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What Is Your Motivation To Be Healthy?

What Is Your Motivation To Be Healthy?

Published by on April 10, 2023 | Leave a response

Dragging yourself to the gym after a full day at work can be difficult. It’s easy to simply aim your car for home and drive. That won’t make you any healthier and can be the start of quitting your program completely. To make that commitment to healthy eating and regular exercise, you have to find your motivation to be healthy and keep that thought in mind when you feel like quitting.

Why is staying healthy important to you?

Of course, you want to be healthy! Who doesn’t? What does that mean to you? Being healthier may mean being able to run further, lift more, or simply not getting sick. It may mean losing weight and waking up with more energy every day. If you have children or grandchildren, being healthy may mean being able to enjoy family fun and living to see them graduate and start families of their own.

If weight loss is your goal, why do you want to lose weight?

It’s not vain to want to look good. It’s often the reason people start a healthy regimen of exercise and diet. But why do you want to look better? Your motivation must come from within, not because a friend said you were overweight, but because you want to do it. There is a powerful motivator that I’ve frequently seen. It’s called revenge weight loss and fitness, where the best revenge is looking your best. It often occurs after a break-up or snide remark. Most of the time, after a few months, people forget about the other person and continue because they enjoy how they look and feel.

Create a plan to build on your motivation.

Simply knowing your motivation isn’t enough. You need a plan of action. You have to identify what it will take to help you achieve what you want and turn it into a goal. Give yourself a timeline and make your goal measurable. Break your big goal down into smaller, easier-to-achieve weekly goals/ No matter what your goal, it must be realistic. If you’re big-boned and six feet tall, you’ll never be petite. It doesn’t mean you can’t be slender or fit.

  • Even with motivation, it’s hard to stay on track. Working out with a friend can help keep you motivated, too. Working with someone else keeps you accountable. It’s one of the reasons personal trainers are so beneficial.
  • Meal planning can also help you stick with a program. You can plan meals yourself or get help from other sources. Then you shop one day, cook on the weekend, and have healthy meals you can heat and eat for the week.
  • Stay consistent. Workout at the same time every day to create a habit. Once exercising is a habit, it’s easier to maintain. Even if progress is slow, remember it’s all about consistency and continuous effort.
  • No matter what your motivation to be healthier is, it should be a combination of exercise and healthy eating. You need both. If you skip exercise for a day or eat unhealthy food, it’s not the end of the world. Just start anew the next day.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Can I Really Boost My Immunity With Veggies?

Can I Really Boost My Immunity With Veggies?

Published by on March 25, 2023 | Leave a response

Who doesn’t want a healthy, powerful immune system that helps protect you from illness and serious conditions? Nobody, that’s who. One way to give your immunity a boost is to consume more fruits and veggies. Clients who come to VIP Fitness in Fort Lee, NJ get nutritional counseling. It includes a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Some help lower blood pressure, others help lose weight and still others can help boost your immunity. So which vegetables are the best if you want a strong immune system to prevent colds, flu, and other illnesses?

You don’t have to eat citrus to get the benefits of vitamin C.

Vitamin C plays a role in many of your bodily functions, including immune function. It boosts the immune system. When most people think of vitamin C, they think of oranges and lemons, but many other fruits and vegetables contain vitamin C besides citrus fruits. For instance, red or yellow sweet bell peppers are high in vitamin C, just as green chili peppers are. One green chili pepper provides 121% of your daily requirement for vitamin C. Kale and broccoli also provide high amounts of vitamin C.

It takes more than just vitamin C to keep your immune system healthy.

Your body needs zinc, iron, and vitamins A, D and E to maintain a healthy immune system. You also need phytonutrients. Legumes, nuts, and seeds are good vegetarian iron sources. Focus on orange and yellow vegetables like sweet potatoes or squash for vitamin A. Spinach is another good source. The sun and animal products like egg yolk and oily fish provide most vitamin D, but certain mushrooms also contain it. Scientists classify mushrooms as fungus but for nutritional purposes, they’re a vegetable. Vitamin E is in many plants. Green leafy ones, like spinach, are a good source. So are asparagus, broccoli, and sweet potatoes.

Phytonutrients play a significant role in immune health.

