Health and Fitness in Your 30's – North Attleboro
21 August 2013
People at every age are trying to lose weight and get in shape. You don’t need to be a genetically blessed model to keep your body in remarkable shape. There is a fountain of youth: fitness.
With the right workout strategy that is targeted for your age and physiology you can fight back against the inevitable slowdown, build muscle and keep your weight in check. The next few blogs will have a decade by decade game plan, based on advice from scientists, nutritionists and fitness pros, to get the body you want right now.
What to do at 30
You are still close to peak potential. This is when your body begins the early stages of rebellion. Starting in the 30s and early 40s, women lose about 5 pounds of muscle in every decade.
Unfortunately, the more muscle tone you have, the leaner you look and the more calories you burn at rest. In fact, a normal-weight woman is likely to gain 5% of her body weight per decade between the ages of 25 and 45. But, if you are active, you're still in control.
Fitness game plan: It's essential to stay at your ideal weight during this decade to set yourself up for success later, when biology makes it more challenging. That means cardio is key.
You can get good results from 30 to 40 minutes of running, a dance class or any other heart-pumping exercise you like four or five times a week.
Add muscle-building exercises to increase your metabolism even further and tone up: Do as many reps as you can of a strength building exercise for one minute. Follow that up with two minutes on a bike at a challenging pace. Continue alternating, varying the strength move each time, for 15 minutes.
Nutrition game plan: To lose weight at this age, a moderately active 5-foot-5, 150-pound woman should consume around 1,500 calories a day (but no fewer!). That can lead to a loss of 5 pounds in about 5 weeks, 10 pounds in about 10 weeks and 15 pounds in about 15 weeks.
The secret to regulating your hunger hormones and making chip binges less likely is eating on a regular schedule. That means having breakfast within an hour of waking up and spacing remaining meals three to five hours apart.
Also, make sure you're getting 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day: The mineral is needed to help muscles contract and maintain strong bones.
For more information on a health and fitness plan for your body, contact Answer is Fitness. For information on health and fitness in your 40’s, see next week’s blog.
CNN
