Exercise...It's never too late to start

I was a late starter to exercise. Although I have always enjoyed skiing, I didn't really do any regular exercise until my early forties but am now totally addicted, enjoy the many benefits of a wide range of different sports and wish I had started sooner. 

So what are the health benefits of exercise?

There's an overwhelming amount of evidence confirming that exercise is a key player in disease reduction, optimal mental, emotional and physical health and longevity. After reviewing some 40 papers published between 2006 and 2010, researchers found that exercise reduces the risk of about two dozen health conditions, ranging from cancer and heart disease to type 2 diabetes, stroke, dementia and depression. What is more, exercise also slows down the rate of ageing itself, providing perhaps the closest example of a real life fountain of youth as we will ever find.

Research has shown that regular exercise - even initiated late in life - offers profound health benefits. Among those who started exercising at age 50 and continued for 10 years, the rate of premature death declined dramatically, similar to giving up smoking and mirroring the level seen among people who had been working out their entire lives.

Optimal health is dependent on an active lifestyle, eating fresh, whole foods, avoiding as many processed foods as possible, and addressing the stress in your life. Ignoring any of these basic principles will eventually lead to a decline in health and any number of diseases.

No excuses...

Women in their 30s and 40s are busy. We have families, friends, work commitments and not much time for ourselves. Often we give up time spent taking care of our own health to care for those around us. We give up our exercise programs and find we don't have the energy we once had. We gain some weight or feel our body starting to sag, or both! The good news is, it's not too late to regain your health, energy and body with exercise.

The government goal is 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity on at least five days of the week, but at the beginning, your goal should simply be to start moving more. That might mean around the home, or in the garden - and it certainly doesn't have to be in a brightly lit, noisy gym.

But whatever you choose - whether it's Tai Chi, kick boxing or even cheerleading - the activity you do needs to be consistent and keep you motivated in order to reap the rewards. I would also advise a workout buddy to go with (friend, partner or fitness instructor both for motivation and support and safety. 

Start off slowly and gradually increase intensity as you grow stronger, avoiding activities that aggravate or cause pain. Just keep in mind that while you need to use caution, you do need to exercise at a level that is challenging to your body.

And what about exercise type? Aerobic activity - brisk walking, cycling or swimming - is the gold standard, as far as government guidelines are concerned, but strength, flexibility and balance training are also important and often ignored. 

One concern many women have as they age is the loss of bone density. While bone loss typically occurs more predominantly after age 50 (around menopause), it is wise to start incorporating exercises that will promote bone health earlier on. Weight-bearing cardiovascular exercises, such as walking or jogging are preferred over non-weight-bearing activities like swimming or cycling. Moderate or high intensity activities elicit the most bone-building benefits and should be added as tolerated to your workout program. As with all workout programs, consult your doctor before starting.

The importance of nutrition

There are several unavoidable truths about what you eat.

The first is, you cannot ‘out train poor nutritional choices’.

What this means is, regardless of how hard you exercise, if your diet is poor, you simply will never get the results you are longing for. The fact is, you will never actually see those muscles, or improve your trouble spots unless you make sound nutritional choices.

Secondly, going ‘on a diet’ is one of the most effective ways to GAIN weight!

Lowering your calories excessively can lead eventually lead to more body fat, and for most women, this is a recurring cycle. This will make you unhappy, and unhealthy. Making sure that your diet is jammed with nutritionally dense whole foods will multiply the results you will get from any workout regime you decide to use.

Top nutritional tips:

Include protein with every meal. This will help to stabilise blood sugar and help to control your appetite.

Steer clear of refined sugar.  

Eat your veggies!  

Eat bread and pasta in moderation.  

Never drink your calories, so stay away from soft drinks and fruit juice.

Physical exercise is particularly important to maintain a high quality of life, as limited mobility can take a great toll…So start moving, and don't stop no matter what your age!

Some useful ways to get you started:

Couch to 5K free NHS podcast and iOS & Android app running plan to get you started

Myfitnesspal free iOS & Android - easy to use app highly recommended by fitness instructors (Alison and Kelly have both used this successfully too)

Fitocracy free iOS & Android app that provides a reward system for anyone struggling with motivation

Garminfit 69p iOS & Android app which uses the GPS tracker on your phone to track your speed, distance and elevation whilst measuring how many calories you've burnt

Happy exercising 

Alison