Phytonutrients are part of the plant’s defense system. They’re natural chemicals in plants that protect them from fungi, bugs, germs, and other threats. Some phytonutrients give plants their color. Anthocyanins, for instance, make purple, blue, and deep red veggies that color. Other phytonutrients include polyphenols, flavonoids, resveratrol, carotenoids, and limonoids. A good example of how well they boost your immune system was the study that found elderberries as effective as Tamiflu for preventing the flu.

  • Any food that improves the gut microbiome can boost your immune system. Sauerkraut and Kimchi, both fermented vegetables, are excellent choices. Vegetables with soluble fiber, like broccoli, are other good choices.
  • Herbs and spices, such as garlic, cayenne pepper, saffron, ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric won’t make a meal, but they come from plants and boost your immune system. It’s the curcumin in turmeric and allicin in garlic that helps.
  • Folate is another nutrient to improve immune health. It’s made of leafy greens, lentils, and beans.
  • While eating food that boosts your immune system is beneficial, it’s just as important to avoid food that interferes with it, like sugar. To be your healthiest, remove food with added sugar from your diet.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Have You Thought About Mindful Eating?

Have You Thought About Mindful Eating?

Published by on March 10, 2023 | Leave a response

What is mindful eating? It’s simple. It’s taking the time to truly enjoy your food. If you’re a speed eater and can suck up an entire meal in no time, it’s time to change your course and learn to enjoy food. Some people have such a busy schedule, they either eat their meal fast or eat it while they’re doing other things. That takes away from the pleasure of eating. If you wolf down your food, you certainly aren’t experiencing any of the subtleties of the food, like its flavor, texture, and appearance. You also eat more than you probably intend when you have more time to eat.

Mindless eating can also include eating food without realizing it.

Have you ever been to a party with snack food and realized that every time you passed the food table, which was quite often, you ate another handful of chips? Maybe you cleaned the leftovers from the meal by eating those last few bites or snacked on anything available when you’re under stress, angry or frustrated. All that mindless eating not only robs you of the pleasure of food, but it can also pack on the pounds.

Be in the present at mealtime.

That might sound Confucius-like, but don’t ignore it. A lot of the food most people eat is done mindlessly. Spend a week writing down everything you eat. It will make you more aware of those snacks that you otherwise wouldn’t remember. Once you’ve identified those times, now focus on what the food tastes like when you eat. What is the texture? Is it sweet? Sour? How does it feel in your mouth while you eat it? Savor it, chew it well, and eat it more slowly.

If you are embarrassed by your weight, you may eat rapidly, so no one will notice.

There are many reasons for people to eat rapidly. Most of them fall back on habits or hunger. If you work a job with a short lunch hour, you may develop the habit of eating rapidly so you can get back to work. However, some people, particularly those who are overweight, have shamed themselves into feeling embarrassed every time they eat, so they eat fast, just to get it out of the way. Eating fast removes all the pleasure from eating good food. It also doesn’t give your stomach a chance to signal to the brain that it’s full, so you eat more.

  • Both texture and taste play a huge role in whether you enjoy food or not. If you’ve kept a food journal, you may notice that when you’re under stress you like crunchy things or comfort food. Find low-calorie alternatives, like celery instead of potato chips.
  • Chewing your food more allows you to savor the flavor, and aids your digestion in the process. The longer you chew your food, the more digestion takes place in the mouth, resulting in fewer digestive issues.
  • Tracking the food you eat and focusing on the pleasure it brings not only helps you eat healthier and enjoy food more, but it also can bring issues to light. It helps you identify what really bothers you, and you are burying with eating.
  • Mindful eating has proven to help people take-off weight and keep it from returning. One group that attended a six-month course on mindful eating not only lost an average of 26 pounds, but they didn’t regain it later.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Best Exercises For Stronger Biceps

Best Exercises For Stronger Biceps

Published by on February 25, 2023 | Leave a response

Many members of VIP Fitness Center in Fort Lee, NJ want exercises for biceps that will make them stronger without getting big and bulky like bodybuilders. The good news is that while you’ll get some extra growth, to get that bodybuilder look, it takes a lot of extra effort. Getting stronger without gaining huge amounts of mass can be done with traditional bicep exercises. You still have to put in the time and be consistent, but you’ll start to see results quickly.

Start with traditional upper body exercises.

To build your biceps, you have to build the larger muscles of the back and get overall back strength. While you work the muscles of the back, you’ll also be building the biceps, while maintaining balance. It’s always best to work on compound exercises that build overall upper-body strength. After all, even if your biceps are strong, it’s just one small muscle that determines your overall strength. Barbell rows and dumbbell hammer curls are good exercises for that.

