If Not Now, When?

THIS ISSUE: 6 Hints For Your New Year Fitness Plan

Table of Contents:

1) Editor's Note
2) Food for Thought
3) Feature Article: 6 Hints For Your New Year Fitness Plan
4) Teleclasses
5) Question & Answer
6) Our Services

Editor's Note

Hi,

Well, here we are, already a week into 2009. I hope your holidays were enjoyable and that the new year is starting out on a positive note.

My wife and I went home to Chicago for Christmas week to see our two children, four grandchildren, and other family and friends. It was a very busy week. And, typical of Chicago, the weather was, to say the least, varied. We experienced temperatures below zero when we arrived, had two days of snow (totaling nearly 12 inches), then we had ice, rain and fog the rest of the week. Well, as they always say, “If you don't like the weather in Chicago, wait 10 minutes”.

As I mentioned last month, it's not hard to gain a few extra pounds during the holiday season. I did. So now I have to buckle down and get back on track. This month my main article is intended to give you some hints on how to start off the new year right for your fitness.

Notice - I have decided to discontinue my on line fitness coaching group as of this month. If you have general questions about fitness, exercise, or diet, you can send them to me as part of my Q & A section below.

Good luck, keep exercising, and remember – "If not now, when?".

Best Wishes,

Tom Manfredi


Send any comments you may have to tom@fitness-after-50.com

My site fitness-after-50.com

Food for Thought

Feature Article - 6 Hints For Your New Year Fitness Plan

People always joke about New Year's resolutions and how no one really keeps them. It's a fact that most of us have a lot of trouble making changes in our lives, but there are some things you can do to improve your odds. The following tips are specific to diet and exercise goals, but you'll see that some of them can be applied to almost any kind of change.

1. Have a plan. Decide when the best time is for you to exercise and stick to it. Don't worry about when the experts say is the best time to exercise, you know what will work best for you, your body, and your other scheduled commitments. Try to do some type of exercise every day.

And do the same thing for eating. Try to eat at the same time each day. And plan your meals in advance. That way you have a better chance of eating the things you know you should rather than just what's available at the time.

2. Drink Lots Of Water. Drinking adequate amounts of water can help your body tolerate new exercise better, and it helps with the processing of food. Everyone should drink at least 8 eight ounce glasses of water every day, or one 8 ounce glass for every 20 pounds of body weight. Whichever is greater.

3. Visualize. Try to imagine what it will be like when you lose weight or gain a certain level of physical fitness. It has been proven in a number of studies that people who visualize their goals are much more successful at reaching and maintaining them.

4. Give It Time. You need to realize that changing a bad habit (poor eating) or creating a new one (exercising) doesn't happen overnight. The average adult requires at least 30 days of effort to develop a new habit or break an old one. Forgive yourself if you make a mistake or miss a goal. Just push on and try harder.

5. Reward Yourself. Plan on giving yourself small rewards for accomplishing certain goals. We all like to have things to look froward to. In your plans, make room for rewards. They don't have to be big things - maybe a special dessert on the weekend if you stick to your diet during the week. Or, going to a movie if you meet your exercise goals for the week.

6. Eat Protein At Every Meal. Adequate amounts of protein will help build muscle, and it helps reduce feelings of hunger. You don't have to eat large quantities of protein. A few ounces per meal will usually suffice. And consider eating 5 – 6 smaller meals. You will feel more full throughout the day.

Add these tips to your plans for the new year and I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how much more successful you will be.

(c)2005 - 2009 Thomas D. Manfredi, MS

Teleclasses

I will be announcing upcoming teleclasses in this section in the future.

If you have a topic that you would be interested in hearing about in a teleclass, send an e-mail to teleclasses@fitness-after-50.com

Questions and Answers

Answer - Yes. Consider taking dance lessons or start studying a martial art. Why do these help? Learning new ways to move your body activates brain motor centers that from new neural connections.


To get more information on various fitness and health issues, please go to my site – www.fitness-after-50.com


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If you have a fitness or nutrition question you would like me to consider answering here in the newsletter, just send your question, along with your first name and city, in an e-mail to quesandansw@fitness-after-50.com

Obviously, I can't answer every question submitted. I will choose one question each month to answer here.

About Our Services

On line fitness coach Tom Manfredi is the creator of the site "fitness-after-50". This site is designed with the mature adult in mind. There is a lot of information available on the site for anyone looking to start or restart a sensible exercise program. Learn more by going to www.fitness-after-50.com



Tom Manfredi, 1218 Easy St., Ste 101, Wickenburg, AZ 85390

Other Services and Information

Identity Theft

I don’t know about you, but with all the news coverage lately about identity theft and all the problems it can cause for people, my wife and I have become somewhat paranoid about shredding any mail we get with any kind of identifying info in it, and she freaks out any time I order something on the internet and give out info there.

Well, a woman I know here in Arizona recently sent me some info about a company that offers $1,ooo,ooo coverage to help take care of the problem if someone steals your identity. The company is called LifeLock. You can get to their site by clicking on the banner below if it's visble, or by copying the following code into your browser –

They charge a very reasonable monthly fee and offer a number of included services (they also give discounts for paying annually). Go take a look and see what you think. I signed up. I think my peace of mind is worth that kind of money.