admin @ Sat, 2006-09-23 11:00
Working out for 20 minutes in short intense bursts of effort, separated by a few minutes of recovery, can provide the same health benefits as two hours of daily moderate exercise, says McMaster University's Martin Gibala.
Indeed, the associate professor of kinesiology's test subjects, who performed four to six 30-second bursts of all-out cycling separated by four minutes of recovery, achieved the same increase in fitness levels as those doing 90-120 minutes of moderate cycling.
Gibala isn't suggesting you ditch Health Canada guidelines, which recommend 30 to 60 minutes of moderate exercise every day. But on days when you have "no time," 20 minutes of intense activity will do it. If you normally walk, walk a bit faster, he suggests.
Walk partway to work, take the stairs, build in three 10-minute walks a day, go for a bike ride or play with the kids, she suggests. Sound easy? Sometimes it seems there's a plot against getting started down that healthy living path.
Take walking and running. While falling leaves bode well for women who fear using leafy trails because sex predators may be hiding in the bushes, they also herald reduced daylight hours (increasing fears of assault) and hazardous ice and snow.
That's when some people can exercise by shovelling snow, says Martin Ginis -- focusing on the positive! -- or by visiting malls with walking programs.
Initiation fees, automatic account debiting (even after your contract ends) and fine print that can make it practically impossible to terminate a contract -- for one man, apparently even death didn't do it -- are just a few experiences that can turn consumers off exercise, never mind gyms.
Exaggeration? Take a look at the 139,000 hits you get on Google with: "fitness clubs consumer rights" -- especially demoralizing because fitness clubs should be encouraging us, right?
But even the best have bureaucratic rules -- 30 days notice to put your membership on hold while you're out of the country or to terminate it if you're moving, for example -- that can make the most committed hesitant about, well, committing.
Still, with studies indicating 59 per cent of Canadians, including 26 per cent of kids, are overweight, and associated health problems such as heart attack, stroke, diabetes and sleep apnea soaring, it's imperative we find solutions.
And how about government promoting active environments in communities -- bike paths, walking trails, green space -- and active transportation systems, says Martin Ginis. Consider Vienna, where bicycle kiosks -- where residents simply pick up a bike, drive it across town, and drop it at another kiosk -- dot the city, she says. Why not put bike racks on buses, she asks.
And while the new tax rebate for equipment for kids in organized sports, touted by the Conservative government, is "messy" -- what's considered physical activity and what's not requires a committee to decide -- other incentives, like making fitness-club memberships tax deductible or insurance companies giving discounts to the physically active, are good ideas, she says.
As a runner, I'd add: enforcing snow-removal bylaws so runners and walkers, alike -- especially seniors -- can safety navigate in winter. And city plowing and grooming of public walkways and trails.
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