Do traditional push-ups, then modify them.

A standard push-up provides some benefits, but to build the biceps, you need to make modifications. If you want to work your biceps, you need to change the position of your hands. When you get into push-up position, instead of putting hands slightly wider than shoulder-width, put your hands closer together, keeping just a few inches between them.

If you have a towel, you have equipment.

A towel can be a training apparatus and used for resistance exercises that build strength. Fold a towel lengthwise several times, hold one end in your hand. Put your back against a wall, lift one leg, then slide it up under the thigh of that leg and grab the loose end with the other hand. Curl the towel up toward your chest with your leg providing resistance. Lift until the forearms touch the biceps. Hold for a few seconds then lower. Do 20 or more reps per set and three to five sets per session.

  • You can use any item with a strong foundation to do bicep curls. For instance, grabbing the frame of a doorway and holding as you lean backward to create resistance, then pull the body back toward the object and holding, lowering slowly.
  • One mistake many people make when going for strength is focusing on the lifting of weights, but not controlling the lowering of the weight. To build strength, lower weights slowly, maintaining tension.
  • Just like push-ups, you can build stronger biceps by adjusting your wrist position, such as palms up or palms down. Changing the way you grip targets the bicep muscle in a variety of ways. It also helps protect elbows and wrists.
  • Work toward failure. Choose weights light enough that you can do at least three sets of eight repetitions and keep going at that weight until the last set isn’t difficult. Then increase the number of reps to 12 before you increase weight.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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The Importance Of Rest Days

The Importance Of Rest Days

Published by on February 10, 2023 | Leave a response

One big mistake we often see people make is being too dedicated. They do an intense workout every day and never take rest days. Taking time to let your muscles recover is important. Without recovery time, you could be sabotaging your fitness goals. You actually build muscle tissue when you’re letting it rest. When you exercise, you make small microtears in the muscles. Resting allows those tears to heal, which builds muscle. If you don’t have that downtime, those muscles never heal and get stronger. Lack of rest can even decrease the size and strength.

Burnout is another problem caused by a lack of rest time.

If you notice you are dreading your workout or find yourself exhausted after just a few minutes working out, you may be suffering from burnout. It’s both a mental and physical phenomenon. While exercise burns off the hormones of stress, ironically, it also stresses the body, especially if you’re doing an intense workout. That stress also pushes each muscle group to the limit and can cause muscle injury due to exhaustion. It can cause sleep disturbances, a higher heart rate and lower the effectiveness of the immune system.

How can you tell if you need rest days?

If you’re doing a light form of exercise, like walking or leisurely riding a bike, you aren’t raising your heart rate significantly. You also aren’t pushing yourself beyond normal capacity. However, for people that continuously raise their heart rate significantly throughout the workout, resting those muscles is important. For instance, if you’re doing weight training every day and working on the same muscle group, you’ll lose ground, rather than build. One way to avoid it is to work different muscle groups. You can create a workout that focuses on six different areas, doing one every day and having one day of rest. That way every group gets six days of rest between workouts.

A day of rest doesn’t mean staying in bed or on the couch watching TV.

Active recovery, whether from an injury or hard workout, is a real thing. Active recovery is mild exercise, such as walking, bike riding, swimming or tai chi, can be done the day after a strenuous workout. It boosts circulation, aids in eliminating toxins, reduces muscle soreness, keeps muscles flexible and helps maintain consistency when you do it at the same time as you normally workout.

  • When you include rest days in your normal workout schedule, you’ll improve your performance, increase agility and improve endurance. Stick with 150 minutes a week for intense workouts and fill in the rest with active recovery.
  • When your workout is intense, you burn the stored glycogen in the muscles that is used for energy during the workout. If you workout without an adequate store, it causes fatigue and soreness. Rest days allow replenishment.
  • Being too tired to workout, but pushing yourself to do so, also has other negative consequences. It causes you to lose focus and form, both of which can lead to injury.
  • When you don’t rest, it causes stress on the body and increases stress hormones like cortisol. Cortisol has been linked to the accumulation of belly fat, chronic fatigue and poor quality sleep.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Should I Use A Silicon Wedding Ring For The Gym?

Should I Use A Silicon Wedding Ring For The Gym?

