I hope you’ll want to learn more and let me help you to get into the best shape of your life.

When you exercise it promotes your healing, boosts your immunity, improves circulation, and enhances overall health. But prolonged and intense exercise, like that of high performance athletes, can actually reduce immune function and damage your body tissues. Athletes push their bodies to the limit, and this creates special needs that go beyond what a typical person requires.

To optimize performance, you must give the your body all the raw materials it needs for proper function, while simultaneously preventing exposure to anything that interferes.

An increase in physical performance demands more raw materials than sedentary activity.  This increase in activity creates a multitude of toxins which require even more raw materials to detoxify. Those who provide for these specialized needs will improve their performance, while minimizing damage to their health.

If you’re chronically short even one single nutrient, you will get sick. That’s a guarantee. Nutrients do not act individually, but they all interact with each other. You need a precise daily mixture of at least 59 essential nutrients to maintain health. For the athlete, nutritional shortages lead to impaired physical function, performance below expectation, more injuries, and slower repair times. Studies show that almost all North Americans are short several essential nutrients. This has a catastrophic effect on health, causing today’s epidemic of chronic degenerative disease and these nutritional concerns are especially important to athletes.

An athlete’s best friend and worst enemy is oxygen. While exercising, a person uses 10 to 20 times as much oxygen as sedentary activity. Free radicals are produced during oxygen metabolism, which damage your body’s cells. Exercise demands heavy oxygen input, and thus a large increase in free radical output. That’s how it works. Antioxidant chemicals protect your body from free radical damage by neutralizing & minimizing these free radicals. Because of this heavy oxygen demand, the athlete’s need for antioxidant chemicals is much greater than the needs of a less active person, and athletic activity in the absence of adequate antioxidants can cause significant damage. Free radical damage is a serious problem because the damage doesn’t end when the exercise stops. Free radicals cell damage may last up to 20 hours after exercise. Much of the muscle soreness and inflammation after strenuous exercise results from out of control free radical damage. Be sure to get adequate vitamins A, C, E, carotenes, etc., as these antioxidants protect tissues from free radical damage during and after workouts. For athletes, this translates to less tissue injury and shortened recovery times.

Antioxidants are important, while your diets are staggeringly deficient. For example: The RDA for vitamin C is 60 mg. The average North American gets about 114 mg, but recent research shows that at least 200mg are required. The RDA for vitamin E is 30 I.U. per day. The average person gets about 9 I.U., but recent studies show that 400 – 600 I.U. are necessary for good health, while athletes appear to need 800-1600 I.U. per day.

Since athletes need substantially more antioxidants than does the average person, supplementation is essential to maintaining health and performance.

Vitamins and Minerals. The importance of supplementation was demonstrated by a study of marathon runners in a 20 day, 312 mile run. The test involved hemoglobin levels, a measure of your blood’s ability to carry oxygen to your body’s cells. One supplemented group (given vitamin supplements including iron, zinc, vitamins B6, B12, C, and folic acid) actually increased their ability to carry oxygen with higher hemoglobin levels, and this coincided with improved performance over the same period. The control group (marathon runners without dietary supplementation) had declining hemoglobin levels as the race went on, and their athletic performance also deteriorated from excellent to marginal. It seems obvious that a decreased ability to transport oxygen would impair performance, and it does. Essential nutrients were used up by this intense activity, creating deficiencies. By the time day 20 of race rolled around, damage from lack of supplementation (malnourishment) becomes very evident in such things as an athlete’s hemoglobin levels. The greatest amount of free radical damage to DNA occurs in men who heavily exercise without any supplementation.

CoQ10  Muscle power is generated by conversion of the high energy compound ATP (adenosine triphosphate) to the mechanical force of muscle contraction. Your bodies store very little ATP, so it must be generated continuously. You can’t make sufficient ATP without CoQ10 (coenzyme Q10). CoQ10 supports every cell in your body by helping in ATP production, as well to prevent harmful lipid peroxidation, the harmful oxidation of fats, including cholesterol. 60 to 100 mg of CoQ10/day is recommended.

