I thought that subject line would get you! Actually, I can think of only one reason to not workout today, and that’s when your resting heart rate is permanently at zero.

However, I do realize that many times people lose the motivation to work out, no matter how committed they are to exercise, or how long they have been exercising. The key is to recognize that this is a normal phenomenon and to be able to respond in an effective manner when you feel like this. For those who are just starting a workout program, this can be a critical juncture. Missing a workout can lead to missing another and another and just like that you’ve lost your momentum and perhaps any benefits you were starting to get from your exercise routine. If and when you start up again, it will be like starting over from scratch. Most people who start an exercise program stop after just a few weeks because they have not achieved the unrealistic goals they have set for themselves and there is no one to hold them accountable for such behavior.

Here are some suggestions as to how to handle those days when you just don’t feel like working out:

1. Cut your workout in half. If you normally work out for 45 minutes, just commit to doing something for 20 minutes that day. Who knows, once you hit the 20 minute mark you may have regained your motivation and you can get a full workout in.
2. Do something relatively easy. If you were planning a strength training workout, perhaps a few gentle stretches and some calisthenics instead. If you were planning some type of cardio interval training, replace it with a leisurely stroll. Any activity is better than none.
3. Try something different. The problem may be that you are bored with your current routine, and it is time to switch it up. This should be done periodically anyway, since over time your body adapts to an exercise program and if you do not modify it (known as periodization), then you will start to plateau. If you’re not sure how to modify your current workout program, a personal trainer can be of assistance.
4. Take the day off. It may be that your body is telling you that it needs a break, and no one knows your body better than you. But find someone that will hold you accountable to taking just one day off and getting right back into your fitness program as soon as possible, preferably the next day.

As you can see, the key is to do something, anything, to get your body moving, but if you absolutely, positively must take a day off, don’t make it a habit. It’s during these times of low motivation that it really helps to have someone that you are accountable to for your health and fitness goals.

To your health and happiness,

Jim Borden

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Videos of the week: 1. great song from a great movie, guaranteed to put a smile on your face; 2.this one got us thinking what are some other ways we can add fun to our daily routines…

If you’ve never read The Onion, then you’ve been missing out on some of the best humor writing on the web. To give you some sense of the popularity of the web site, if you google the term “the”, The Onion is the first web site listed (out of 12 billion results), ahead of The White House! That says it all.

Anyway, I thought I would look this week to see if The Onion had anything funny to say about exercise and nutrition – we could all use a good laugh now and then. As you are aware, we all have a different sense of humor, and may not agree on what’s funny (well I am sure we would all agree that Napoleon Dynamite is one of the funniest movies of all time…. wait, what did you say, you couldn’t stand that movie????). So I realize some of these Onion stories may not even get you to crack a smile, but you can’t blame me for trying.

GERMANTOWN, TN-The notion of aerobic exercise fleetingly crossed the mind of Memphis-area office manager Theodore Sperling Monday. “There was half an hour to kill before Monday Night Football,” Sperling said, “and I thought for a few seconds that maybe I should go for a walk around the block.” After raising himself from the couch, however, Sperling instead walked to the kitchen for a leftover pork chop from that evening’s dinner and returned to the living room, where he briefly channel-surfed before settling on a Game Show Network rerun of Match Game ’75.

BOSTON-The Florida Keys diet, which can be adequately described in 14 words, has been padded into a 204-page book: Losing Weight The Florida Keys Way, available in bookstores Tuesday. “The diet is pretty much, ‘Avoid saturated fats and simple carbohydrates, eat mostly fresh vegetables and seafood, and exercise,” said author Dr. Harris Jegen. “Unfortunately, no one is going to shell out $24.95 for one sentence, so I’ve got some recipes and charts in there, a bunch of testimonials, and a 50-page Diet Diary.” Jegen’s previous books include The Florida Keys Diet and The Florida Keys Diet Made Easy.

What’s not funny is when someone loses their motivation to work out. It happens to all of us, but the key is to get back into your routine as soon as you can. Next week I’ll look at why we lose our motivation to exercise and what can be done to refocus and recommit ourselves to health and fitness.

Video(s) of the week: I was just reading today how great dancing is as a form of exercise, and as a tribute to my all time favorite actor, here is a clip from one of my all time favorite movies (it’s only 13 seconds long). While searching for that clip I came across another great dance routine with Jimmy and Bob Hope – I never knew Bob could dance!

