Healthiest You Ever

“If I could eat only one food for the rest of my life, it would definitely be beans.”

Beans are so jam-packed with nutrients that they qualify as both a vegetable and a protein. That’s kind of like being both king and queen! A cup of beans provides a whopping 13 grams of fiber (half of our daily requirement), about 15 grams of protein, and dozens of key nutrients, including calcium, potassium, and magnesium. Eating 3 cups of beans every week is recommended. By the way, it’s okay to buy canned beans, as rinsing them for one minute in cold water will wash away a quarter of the sodium. However, when you do buy canned beans, here are two primary suggestions:

• Buy low-sodium beans: If you’re watching your salt intake (and you should be), purchase canned low-sodium beans. Once you use the cold water trick, you’ve significantly decreased the amount of salt you’re ingesting.

• Buy vegetarian beans: Baked and refried varieties are traditionally prepared with lard or pork, which add calories, cholesterol, sodium, and saturated fat, none of which you want to add into your diet. A healthier alternative is vegetarian refried beans. They contain no saturated fat and have 2 more grams of protein than the nonvegetarian ones.

“More weight with less reps builds strength, and less weight with more reps builds endurance. You should train for both strength and endurance.”

Once you’ve mastered the basic squat, adding a ball can amp up the workout. Basically, squatting with a ball works the same muscles in the lower body as a basic squat. The only difference is that you hold a medicine ball in your hands as you squat. (If you don’t have a medicine ball, you can use hand weights or even a basketball or soccer ball.) As you drop down into the squat, touch the ball lightly to the floor. As you come up from your squat take the ball up over your head, extending through the entire length of your body. Concentrate on controlling both the upward and the downward motions in order to build stability of the exercise. This exercise develops muscular strength in the lower body and the upper body simultaneously. It also emphasizes a great deal of the muscles in your trunk.

In order to build a good combination of muscular strength and endurance, you should complete an average of two to three sets with 10–20 reps per set. Use a weight that leaves you feeling some fatigue by the time you’ve completed about twelve repetitions. If you complete twenty repetitions with a 6-pound ball and you can do another ten reps, it’s time to start using a heavier ball!

HOW HEAVY SHOULD THE BALL BE?

If you are a beginner, start with a ball such as a handball, basketball, or soccer ball before progressing to a weighted ball. When using a weighted ball, the recommended starting weight for women is 4 pounds and for men at least 6–8 pounds. If you do not have a weighted ball, a hand weight will work just as well.

“A vigorous five-mile walk will do more good for an unhappy but otherwise healthy adult than all the medicine and psychology in the world.”

Stress evokes the “fight or flight” reaction by releasing stress hormones into the body designed to give us sudden, quick reactions, extra strength, and endurance. When we don’t respond to the stress response by moving quickly, using our strength, or taking advantage of the added endurance, muscles stay tense, blood pressure stays high, breathing stays shallow, and all that cortisol and adrenaline course through the body causing all kinds of problems.

Exercise changes the picture, accomplishing two important things in the wake of the stress response:

1. Exercise allows the body to expend energy so that while your brisk walk around the block may not actually be “fight or flight,” to the body, the message is the same. That extra energy available to your body is being used, signaling the body that it can, after exercise, return to equilibrium.

2. Exercise also releases chemicals like beta endorphins that specifically counteract the effects of stress hormones, alerting the body that the danger has passed and the relaxation response can begin.

Yoga, Pilates, stretching, and other mind-body exercises relax the mind as well as the body by helping link movement to the breath, which, in turn, stops the physical response to stress. These gentle levels of activity can burn off the physical tension, relax your muscles, and, at the same time, keep your worrying brain from obsessing about a concern for too long.

“Sooner or later a rider will emerge who will win more Tours. In every sport we have seen how the records eventually get broken and cycling is no exception.”

Riding your bicycle on hills is similar to weight training, and adds a lot of leg strength. If you haven’t done a lot of riding, you may be surprised at how tough it is to negotiate a hill on a bicycle. As with all other new activities, start slowly. With each workout, however, it will get easier, and your confidence will grow.