Ginseng   Certain herbs, such as Siberian ginseng, can be used to improve recovery time from exercise. Lactate is a by product of anaerobic metabolism that causes muscles to function sub optimally. Expediting the clearance of lactate will shorten recovery time from exercise as well as allowing for more high intensity work. A recent study found that athletes on a herbal formula with Siberian ginseng significantly improved their lactate clearance after two weeks of intense work.

Phosphatidylserine (PS) – A recent study measured the effects of 800 mg of phosphatidylserine (PS) on muscle soreness during two intense two week training sessions. Cortisol is a hormone, which breaks down muscle tissue and produces muscle soreness. The subjects taking the PS had significantly reduced cortisol in their blood, less muscle soreness, and reported a marked increase in their feelings of well being. The study concluded that PS attenuates muscle soreness and reduces cortisol levels during recovery from exercise.

Another important nutrient is water. It is essential to keep well hydrated. Dehydrating a muscle a mere 3% causes a 10% reduction in performance. The quality of your tissues, their strength, performance, and resistance to injury, are all dependent on having an adequate supply of water. Lungs are 90% water, brains 76% and blood 82%. Since an athlete in heavy training can use over two gallons of water a day, dehydration is an ongoing concern. Water is an extremely important nutrient, and it frequently gets forgotten.

Injuries, Infections & Immunity

Many athletes fail to reach their potential because of constant injuries. Healthy tissues tend to be more supple, stronger, and less susceptible to injury. People don’t grasp the fact that immunity is linked both to the seriousness of an injury, and the time it takes to recover. Healthy tissues get injured less often, and recover more quickly. Athletic success requires not only good training, but also optimal nutrition and the resilience it provides.

Intense exercise reduces levels of glutamine and glutathione, both of which are essential to your immunity. Reduction in glutamine and glutathione suppresses natural immunity for hours after exercise. That’s why athletes are more susceptible to infection than the general population. In marathon runners, infections cause more days lost than injuries. A third of all marathon runners suffered an upper respiratory infection within two weeks of their race. One Soviet Olympic skier, whose team was studied, had six infections in the five months after the Olympics.

The solution to the athlete’s many special requirements is high quality supplementation: Vitamin E is an excellent antioxidant that can be used to minimize oxidative cell damage, thus helping to prevent injuries in athletes. Vitamin E can also help to protect the membranes of T-cells, thereby enhancing immunity. A study found that Olympic athletes who took 800 to 1600 I.U. of vitamin E per day, plus other antioxidants, during periods of training completed the three year study without a single infection. Vitamin C is another important antioxidant. Its concentration in certain immune cells is 150 times the concentration in your blood. When fighting an infection, these cells use enormous quantities of vitamin C. If the C is lacking, immunity declines.

Conclusion

Superior athletic performance is the result of numerous mental, psychological, and physical factors. Purely looking at the human body as a machine, attention to diet, proper supplementation, and adequate hydration are absolute essentials. Athletes have special nutritional needs brought about by their own activities. Extra care must be taken in eating only those foods containing high concentrations of nutrients. This requires the athlete to be educated, and to make the consistent and deliberate choices that provide optimal performance. This means avoiding processed and prepared foods, which are low in nutrient content and high in toxic content. Even with a quality diet, a supplementation program is vital for optimal performance. This should include the basics of a high quality multiple vitamin/mineral formula: vitamin C, vitamin E, quercitin, extra calcium, magnesium, and zinc, beta carotene, essential fatty acids, and CoQ10.

Proper diet training and supplementation will allow athletes to have superior performance without being slowed by the ill effects and will finish way ahead of the competition.

To get more insight and information check out my CD’s Your Body Your Health and The Secrets of Weight Loss and theNutritional Sprays (all available on my website) which will bring you the best supplements available all in a spray, with up to 98% absorption. It increases the bio availability of nutrients with a simple and delicious spray into your mouth. Feel Healthy, energized and vibrant.  Help slow the aging process, support your immune system and suppress your appetite for a healthier body and mind in minutes a day.

