Fitness | Silver Magazine

Fitness

Fuelling your body to exercise

Meet Karen Graham, a registered dietitian and a certified diabetes educator. Karen shares her tips in how to properly fuel your body. In a Zoom interview Karen explains about healthy eating into their exercise routine. “I think what’s really important is to have regular meals and snacks. So for snacks, you may not want to have snacks, but regular meals and snacks, if you wish, and that’s the basis of your healthy eating and then your exercise, you build in around that. But you still maintain that regularity in terms of the time, because we know that for people who maybe they’re trying to lose weight or just eat healthier, that having a regular schedule is very important. So I think establish your schedule first.” She further explains, “So really it’s, what’s going to work with your schedule. The most important thing is that you build that exercise into your

Christine Blanchette July 16, 2021

Fitness

Beware the deodorant you choose

Some people sweat more than others. The right deodorant can help. Sweating can be embarrassing, smelly and just downright messy. We’ve all been there. An awkward situation, a really hot day, or a workout at the gym, and all of a sudden our body temperature rises, our face gets red, our palms get clammy, and sweat pours out of our armpits, staining our brilliant white tees. This is the body’s natural response to activity level, stress and extreme temperatures that helps us cool down. What if you were constantly sweating excessively without anything to trigger it? This actually is a medical condition called hyperhidrosis. These people produce more sweat then the average person and they have an over-stimulation of sweat glands. This embarrassing disorder can lead to awkward social situations and can cause people to withdraw from normal daily activities. So what causes it? Hyperhidrosis can be caused by certain

Heather Cross June 24, 2021

Fitness

The boxing workout

Boxing is a great basic sport, but drilling for the actual sport can actually improve your cardio stamina, endurance, coordination, strength, and balance. To help you improve on your boxing skills, we have designed a boxing style circuit mixed with a conditioning round, Tabata style (20 seconds of full on effort followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated eight times). But first, you will need a lesson on the basics: BASIC “FIGHTER STANCE” Keep your feet shoulder width apart and stand diagonally with your lead foot (if you are right handed, your lead foot will be your left leg) slightly ahead. With your hands in a fist, bend your elbows and keep your hands in front of your face. Lean forward slightly, and keep your abdominals tight. Always be ready for action by keeping on the balls of your feet. BASIC PUNCHES All punches include a rotation of the hips

Nichelle Laus May 9, 2021

Fitness

Fascia: What you need to know

Fascia plays a key role in health, athletics and pain management . Keep yours flexible and properly aligned. One of the latest buzzwords in the fitness industry is “fascia,” but do you really know what it is? While it’s a new concept to many, this internal spider’s web has been studied for years and is finally coming to light. Here’s a primer on how fascia impacts your athletic performance, day-to-day living, and effects pain management and injury prevention: Picture yourself prepping a raw chicken breast for dinner. (Don’t get grossed out, I promise this is going somewhere!) Think about the thin, filmy layer that separates sections of the meat— that’s fascial tissue. Fascia covers and interpenetrates every muscle, bone, nerve, artery and vein, as well as all of our internal organs including the heart, lungs, brain and spinal cord. This intricate system exists from head to toe as one contiguous

Melissa Putt April 11, 2021

Fitness

Build a portable home gym

No, you don’t need weights — and bricks and mortar. Just a few pieces of adaptable gear that let you push, pull and get your workout in. Canadian fitness guru Nichelle Laus answers readers fitness questions in Silver and Optimyz Magazines. Q: With the gyms being closed right now, what equipment should I have at home so I can do online classes? A:This is such a great question, and I absolutely love it because it shows that there are people out there who aren’t willing to settle for a life of complacency or laziness just because gyms are closed. It shows people still want to move deliberately and get their exercise in, which warms my heart. Honestly, while gym closures have been hard on us, it’s also been an incredible opportunity for us to grow as coaches because it has challenged us to program on a whole different level. I’ve

Nichelle Laus March 19, 2021

Health

A new emphasis in Canada on Heart Failure

Canada’s first and only patient-led Heart Failure (HF) organisation has created a special patient and caregiver charter to help create awareness with Canadians in general and coordinate healthcare services for HF across the country. The hope is to build national standards through advocacy and education programs for those with or at risk of Heart Failure. HF is a common, chronic heart disease on the rise in Canada, with more than 600,000 Canadians living with HF. Each year, 92,900 Canadians are newly diagnosed – a diagnosis that changes a person’s life forever. People living with HF experience an emotional and physical burden with the disease. Common symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue, and swelling of the ankles and feet. People living with HF experience changes to their lifestyle, may be unable to do all the things they used to and may need to rely more on others. Patients and

Alex Hurst February 2, 2021

Fitness

A transformation after 50

Before my transformation, I did zero cardio and absolutely no weight training whatsoever. I ate three meals a day and my peak weight was 138 lbs. I suffered from anxiety and depression and had little energy, often needing an afternoon nap. In 2012 I stumbled across Tosca Reno’s The Eat-Clean Diet. I started eating six meals a day, making sure each meal had a balance of proteins, carbs and fats. Within eight weeks my weight dropped to 126 lbs and I maintained that weight without any exercise. In January 2013, at the age of 51, I needed a personal challenge. I started an online training and fitness program. It wasn’t long before I started seeing results. Many of the ladies were working towards a figure competition, but I couldn’t imagine getting up on a stage. By October, one of my teammates convinced me to compete with her in grand masters

Carola Della-Mattia February 1, 2021

Fitness

Top 10 Exercise Mistakes

We’ve probably all made at least one of these bloopers when we’ve exercised. Sometimes we’ve learned the hard way. If you’re just getting going with your fitness plan, be sure to remember these mistakes you can avoid! 1 Exercising too hard or too fast. If you exercise for 30 minutes most days, increase speed and distance by no more than 10% per week. 2 Lack of variety. Doing the same workout month after month can lead to fitness plateaus, boredom and overuse strain or injury. Mix up your activities. 3 Doing all or nothing. Not having a full 30–60 minutes to exercise is no reason to skip your workout. Even 10 minutes of exercise is beneficial. 4 Unrealistic goals. Impractical goals often lead to exercise dropout, if not injury. Stick to a plan that suits you—challenging but not so difficult you get discouraged from lack of progress. 5 Not warming up.

Alex Hurst December 11, 2020

Fitness

How to start a fitness journey

Starting a health and fitness journey can seem intimidating at first, but you don’t need to worry. Take it slow and follow these simple suggestions. Here is a Q&A with renowned Canadian fitness instructor and long-time contributor and guest editor to our sister magazine, Optimyz, Nichelle Laus. Q: I need to get started on a health and fitness journey. Where would you recommend I start? The internet is a daunting place. I mean, it’s called the “world wide web” for a reason; it’s easy to get lost in the various strands of information it provides. What might have started as an innocent cat video search on YouTube leads you to research how to install backsplash using margarine and $7 oil paints. Fitness Education While the internet is a useful resource for nutrition and training, the first “diet” you have to put yourself on is an information diet. Stick to one

Nichelle Laus November 20, 2020