Published by on January 25, 2023 | Leave a response

There’s a debate going on about whether you should wear a silicon wedding ring in the gym or not. At V.I.P. 1 to 1 Fitness in Fort Lee, NJ, most people don’t. There’s a reason for that, which correlates to the reason many people do wear a silicon wedding band at other gyms. At other gyms, people workout on their own and there are large groups of people at various stations, each working independently. Not all people go to the gym for the same reason. Some use fitness as an excuse.

Sad but true, sometimes gym time is a time others are looking for a date.

It’s not easy for people to find soul mates in the 2020s, so some take their hunt to the grocery, clubs and even the gym. It’s one reason people opt to wear their wedding ring. Rather than having the awkward conversation about their marital status, they wear the identifying jewelry. Others wear a wedding ring because it’s a natural part of their commitment. Since we’re a 1 to 1 fitness center with a personal trainer for each person, it’s not the type of gym that people go to looking for a love connection.

A silicon band can protect your finger.

While your wedding band is a sign of devotion and often wearing it becomes second nature, hurting your finger or damaging the ring can occur. If you’re working out hard with a soft metal band, like gold, silver or platinum, the chances of it becoming misshapen are great. If it has a gemstone, the claw holding it can bend and allow the stone to fall out. The silicon band is stretchy, and not costly, so you can wear a ring without worrying it will catch on to a falling weight and take your finger with it.

A silicon band can help keep your wedding band cleaner.

While the danger of wearing a metal wedding band in the gym normally occurs only if you’re doing some heavy weightlifting or other extreme workout, you sweat no matter what you’re doing. That sweat can affect the metal and also, the workout can cause your fingers to swell, making a metal band tight. A silicon ring can be the answer for both. It doesn’t corrode and it stretches so you can remove it easier.

  • If you’re taking off your ring at the gym, have a safe place to store it, especially if it’s expensive. Keep a box or a very large safety pin in your gym bag and pin it to the inside of the pocket of your street clothes.
  • Silicon rings are good options for active people or those who have a job like welding are carpentry. If you participate in water sports, wearing a silicon ring instead of a traditional band can prevent the grief that occurs if the ring is lost.
  • If you have the option, and want to wear a wedding band, leave your wedding band at home on the day you go to the gym and wear a silicon ring.
  • There are silicon rings to use as wedding bands, but also ones that are just for fun. They come in a variety of colors and designs.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Does Drinking More Water Help You Lose Weight?

Does Drinking More Water Help You Lose Weight?

Published by on January 10, 2023 | Leave a response

Losing weight is all about changing habits and making lifestyle changes. Some of them are harder, like changing your entire menu, while others are easier, such as finding ways to increase your activity, even if it’s just taking the stairs. Drinking water can be one of those simple ways. In fact, it’s far simpler than even parking further from the store and walking more. (Although it can really help if you do both!) How can drinking water help you shed pounds?

Ask for water instead of a soft drink or alcoholic beverage.

One of the easiest ways is drinking more water. If you simply drank water instead of drinking a higher calorie drink, like cola, you’ll cut back on calories immediately. If you drink a can of cola just once a day, it can save you 100 calories. Since it takes a deficit of 3500 calories to lose a pound, you could lose a pound in 35 days by making the switch and it wouldn’t require much thought or work to do. Don’t try substituting it for sugar free diet drinks. New studies show that drinking sugar free drinks may put inches on your midsection. That’s visceral fat, the worst type of fat and the hardest to lose.

If you’re thirsty, you can mistake it for hunger.

Your body sends your brain millions of messages every day. Sometimes those messages are misinterpreted. Have you ever stood in front of the refrigerator trying to figure out what you want to eat, thinking you’re hungry, but knowing crackers weren’t going to satisfy you? Lots of times, especially when dry snacks are unappealing, your brain misinterpreted what your body was saying. In reality, you need hydration. It can explain why watermelon or something juicy sounds so good. You’ll save calories if you’re hydrated.

Try drinking a large glass of water before a meal.

You’ll fill up before you start eating and won’t eat as much. Several studies show that just drinking a glass of water before a meal can help reduce your calorie intake by 75 calories. It doesn’t sound like much, but when you consider that the average person eats two meals a day, it could save you 1050 calories in a week and in little over three weeks, you’d save 3500 calories and lose a pound.