I know you want to get in shape and look great.  Whatever your fitness goal…to slim down…gain muscle…tone your arms or flatten your tummy…I’m here to help you accomplish your goals and to improve your fitness level. If you have enjoyed this article and the many other free features on my site, and would like some more comprehensive information such as fitness books and CD’s to aid you in achieving your health and fitness goals, please visit my ONLINE STOREwhere you will find innovative natural health and beauty products to help you become the BEST YOU CAN BE !

I hope you’ll want to learn more and let me help you to get into the best shape of your life.

The best way to fight sports injuries is to avoid them entirely. Here are tips to help you keep and stay in game shape without spending time on the sidelines.

1. Sprint-based sports like baseball and basketball are the cause of a lot of lower-body muscle strains. The fix: stop-and-start drills.  If you train your body to do something that’s specific to your sport, then that training should take you through a full season. Here is an effective drill: Run 40 yards at about 70 percent of your maximum effort, slow to a jog for 10 yards, then pick it up again for another 40 yards. Repeat four or five times. You’ll be conditioned to sprint to first base, slow down, and charge for second, or run out for a pass.
2. Seventy percent of ACL injuries occur when players are pivoting or landing awkwardly after a jump. Hitting the ground with your knees bent instead of nearly straight greatly reduces the risk.  Practice Jumping and landing with bent knees.
3. Heatstroke harms many athletes. If the temperature and relative humidity combined equal 160, stay cool and hydrated, If the number tops 180, exercise indoors.
4. Replace old equipment. Stressing joints that are out of alignment, also referred to as overuse, is a major cause of sports injuries. Even a bike or racket that’s not properly sized for you can cause improper movement patterns that cause overuse injuries. The extra hundred bucks you spend at the pro shop can save you time and money at the orthopedic doctor’s office.
5. If your technique isn’t right, you’re just an injury waiting to happen. That’s why you need to seek advice from a pro. You’re only as good as the advice you get.
6. Seventy-five percent of muscle mass is made up of fluid. If you don’t drink enough, you are at a higher risk for strains, sprains, and pulled muscles.
7. Omega-3 fatty acids fight inflammation just like aspirin. (2 great sources are walnuts and salmon) That means less pain, more gains.
8. Leafy green vegetables and citrus fruit boost your blood’s alkaline levels, which helps heal wounds faster. They’ll also make your blood less acidic, which cuts inflammation.
9. Collagen is abundant in your connective tissues, tendons, bones, and muscles. Vitamin C is a key component of your body’s collagen recipe. So make sure you get enough in your diet or supplement.
10. Injured athletes typically consumed 25 to 40 percent less calcium than their uninjured counterparts.
11. Glutathione, an antioxidant, protects your body in many ways, and whey powder helps you make more of it. Whey is also the most readily absorbed source of branched-chain amino acids.  Think of it as a muscle-repair kits.
12. Chug a Coke (or antioxidant-packed iced tea).  I know it goes against all I believe but a recent study revealed cyclists who downed 10 milligrams of caffeine per kilogram of body weight before a 30-minute ride had significantly less thigh pain than those who took a placebo.
13. If your sport is multidirectional, your warm-up should be, too.  If your groin, back, and leg muscles aren’t ready, you’ll pull up in pain. Before the game, run backward, forward, sideways, and in quick combos of all directions.
14. Videotape yourself because the camera knows and sees all.  But be sure there is a knowledgeable person to help interpret your tape, which is where that coach or pro comes in.
15. Loosen your shoulders. An injured rotator cuff can shut down a shoulder. You should add external- and internal-rotation stretching to protect your cuffs. External: Stand with your right arm straight out to the side and parallel to the floor. Bend your elbow so your arm forms a right angle and your forearm points straight up. Keeping your elbow in place, move your hand back until you feel slight tension in your shoulder. Internal: Same as above, except that your forearm should point straight down toward the floor at the start. Hold each stretch for 30 seconds. And your a rubber band to add some resistance.
16. When you wear a custom-fitted mouth guard you reduce your risk of dental injuries by 82 percent. Lay out the money for a custom-fitted guard and it’ll last for years. So will your smile.