On days when the weather interferes with your bike training, you can get a good workout on a stationary bike at your fitness center or at home. All stationary bikes indicate mileage and calories burned, and many have programs that simulate hills and other variables. It’s not exactly the same as your regular ride, but it’s a great alternative when it’s raining outside or if the roads are iced over.

Another indoor option is a fluid trainer, a stationary platform that your bike sits on that allows the rear wheel to rotate as you pedal. You can adjust the resistance as you go to simulate a variable terrain.

SHRUG OFF BAD DAYS

As with training for any sport or endeavor, there will be days when things just don’t go well: Everything seems to be a struggle, or fatigue overtakes you sooner than you expected. You can’t let these minor setbacks get you down. Learning to shrug off the bad workouts instead of obsessing about them is part of your growth as an athlete.

“Vogue and Self are putting out the message of yoginis as buff and perfect. If you start doing yoga for those reasons, fine. Most people get beyond that and see that it’s much, much more.”

To do the stomach-turning pose (Jathara Parivartanasana) lie down on your back and bend your knees, placing your feet flat on the floor. Lift your feet away from the floor, bringing your knees to your chest. Extend your arms horizontally out to the sides on the floor. Stack your knees and ankles and let your knees come down to the right, toward the floor at a right angle. Your legs will hover over the floor, with your lower leg holding up your upper leg. Gaze up at the ceiling. Feel your belly and ribs spiral toward the left. Maintain the length of your spine upon inhalation, twist on the exhalation, and roll your left shoulder down toward the floor (without forcing). Stay in the pose for several breaths, deepening the twist. Then, bring your knees back to center and go to the other side. If hip mobility is restricted or your lower back is weak, place a folded blanket under the bottom leg for support.

• It is a powerful, stimulating, and wringing action for the waist, abdomen, and lower back.

YOUR HEAD SHOULD FOLLOW, NOT LEAD

When twisting, do not let your head lead the way. There is a tendency to want to see where you’re going, so the head and the eyes get overzealous. Twists spiral your spine and the body from the bottom up, like a corkscrew. Your head is the last to turn and it learns from the chest.

Oh, go jump in a lake. No, really. Swimming is one of the best exercises you can do. It provides a total-body workout but is also low-impact so it won’t hurt your joints as it improves stamina and flexibility. The water buoys the body so that joints, bones, and muscles don’t feel the impact of exercise, making injuries less likely for people who are vulnerable to the impact. Work up gradually to thirty to sixty minutes of steady swimming. Varying your strokes—freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke, sidestroke—will help work all your muscles.

Although your maximum heart rate may be up to 30 beats lower when you’re working out in the water, you’re still burning a significant amount of calories and your lungs are taking in more oxygen than if you were resting and that helps burn fat.

If you already know how to swim but feel like you are treading water more than swimming, a few lessons can make the difference between frustration and enjoyment, as well as increase the effectiveness of your workouts. Your local fitness club or YMCA likely offers adult swimming lessons, and many cities offer swimming lessons through adult-education programs.

Water aerobics is very popular and fun, too. Water aerobics can be tailored to any fitness level. Check your local pool or health club for water aerobics classes. Some areas even offer water yoga classes!

“I don’t fear death because I don’t fear anything I don’t understand. When I start to think about it, I order a massage and it goes away.”

A massage is a great way to release the stress and tension you hold in your body. There’s nothing comparable to human touch coupled with aromatherapy to transport you into a place of relaxation and peace. If you don’t like rose scent, ask the masseuse to use sandalwood, ylang ylang, myrrh, or your favorite essential oil. Massages are de rigeur at day spas. They are also offered at deeply discounted rates at local colleges with massage therapy training programs. Another option is to ask your significant other to give you a massage, but be advised that making that choice could lead to other activities. Ah, but that could also relieve stress and put a smile on your face.