Walking 4 Fitness: A Safe Aerobic Exercise for Everyone!

Everyone seems to be looking for the next great exercise, video or gadget to help burn calories, lose weight and get in better shape. Few exercises can been as effective and safe as walking. As always, it’s good to start slowly and build up the time and distance walked. Also, if you’ve been inactive for a prolonged period and have had serious health issues, please consult a physician before starting a walking program.

• Benefits from walking – aerobic conditioning, weight control, safe exercise, low-impact sport, stress management, and social rewards.
• Aerobic conditioning- lungs use oxygen more efficiently; you strengthen your heart, and condition your muscles.
• Weight control – diets alone don’t work, walking can burn as much fat as jogging, at about 100 calories per mile. Burns fat and keeps it off!
• Safe exercise – it’s gradual, controlled excretion; it is safe if you are under medical care for heart disease, diabetes, or other conditions.
• Low-impact sport – your feet land with less impact, reducing likelihood of muscle, bone and joint injury.
• Stretching – you should gently stretch and prepare your muscles for about 5 minutes prior to walking. Stretching should be slow and easy, never bounce. Calf and quadriceps stretch 3 times for 20-30 seconds.
• Walking briskly – warm up by walking normal for about 5 minutes to increase your heart rate slowly. For 20-45 minutes walk briskly. Remain erect, taking full strides and swinging your arms easily.
• Cool down – last 5 minutes slow walk to lower our pulse safely. Remember to stretch after you walk. This prevents muscle stiffness and increases flexibility. Side reach and hamstring stretch recommended.
• Walking program – gradual increase in frequency, time and distance.Begin 15minutes 3 -4 times per week. Increase 5 minutes per week until reach your goal. Try to walk 4-5 times per week for 45 minutes to 60 minutes.
• Safe training – most injuries are caused by overuse- walking too fast and too far on hard surfaces. To protect your feet and legs, wear quality shoes, socks, and practice good walking form. Allow your body to adapt slowly. Try to walk on soft, flat, level surfaces.
• Anatomy of a good walking shoe – padded heel with good heel support, good arch support, flexible sole and plenty of toe room. Choose leather or nylon uppers. Socks should be high bulk (75-80%) Orlon, reinforced heel and toe padding, i.e. Thorlo.
• Target heart rate – maximum aerobic benefits – take a 10 second pulse 220 – age = maximum heart rate x .60 for beginner, .7 for intermediate = training rate. Note: take pulse at neck (carotid) or wrist (radial).

Healthy Feet Make the Best Dancing Feet Don’t Ignore Foot Pain on the Dance Floor

You can’t channel surf for more than a couple minutes before coming across a “dancing” reality show. Classical, ballroom, hip hop and more. It looks like so much much fun ! Being ‘light on your feet’ when dancing is not entirely true; dancing the night away can take a toll on feet and ankles. If you enjoy social dancing or have gotten serious enough to take a class, don’t let foot injuries stop the show, be sure to protect your feet and ankles. The most common types of dance-related foot and ankle problems are overuse injuries, which occur due to the repetitive movements in dance. Over 50 percent of dance injuries occur in the foot and ankle. The severity of the damage is often determined by a dancer’s age, strength and flexibility and the type of shoes worn when dancing. Other common types of injuries related to dancing can include:

• stress fractures (hairline breaks in the bone) from repeated jumping and landing
• foot neuromas (thickening/irritation of the nerves in the ball of the foot) resulting from repetitive pivoting
• shin splints (pain and swelling in the front of the lower legs) which can be aggravated by recurring activities
• tendonitis (inflammation of the tendons in the foot) from over exertion
• corns, calluses or blisters—all painful skin irritations resulting from repeated rubbing of the skin on the feet. What’s the best defense to protect your feet and ankles?
• Wear appropriate shoes to properly support your feet and ankles
• Perform dance moves that best fit your skill level

If you do suffer an injury, it is important to make an appointment with our office as soon as possible. Prompt medical attention by a foot and ankle surgeon can make all the different in a proper rehabilitation. Most dance injuries can be treated with conservative care as long as they are not ignored. Don’t dispel foot pain even if you can walk on it; remember it is possible to walk on a seriously injured foot. Common injuries, if left untreated, may require surgical intervention to ensure proper healing.

Be Aware of Injuries-Early

So we’re a month into 2009 and determined people are sticking with their NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION to get in shape. Sometimes during a workout a sharp pain may shoot through your heel or your feet become tender, numb or painful. Obviously, many people are reluctant to slow down after getting off to such a good start so here are a few tips. If the stabbing pain is in your heel, especially when your first get out of bed in the morning, you probably are suffering from plantar fasciitiis . To prevent this, wear athletic shoes that support the arch and cushion the heel or try orthotics. If the pain is in the ball of your foot or tingling the third and fourth toes you may have neuroma, which is a pinched nerve. This often occurs when people wear shoes that are too tight. Get your feet measured and wear the proper size in both athletic and everyday footwear. A third common injury is achilles tendonitis. This can happen when people don’t warm up properly or try to do too much without allowing the body to adapt to the increased workload. For achilles tendonitis use Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation (R. I. C. E ) . If they pain from any of the injuries continues for more than five days, please call our office to make an appointment. The earlier the treatment the better chance of a quick and full recovery.

FITNESS-New Year’s Resolution

After we enjoy the holiday party season and possibly put on a few pounds, many of us resolve to a new fitness regimen for the new year. Some people even receive fitness equipment from Santa. I’m all for anything that gets people up and moving, Don’t start a walking, jogging or running routine without checking the status of your shoes. Badly worn shoes will lead to blisters and even more serious foot, toe and ankle problems. There are dozens of quality shoes out for everything from tennis, cross training, walking and running. Take some time to find out what shoes are best for you. Just as important are quality socks. I recommend something made with Cool Max, like Wright Socks double layer anti-blister socks. Do some research. It will be time well spent. You can also check my shoe review link on my home page.