  • If you want to burn more calories and have a better workout, drinking water can help do that. Even mild dehydration can cause you to drag. Instead of drinking coffee, try a glass of water. It’s the quicker picker-upper.
  • Boost your metabolism with ice-cold water. According to some studies, drinking cold water makes your body work harder. It makes your insides cold and the body has to warm it.
  • Don’t guzzle water, especially if you’re working out, it can make you sick. Drink 8 ounces an hour before working out and then sip on it during your workout.
  • Do you bloat up with water weight? Water can come to your rescue. It acts as a diuretic. Your body hoards water for a variety of reasons, one is to normalize sodium levels. Water helps flush the sodium and you’ll get back to normal.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Yummy Benefits Of Watermelon

Yummy Benefits Of Watermelon

Published by on December 25, 2022 | Leave a response

There are many benefits from eating watermelon. As the name implies, it contains a lot of water, approximately 92%. That can aid in hydrating you and keeping you feeling full longer. Most people who come to VIP 1 to 1 Fitness know we not only emphasize staying hydrated, but also eating healthy, nutritious foods. Watermelon can be a delicious part of the solution. Hydration is important for organ functioning, regulating body temperature and delivering nutrients to cells.

Watch out inflammation, here comes watermelon.

Long term oxidative stress can lead to inflammation and a lot of diseases are caused by inflammation, including heart disease and Alzheimer’s. That’s why consuming foods that are high in antioxidants is important. Watermelon is high in antioxidants, which include vitamin C, lycopene and antioxidants. In animal studies, two groups were fed an unhealthy diet, but one group’s diet was supplemented with watermelon powder. The group fed the powder had less oxidative stress and less inflammation.

Watermelon has phytonutrients that may reduce the risk of cancer.

The lycopene in watermelon is more than just an antioxidant, it also has anticaner benefits. However, watermelon also contains cucurbitacin E, which also has anticancer benefits. Studies vary, so some studies show it reduces the risk of prostate and colorectal cancer due to the lycopene, while others don’t draw those conclusions. Cucurbitacin E in watermelon is thought to slow the growth of tumors by encouraging autophagy, which is the process where the body eliminates damaged cells.

Lycopene is also important for eye health.

Lycopene helps reduce inflammation and oxidation, which may make a big difference in your vision, especially if you’re older. Age-related macular degeneration—AMD—is a relatively common ailment in seniors and often leads to blindness. Increasing the amount of the antioxidant lycopene may help. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of the lycopene in watermelon may help prevent AMD and eventual blindness.

  • Eating a slice of watermelon is like drinking vitamin water. Watermelon contains vitamins A, B6 and C, potassium, magnesium, iron and calcium. It has a small amount of protein, fiber and healthy fat.
  • Have some watermelon for a workout snack. Not only does it hydrate you, but it also contains citrulline. Citrulline is an amino acid that can improve your performance when you exercise, boost recovery and help prevent muscle soreness. It may also lower blood pressure and aid with metabolic health.
  • The vitamin C and A in watermelon improve skin health. The vitamin C helps make collagen to prevent wrinkles and keeps your hair strong. Vitamin A helps with skin repair.
  • The fiber and fluid in watermelon can also help improve digestion and make it easier to have a bowel movement. That can help reduce bloating and the discomfort of constipation.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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What Makes Cilantro A Super-Herb?

What Makes Cilantro A Super-Herb?

Published by on December 10, 2022 | Leave a response

Is cilantro a super-herb or just a wonderful herb to flavor salsa? It’s easy to answer. There are a number of healthy reasons for adding cilantro to your diet. The cilantro plant looks a lot like parsley when it’s growing and if it bolts and forms flowers, eventually those flowers turn to seed, which is another spice called coriander. People describe the taste of cilantro differently, with some saying it has a peppery, citrusy, fresh taste and others comparing it to the smell of linoleum or like eating soap. Fresh cilantro used to be more difficult to find, but now it’s sold fresh in most groceries in Fort Lee, NJ.

Cilantro has antioxidant properties.

Like many herbs and spices, cilantro has antioxidant properties from quercetin. It also has antibacterial benefits to help prevent food poisoning. The compound dodecenal in cilantro is as effective as the antibiotic drug called gentamicin in stopping the microbes causing the problem. It fights cholera, listeria, dysentery, and salmonella. It’s especially potent against listeria and salmonella. It also has eight other antibiotic compounds, so add it to your main course, snack or side dish. Cilantro laden salsa is delicious on eggs in the morning.