17. Buy running shoes and foot wear after work. Shop at night, when your feet are swollen after a day of pounding.  It approximates how big your feet will be after the first 3 miles of your run.
18. Exercise off road. Unstable surfaces train stable ankles.
19. Beat the heat. Run early in the day. Temperatures are lower, and so is the humidity.
20. Control Inflammation. Supplement: Bromelain Daily amount: 120 milligrams (mg).  It’s almost like putting a cold pack on a bruise or sprain. Extremely safe and inexpensive, bromelain has been shown to reduce swelling, bruising, healing time, and pain following physical injuries. Studies have also found that it relieves mild knee pain as well.
21. Shore Up Weak Tissue with Glucosamine sulfate Daily amount: 1,500 mg. Think of it as adding cement to a creaky foundation. Glucosamine creates polymers called glucosaminal glycans (GAG) that build and strengthen your tissues, preventing tears. Try pairing it with chondroitin, which promotes GAG formation and inhibits degradation enzymes in connective tissue.
22. When athletes train and compete, there’s a whole lot of cellular combustion taking place.  That combustion has by-products, and if you’re not taking care of those by-products, they can be harmful over time, and could even lead to a higher tendency toward cancer. Antioxidants from green tea can manage your body’s oxidative stress. Supplement: Green-tea extract Daily amount: Up to 800 mg
23. Methylation—a chemical process that helps your body build connective tissue—is important in muscle recovery, inflammation control, and muscle support and stability. If you take NSAIDs (e.g., aspirin and ibuprofen), all they do is block post workout inflammation. Pop SAM-e instead; it fuels methylation to provide benefits beyond the effect of NSAIDs. Daily amount: Work up to 1,200 mg
24. It doesn’t matter whether you’re biking, paddling, or skiing—take a dry run down any route first.  A lot of people get injured because they just don’t know what they’re getting into.  If you feel you can’t control yourself down the course, then walk away.
25. Crash landings require stuntman like instincts. You want to be as aerodynamic as possible when you hit, so just go with the fall and let your body roll through the impact.
26. Performance anxiety narrows your peripheral vision by as much as 3 degrees and slows reaction time by 119 milliseconds.  When the going gets tough, the tough rely on the skills they’ve practiced. It helps keep you cool under pressure, widening your range of vision so you can react within milliseconds.
27. Use a light grip. Most wrist and elbow injuries occur because people are using a tight grip. To get the feel, swing two clubs or bats at once—it can’t be done with a tight grip.
28. Extra sodium helps you retain water and stay hydrated while exercising in high temperatures. But stay away from salt pills—they may do more harm to your blood pressure than good for your race.
29. Smokers are nearly 50 percent more likely to suffer fractures, sprains, and other injuries. Smoking may also interfere with wound healing and muscle repair.
30. Check the ozone levels. When you hear the words “ozone alert day,” move your workout indoors. People who exercise in high ozone conditions are three times more likely to develop asthma than those who skip workouts on those days.
31. Don’t run in wet shoes. Soggy insoles have 40 to 50 percent less shock-absorbing capability than dry sneakers.  But don’t toss your shoes in the dryer; heat can degrade cushioning and support components.
32. Know how to fall. When you fall, let your butt and back share the impact with your forearms. And wear wrist guards; they may not look sexy, but neither will a cast and sling.
33. Ankle tape loosens after 10 minutes of play.  If you wear an ankle brace for example you may return to full participation after an injury 2 days sooner than those who were taped, and keep the brace on for at least 6 months. Most foot and ankle injuries are caused by incomplete healing of prior hurts.
34. A brace isn’t a cure. Athletes who wore ankle braces were 61 percent more likely to be injured. If you brace a bum leg or arm it’s still bum. Before you play hard, heal first.
35. Balance your muscles. Your dominant side tends to be stronger, leading to muscular imbalances, which can result in injuries. Lift with dumbbells, which isolate each side and balances weaknesses.
36. Men work their chest and biceps, and forget that their shoulders are a balancing joint that needs strong muscles on both sides. That makes your shoulders more susceptible to muscle strains. For every set of chest presses you do, perform a set for shoulders as well.
37. 36% of lightning deaths occur during recreational activities.
