I have been serving on staff at South Davis Community Hospital as a dentist since 2009, and as such I receive a regular newsletter. I found this article in their most recent edition and thought to share it with my patients.
- Stay in your caloric window. For most women, this will be 1250-1600 calories a day. For most men, between 1600-2000 calories daily. Use a food log. I started using www.livestrong.com and felt it provided excellent tools for tracking daily caloric intake as well as caloric utilization as I exercised. With smart phones and other similar devices one can easily track online at www.livestrong.com all of their calories and exercises. I am sure there are a number of apps that can also be used for these purposes.
- Clock at least 10,000 steps on a pedometer each day. If you are physically unable to walk, do an equivalent amount of activity each day.
- Do 20-30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise in your heart training range 2-5 days a week. Check this link to determine your heart training range: http://www.active.com/fitness/Articles/Calculate_your_training_heart_rate_zones.
- Do a weight lifting routine two or three non-consecutive days a week.
- Take a day off each week.
- Once you’ve lost the fat you need to lose and are fit and healthy, you can add 300 calories a day to your daily count, but continue to repeat steps 2-5 for the rest of your life.
I liked these steps because they simplify the goal of losing fat.
In October 2011 I ran my first marathon. The training, the marathon, and my newly discovered conditioning was very rewarding for me. As I began gearing up for another marathon, I met a friend of mine who is a physical trainer. He congratulated me on my efforts, but offered a simple message: You don’t have to run a marathon to get into or stay in good health.
Simple, daily efforts of eating healthy and exercising will pay huge benefits. My friend’s name is Jon Janke, he lives in Centerville, Utah. You can check his website at www.fatlossgameplan.com.