TOP TEN BACK-T0-BASICS FITNESS TIPS Part 1

By Garrett J. Braunreiter

Do you ever feel like you can never get ahead of the Health and Fitness game? You and I both know there is so much information out there -- heck, even the news reports can't make up their minds....
Margarine is better than butter. No, butter is better than margarine. Coffee is bad for you. Wait, coffee can help you. Wine can help prevent heart disease. No, wine can promote breast cancer. WHICH IS IT?!

So the next time you pick up a newspaper, magazine, book, or whatever and you get thrown into health information overload, refer to this back-to-basics list. These tips, if followed consistently, will add years to your life, keep you fit, strong, and energized, plus offer a boost in confidence.

1. Move it or lose it (the no-brainer). 30 minutes of exercise daily. I'm not talking about a walk in the park, although you can do that on the side. I mean at least 30 minutes (up to 60) of pushing your body beyond what it's used to doing. I can just imagine some of you frowning, thinking that you must put yourself through some torturous workouts. Not at all.

Slash your odds for a number of killer diseases and rev up your metabolism with aerobic conditioning and strength training and slow down (or reverse, to an extent) the aging process.

2. Stop putting up with stuff that's holding you back from being healthy, fit, and energized. Why waste your happiness, health, time, and energy when you don't need to in the first place?

Putting up with things is good for no one. Make a list of ten things you're tolerating at home. TAKE ACTION NOW to eliminate these items. Be sure to eliminate the SOURCE of the toleration. Do this same exercise for your workplace. Understand that you're "juiced" by tolerating things. Be willing and committed to being toleration-free. STOP COMPLAINING and get to work on this.

3. Fruits and veggies. Get five to seven servings of fruits and veggies a day. Not only do they reduce your risk of getting some forms of cancer, they are heart healthy, and give you more nutrition-bang for your buck. Plus with the added fiber, you feel fuller even when you're eating less. So fruits and veggies are waistline-friendly.

4. Simplify your life, immediately. Our lives are too jam-packed with projects, goals, ideas, coulds, shoulds, have-to's, commitments, concerns, obligations.