To your health and happiness…

The New York Times had an interesting article today which discussed the topic of cooling down after a workout. Apparently, there is little scientific evidence to support the oft-recommended advice of taking a few minutes after your workout to “cool down”.

Part of the problem, as the story points out, is that there is little to no guidance as to what exactly a cool down should entail, and how long it should last.

One possible theory behind cooling down was that muscles became sore after exercise because they accumulated lactic acid, and by slowly reducing the intensity of your workout you gave lactic acid a chance to dissipate, and thus alleviated muscle soreness. This theory has been proven to be incorrect; lactic acid has nothing to do with muscle soreness.

So does this mean there is no value in cooling down?

Exercise researchers say there is only one agreed-on fact about the possible risk of suddenly stopping intense exercise, without cooling down. When you exercise hard, the blood vessels in your legs are expanded to send more blood to your legs and feet. And your heart is pumping fast. If you suddenly stop, your heart slows down, your blood is pooled in your legs and feet, and you can feel dizzy, even pass out.

This is an unlikely scenario; even after a tough workout, very few people just stop suddenly. They often walk around a little bit, even if it is just to get to their car. However, even if it is not a likely scenario, why take the chance? To me, a simple cool down should be incorporated into every workout. Not only does it lessen the likelihood of passing out, but it is a good way to transition from the stress of the workout.

I also believe post exercise is an ideal time to engage in some stretching activities. After a workout, your muscles are warm and limber and thus the chances of incurring an injury from stretching are lower.

While stretching has not been shown to reduce muscle soreness, it has been shown to increase range of motion and to maintain balanced body mechanics. In addition, there is the hard to quantify benefit that stretching just feels good and is a nice way to relax after a vigorous workout.

So we will continue to engage in some form of a cool down at Fitness Together; for many clients it’s the favorite part of their workout!

To your health and happiness.

It took all the self-control I could muster to hold off from sending this newsletter two days ago, but since I didn’t feel like renaming the newsletter to “Muscles Monday”, I just waited until today to share what I consider IMPORTANT news, at least if you consider winning the Nobel Prize important news…

On Monday, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was jointly awarded to Elizabeth H. Blackburn, Carol W. Greider and Jack W. Szostak
for the discovery of “how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase”. While I am sure that Chris, with his degree in biology, could offer a better explanation as to all the scientific details of their research, what excited me was the possible link between this research and the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

(If you would like to read more about telomeres and telomerase, here is a link to a USA Today story about the award and the underlying research, written in a way that even I could grasp the basics.)

But like I said, what fascinated me are the implications for aging and the impact of a healthy lifestyle.

While Blackburn’s original findings on telomeres and telomerase dates back to the late 1970s and 1980s, what particularly fascinates Blackburn these days is the possibility of changing telomerase levels to slow the deterioration of our telomeres. Blackburn, along with Dean Ornish (one of my favorite guys!). recently conducted a carefully limited pilot study of 30 prostate cancer patients by scientists and doctors at UCSF and a Sausalito research institute. The results indicated for the first time that major lifestyle changes may prevent early cell death and lengthen human life. (Their report was published in September 2008 in the British journal Lancet Oncology).

The research team studied the levels of telomerase in the prostate tissue of the 30 cancer patients who had volunteered to follow a diet that included only 10 percent caloric content from fat and was low in refined sugars and rich in fruits, vegetables and natural foods, plus vitamin supplements and fish oil. In addition, the patients were engaged in moderate aerobic exercises and learned stress-reduction techniques. After only three months, 24 patients showed a highly significant increase in their telomerase levels – an indication that the cell-protecting telomeres in their cells were being restored.

(As an aside – all these eating and exercising habits, plus yoga and meditation, have long been part of the programs Ornish prescribes as effective for preventing and even reversing heart disease.)

The researchers caution that with such a limited number of patients their study is only preliminary, and they are calling for a much larger and strictly controlled research project. But if these early findings are confirmed, they say, “this might be a powerful motivator for many people to beneficially change their diet and lifestyle.”

US News and World Report, in reference to the above prostate cancer research study, in some prophetic reporting from June 2009, stated, “It’s rumored that Blackburn’s research is of Nobel Prize caliber, but she refuses to speculate about that or any other form of public recognition. What she likes to mull is the implication of her findings on everyday life. That includes her own. When she is stressed, or tempted to skip a workout, sometimes she scolds herself: “Damn, my telomeres will be shortened.”

So that’s what got me so excited – if a Nobel prize-winning scientist thinks that her research offers some indication that healthy eating and working out is good for you, who am I to argue?

To your health and happiness.