38. Take care of your eyes.  Eye injuries are on the rise.  Basketball and hockey are responsible for the most eye injuries, and more and more safety equipment is being made available.
39. Unplug your iPod. You need to process what’s ahead of you so you have time to avoid danger.
40. Obey the 15-minute rule after a hit to your head. If you’ve seen stars  you’re out of the game. You’ll need 10 to 14 days to recover and avoid any activity that’s likely to jar your head. A concussion can cloud your judgment and therefore your skills for up to 21 days after the original hit.
41. A recent study found that 47 percent of high-school and college male athletes involved in contact sports do not wear any kind of genital protection. What are they thinking? Great scene in the movie gridiron gang featuring ‘The ROCK’.
42. Inhaling freezing air can inflame your airways, which may lead to asthma attacks.  In icy weather, consider wearing a device that uses your body heat to warm the air you breathe before it enters your body.
43. Become a multisport warrior.  Excessive repetition of motion increases your risk of developing arthritis.  Nobody’s asking you to quit your favorite sport. But if you want to last at it, bring similar sports into the mix. You want to cross-train your muscles.  Natural pairings: skiing and soccer, swimming and martial arts, running and cycling, tennis and hoops.
44. Train your brain to heal your ankle. Training sensory receptors in your ankles can help prevent recurrent injury. Using a wobble board strengthens what are called  “proprioception”: the subconscious bond between your nerves and the muscles that do your brain’s bidding. Try standing on the board for 5 minutes a day while you’re reading. When that becomes easy, balance with your eyes closed
45. Train your brain to stay upright. Here’s another good reason to invest in a wobble board. It helps you work on maintaining your sense of balance and keeping your center of gravity. Simply standing on the board is great practice for sports in which balance is key: skiing, trail running, surfing, golf.
46. Super powered infections like MRSA are tough to treat with antibiotics, but the wounds they enter through are. Clean all cuts thoroughly with soap and water, apply an antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin, and then keep them covered and dry.
47. Keep a 15-degree bend in your elbow when going for a block or a dunk. Overextending your arm makes you prone to injuries.
48. Try to Juggle. Hand-eye coordination means fast reactions, fewer wrenching motions.
49. When you land after a jump, make sure it’s toes first, then heel. If you land either flat-footed or on your heels, you’ll be putting a lot of stress on your Achilles tendons and may cause your knees to hyperextend.
50. Researchers found that athletes with high levels of stress off the field are five times more likely to experience an injury than even-keeled people. Take your dog on a run with you. Pets can help soothe stress.
51. Show up early for your game.  Most amateurs just show up late and rush into the game.  By gradually warming up, you’ll guard against injuries.
52. Check the lengths of your legs. Researchers discovered that 83 percent of those who experienced multiple fractures (that’s several breaks that occur over time, not three at once) had different leg lengths. If you have pain in your hip, knee, or ankle, ask your doctor for a leg measurement during your annual physical. Some discrepancies can be solved with corrective insoles; many simply require strengthening hip flexors or loosening tight hamstrings.
53. Check your water losses. Weigh yourself before and after a long workout in hot weather. If you’ve lost more than 3 pounds by the time you’re finished, you’re dehydrated and could be at risk of heatstroke. Invest in a water pack so you can easily sip throughout your workout.
54. Eliminate fungus. Nail fungus is a serious and sport stopping consequence of running. Sweaty socks are breeding grounds for fungi.
55. Own the shoe that matches your game. Play tennis in tennis shoes. Unlike running shoes, which are made with an angled bottom to promote linear movement, tennis-shoe soles are flat, for optimal side-to-side motion.
56. To strengthen muscle, lengthen it. Muscles that are strengthened as they lengthen can absorb more force, and this means less potential for tendon trouble. It’s called eccentric training. Here’s an ideal move for runners: In a calf raise, lift for 2 seconds, then spend 10 seconds lowering the weight.  The tissue is lengthening as it’s contracting, and that trains it for force absorption and greater strength.
57. Wearing knee pads in contact sports may reduce the rate of lower-extremity injuries by 67 percent.

