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Last Updated: Oct 3, 2008 - 8:11:42 PM |
AICR Ever Green Ever Healthy
July 2008
Topic: Lifestyle
Dump the Dumbbells?
from the American Institute for Cancer Research
The benefit of regular exercise and strength training is more than just being able to wear a smaller sized pair of pants. AICR's second expert report found convincing evidence that physical activity protects against cancer as well as weight gain, helping to prevent those cancers whose risk is raised by excess body fat. As a result, AICR recommends being active at a moderate pace for at least 30 minutes daily.
Strength training, an important component of regular physical activity, can help increase your energy, tone or strengthen your muscles and improve bone density without bulky weights in just a few minutes a day. Here are two weight-training exercises that can be done without free-weights and are beneficial at any age or fitness level:
Wall Pushup
- Face a wall with space between your body and the wall. Lean forward and place your palms flat against the wall at shoulder height and width apart.
Slowly bend your elbows as you lower your upper body toward the wall keeping your feet flat on the floor.
- Pause at the wall and count to two. Slowly push yourself back with your arms until they are straight, but don’t lock your elbows.
- Repeat at your comfort level and try to increase the number of pushups you do, working your way up to 10 times a set, for at least two sets daily.
This exercise strengthens your arms, shoulders and chest.
Pelvic Tilt
-Lie flat on your back on the floor. With your knees bent and feet flat, place your arms and palms flat on the ground and slowly roll your pelvis so your hips and lower back are off the floor while your upper back and shoulders remain on the ground.
-Pause, count to four and slowly lower your pelvis back to the ground. Repeat at your comfort level and try working your way up to 10 times for one set for up to two sets daily.
This exercise strengthens your abdominal muscles and helps improve your posture.
Yoga is another excellent way to stretch and strengthen your muscles. Two beginning poses that are great body weight exercises are downward dog and plank.
-To form downward dog, start on your hands and knees and curl your toes under, lifting your hips to lift yourself into an upside-down V. Place most of the weight in your legs, not your arms, for a safer pose. Try to straighten your legs while keeping your hips high and your heels moving toward the floor. Hold for 10 seconds or longer.
-A plank pose is simply the top of a pushup without lowering into one, which you hold to strengthen your legs, core and arm muscles. Hold for at least 10 seconds.
Using your body weight to strengthen your muscles is an economical, portable and alternative way to improve your physical strength with weight training. For more information on body-weight training, including the two exercises above, visit www.cdc.gov to navigate to the CDC Strength Training for Older Adults section.
AICR’s exercise recommendation from the second expert report gives some helpful advice on starting out and AICR’s handy guide for the differences between moderate and vigorous exercises can be found at www.aicr.org.
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