Let Exercise Help You

Most people use exercise as a means to lose weight. The American Heart Association, American Diabetes Association and the American Cancer Society state, however, that 30 minutes of exercise per day will improve all areas of your health, such as:

1. Mood
2. Chronic disease (heart disease, cancer, diabetes)
3. Increased energy
4. Improved sleep
5. Improved libido

Unfortunately, there are twice as many reasons NOT to exercise. Do these sound familiar?

1. “Hate it”
2. “Can’t keep committed”
3. “Never seem to see changes in my body”
4. “Confused about what really helps”
5. “No time”
6. “No motivation”
7. “No money”
8. “No daycare for the kids”
9. “Too tired when I leave work,” or “Too tired to get up early”
10. “It hurts!”

I have a question for you… Do you brush your teeth? Of course you do! Because if you didn’t, your teeth would rot and fall out. Luckily, Milford has ways to Brush your health by incorporating exercise into your life to prevent your body from falling apart. We have Boot Camp at the , four gyms (, , & ), , Curves, Yoga, Tai Chi and pilates at the  and yoga at . Outside we have the ,  track and tennis courts and track, sidewalks,  or and many town leagues.

Walk up and down the stairs in your house for 15 minutes two times a day. Pay for cable? Use the “On Demand” workouts. Take the clothes off your elliptical or treadmill and use that for 15 minutes two times a day. Everyone has 15 minutes (that’s half a TV show)! No daycare is needed and there's no long term cost.

Liane Blyn is a CSCS (certified strength and conditioning specialist) and athletic trainer who organizes boot camp classes on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at the . (She will soon open her own center on Rte. 140.)  She has 20-30 people of all ages, sizes and abilities attend at 5:30 a.m. (yes; I said 5:30 a.m.) for athletic based strength and group training. I told her that boot camp sounds painful. She replied, “Exercise has to be fun and I never do the same class twice; that way people won’t get bored. A good trainer needs to modify for various levels of fitness and injuries.” What about the “hurts” objection? “Well, it’s a pain of accomplishment and when clients don’t come for a while, I will be their accountability partner and call them to re-motivate them,” she said.

Liane’s 5 quick health tips:

• Start and maintain 30 minutes of exercise every day
• Increase water to a minimum eight 10 ounce glasses a day
• Decrease sugar and do not replace with sugar substitutes
• Make “better bad food choices” (e.g., order grilled chicken sandwich instead of fried)
• Use smaller plates and divide the plate in thirds (1/3 protein, 1/3 veggie, 1/3 good grains)