Stretch after sustained activity. That’s when blood flow is higher in your muscles, which helps them benefit more from the stretch.

• Choose a league appropriate to your skill level.  Injuries tend to happen when things get out of control, you’ll be a big fish swimming in a small pond.
• Squat, lunge, and step up. You’ll reduce back and hamstring injuries by strengthening your glutes, or butt muscles. Weak glutes force your hamstrings and lower back to compensate. And because your hamstrings and back muscles are so long and produce so much force, they can bend your torso back like a plastic spoon.
• Spend time relaxing before you exercise at altitude. Your exercising heart rate naturally adapts to high altitude, but you have to give it time. Training—or even sleeping—at high altitude accelerates this process. You’re also going to have a higher respiratory rate and lose more moisture,  So drink extra water, especially before and during hikes.
• A loss of body water can decrease performance by more than 20 percent.  Water’s not enough for exercise lasting over an hour.  Your body also loses salt, so you need a sports drink containing carbohydrates and electrolytes. Drink even more during games.  If you’re wearing a uniform, shin guards, and face mask, your body can’t dissipate heat as well as when you train in the gym in a T-shirt and shorts.
•  Keep drinking. Another time to drink more is when you travel to a warmer climate for a race. It takes 7 to 10 days for your core temperature to acclimate from cold to hot-and-humid conditions. Compensate with a water bottle in hand.

I know you want to get in shape and look great.  Whatever your fitness goal…to slim down…gain muscle…tone your arms or flatten your tummy…I’m here to help you accomplish your goals and to improve your fitness level. If you have enjoyed this article and the many other free features on my site, and would like some more comprehensive information such as fitness books and CD’s to aid you in achieving your health and fitness goals, please visit my ONLINE STOREwhere you will find innovative natural health and beauty products to help you become the BEST YOU CAN BE !

The following article is a small excerpt from one of my books. I hope you’ll want to learn more and let me help you to get into the best shape of your life.

There are a lot of excuses for not exercising and we continue to wonder why we fail in our quest to make physical activity a part of our daily life. All these excuses can really boil down to one simple excuse and although it’s not really a law in physics it does have a place when put into the context of physical activity. It states that ‘Things at rest tend to stay at rest.’ This will probably explain why the toughest thing about any exercise or activity is to get started. We all know once you get moving you usually enjoy yourself and usually have the energy to complete the activity at hand. It’s just tough getting started. If there were a magic pill for longevity, quality of life and physical independence the prescription would be ‘physical activity’.

Now you wouldn’t think that the laws of physics directly effect you, but they do. Especially the law of conservation of energy and the law the thermodynamics. First lets look at the law of conservation of energy. It states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed but only changes from one form to another. Food, which is energy, is generally abundant, high in calories and low in nutritional value. We eat more food than we use and generally have an inactive lifestyle. Here is how this physics law works and how it effects you. When you consume more energy then you use, the remaining energy will be converted and stored as fat. (an extra 350 calories per week over 10 weeks will add up to an extra pound of fat that you have gained … over one year this will add up to 5 pounds…and over 5 years if you continue at this rate you will have gained an extra 25 pounds).

The second law of Thermodynamics states that energy must continue to flow through a system to keep it intact or the system will degenerate. Einstein’s formula for this is E=mc2. So when the energy of the sun runs out (c=0) then there will be no light therefore energy flow will cease and E=O. What this means to you is that if energy is not continuously converted in your body, your body will degenerate. Muscle tissue will start to waste away leaving you vulnerable to injuries, bones will break more easily and your heart must work harder to pump blood. These are just a few of the effects of not properly maintaining an efficient energy flow in your body.

Now we are all unique in our ability to convert energy and the worldwide standard to measure this physical fitness level is known as your VO2 max. This is basically the amount of oxygen your cells can consume and is measured in millimetres of oxygen per kilogram of bodyweight per minute. So if you had a VO2 max of 50 and weighed 60 kilograms and exercised for one minute, the maximum amount of oxygen you could use would be 3,000 ml. (VO2max(50) x weight (60) x time (1))

This doesn’t mean you should run out and get yourself tested because first of all not all fitness clubs are equipped to test your VO2 max and secondly if you do find a place that could test you, it may be expensive. Here’s some good news, in the book ‘Get Fit Stay fit’ there is a formula for finding out your VO2 max fairly accurately and it won’t cost you anything except your time.

