?s closet, these are: BR>

Low heeled black pumps ? this is the little black dress in shoes, the shoe that goes with every outfit and on any occasion. Every woman should have a pair of low heeled black pumps that she can slip on when she needs to go for a causal dinner, a funeral, a business meeting or even a child?s PTA meeting. This is perfect for those times when you are confused whether you need to wear flats, or sky rocketing strappy stilettos, these are the in between shoes.

Neutral Pumps ? like pink is the new black in clothes, similarly a neutral colored pair of pumps is perfect for every outfit, because as much as we claim that black goes with everything, it does not. A pair of pumps in a neutral color like beige or even tan can be paired with any outfit. Remember that white is not neutral.

Semi-casual flats ? there are days when you want to go casual, but not as casual as sneakers or thongs, then what do you do? This is where the semi-casual flat comes into the picture. Ideal are the ballerina flats that can be pulled of with skirts, dresses, jeans, slacks and almost any outfit.

Black high heeled dressy shoes ? the perfect dressy shoes should be black, sleek, not strappy yet not too chunky. A perfect pair could be a stiletto heeled open toes black pumps, they just ooze sex appeal and can be paired with a dramatic black, red and even white evening dress.

Metallic high-heeled dressy sandals ? now that you have the black dressy heels, what you need is to add some glamour to your wardrobe. This can be done by a pair of high-heeled metallic strappy sandals. They can either be silver or gold depending on the color of clothes in your wardrobe. Ideally silver goes with most like blue, white, black and even red. But gold is better suited for brown, beige and tan colored clothes.

Everyday shoes ? these are the shoes you put on when you want some comfort; it varies for people depending up on their level of comfort. It could be flat sandals, ballet flats, thongs or even sneakers.

Sneakers ? every woman should have the perfect pair of sneakers that she can pull on when she has to go for picnics, walks in the park or for play time with kids. Sneakers don?t mean they have to be boring, you can choose from a wide variety these days. So is the retro high top for you or the basic Nike sneaker?

Knee-High boots ? every single woman should own a pair of boots. Ideally the boots should be knee high and in black, these can be paired with jeans, skirts and even dresses. If you want something more stylish you can choose boots with a stiletto heel.