Help your blood sugar and blood pressure levels.

Is your blood sugar too high? Cilantro may help. It’s been shown to help promote liver health and balance blood sugar levels. Add cilantro to any dish that you can to help improve your health by lowering your blood sugar levels. It also is known to help provide a healthier lipid profile by lowering total cholesterol and triglycerides. It can aid in dissolving the cholesterol that has built up in the blood vessels, too. That can help improve heart health, lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of strokes. The potassium in cilantro can aid in lowering blood pressure, as well.

If you have toxic heavy metals in your body, cilantro comes to the rescue.

Heavy metal toxins, like arsenic, aluminum, mercury or lead, are everywhere from the food we eat to the water we drink. They can come from water, food or breathing in contaminated air we breathe and accumulate in your body. There are substances in cilantro that bind to these metals and help remove toxic metals from the body. Heavy metal toxicity can cause heart disease, cause neurological problems, hormonal issues and more.

  • Move over cranberry juice, cilantro’s in the house and ready to tackle those urinary tract infections, too. Not only can it help prevent the growth of bacteria, but the seeds can also help in relieving symptoms.
  • Cilantro can help prevent gas, bloating and aid in relieving indigestion. It causes digestive enzymes to be released and makes the digestive system more efficient. If spicy foods give you heartburn, add cilantro. It even helps with IBS.
  • Cilantro can be a great natural sedative. It’s been found to have the same anti-anxiety effect as Valium, but without the side effects. It also can be a great aid to improved sleep.
  • You can use it as a natural antihistamine. If you have poison ivy, mix cilantro with coconut oil and apply it where needed. It’s even good for hives and sunburn. You can also mix it with water and strain it, then mix the solids with coconut oil and drink the water for inside-outside protection.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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Can I Workout While Pregnant?

Can I Workout While Pregnant?

Published by on November 25, 2022 | Leave a response

While everyone is different and has different experiences and health conditions, in general, it’s not only safe to workout when you’re pregnant, but also beneficial. However, ultimately, you need to discuss this with your health care professional, especially if you have health issues or complications. Even if you’re not a first time mother and have worked out previously, each pregnancy is different, too.

The type of exercise you do makes a difference.

If you’re considering increasing the amount of time you walk, most physicians would agree wholeheartedly. However, taking up skiing as a beginner or contact sports might not be recommended. A lot depends on what you’ve done previously, your present level of fitness and how far into the pregnancy you are. Even if you played a contact sport for years before the pregnancy, it might not be wise to do so while pregnant. Kickboxing, martial arts, and basketball or football are a few examples.

If you’ve been working out regularly, can you continue?

The answer is yes, but with some rules. For instance, some exercises, like leg lifts, stress the abdomen, just as full sit-ups, and deep knee bends. Those should be avoided. Talk with your health care professional about your regular workout and exercises to avoid. If you’ve never lived an active lifestyle, you shouldn’t start with rigorous training if you’re pregnant. Taking up competitive weightlifting or training for an Ironman race should be postponed until after the baby comes. Swimming, using step machines or walking are good ways to start exercising if you’re pregnant.

There are many benefits from exercising when you’re pregnant.

You’ll help maintain a healthy weight and maintain your fitness level better if you exercise when you’re pregnant. Exercise and being fit helps you have an easier birthing experience and an easier labor. It can improve your mood, make recovery from pregnancy quicker, and help keep your energy levels higher, both during pregnancy and after the baby is born. Exercise can help prevent gestational diabetes, boost your immune system and prevent fluid retention. It can help reduce morning sickness in the early months, aid in sleep and keep you and your baby healthier.

  • If you’ve had spotting, have a history of miscarriage, or have a weak cervix, take caution. Discuss it with your doctor.
  • When exercising, avoid exercises that involve twisting at the waist or exercises that have high impact and involve jumping. Avoid stretches that cause you to bounce. When you’re working out, breathe normally and don’t hold your breath.
  • While you should never start a program that involves lifting ultra-heavy weights, using light weights can prepare your arms for holding the baby. Other exercises, like Kegels, pelvic tilts and cardio are particularly helpful for delivery.
  • Avoid exercising in excessive heat, even when you’re not pregnant. Make sure you follow otherwise exercise rules, like hydrating regularly. During later months, as your center of gravity changes, avoid bicycling and switch to a stationary bike.

For more information, contact us today at VIP Fitness Center

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