Here are some numbers for you to know and think about. The average person consumes or burns at rest about 3.5 ml/kg/min. of oxygen and it takes about 1000 millilitres or one litre of oxygen to burn 4.85 calories. If you know your VO2 max you can now figure out several things that effect your performance.

Let’s use the previous example of a person with a VO2 max of 50 and weighing 60 kilograms. What we want to figure out is how far they can run if they are running as fast as they can for 10 minutes. We need to first find out the maximum amount of oxygen consumed. Using the previous formula of VO2 max x weight x time we plug in the numbers 50 x 60 x 10 and find that they would consume 30,000 millilitres or 30 litres of oxygen. If 1 litre of oxygen burns 4.85 calories then this person will burn 30 litres x 4.85 calories or will burn 145.5 calories while running as fast 7as they can for 10 minutes. Now it takes a person of about 60 kilograms approximately 100 calories to travel one mile. So 145.5 / 100 = 1.45 miles. In conclusion then a person with a VO2 max of 50, weighing 60 kilograms and running as fast as they can for 10 minutes will travel 1.45 miles.

You don’t need to know your VO2 max to figure out how many calories you burn at rest. Don’t be fooled into thinking that this is the number of calories you need to consume each day. What we are going to figure out is the number of calories you burn just breathing. The previous way to figure out your daily caloric needs should not be forgotten. Let’s do the math. We still use the previous formula of VO2 max x weight x time. This time your VO2 max is 3.5 which is the amount of oxygen you consume at rest. So 3.5ml/kg x 60 kg x 1,440 minutes (1 day) = 202,400 millilitres or approximately 202 litres of oxygen per day at total rest. You know that 1 litre burns 4.85 calories so 202 litres x 4.85 = 980 calories. So a person weighing 60 kilograms will burn approximately 980 calories per day doing absolutely nothing…just breathing.

All physical activity is beneficial and although high intensity workouts are sometimes necessary for athletes who are competing at high levels, they are not necessary for you if you are just simply trying to make physical activity a part of your daily life. A problem that often arises with beginners is burnout. They overdo themselves and quickly become tired, bored or injured and end up quitting what they so enthusiastically wanted to achieve. Knowing your VO2 max will show you your limits and help you to avoid this beginner’s pitfall.

As I mentioned earlier, you could ask your doctor or a fitness laboratory to test you for your VO2max but it could wind up being expensive. The formula in the book ‘Get Fit Stay Fit’ is simple and fairly accurate. There are however several factors that you need to calculate. Take your time and once you calculate your VO2 max you’ll be able to calculate the physical activities that are best suited for you to achieve a lifetime of physical fitness. Also after the age of 20 your VO2 max starts to decline, partly because of a 3 to 4 percent loss of your hearts stroke volume each decade. This means your heart delivers less blood to your working muscles and less blood means less oxygen is delivered to your muscles that need it and this means energy levels will drop.

Time erodes your system leaving you less energy efficient. There is a theory that states cells can only divide a certain number of times. Once the cell is unable to replace itself it will eventually die. This may give the answer to the question to when we’re older and get injured it takes longer to recuperate. Since the damaged cells aren’t replaced by new cells, they’re replaced by non functioning scar tissue, and a little bit of function is lost as the remaining cells pick up the slack.

We may not be able to stop the aging process but there is significant proof that proper rest, nutrition and physical activity will slow the process down. Here is a list that shows the age-related declines of an average person between the ages of 30 and 75.

BODY FUNCTION PERCENTAGE DECLINE

I know you want to get in shape and look great.  Whatever your fitness goal…to slim down…gain muscle…tone your arms or flatten your tummy…I’m here to help you accomplish your goals and to improve your fitness level. If you have enjoyed this article and the many other free features on my site, and would like some more comprehensive information such as fitness books and CD’s to aid you in achieving your health and fitness goals, please visit my ONLINE STORE where you will find innovative natural health and beauty products to help you become the BEST YOU CAN BE !