Are You Ready for Swimsuit Season?

(ARA) – Swimsuit season will be here again before you know it. Are you ready? If you’re like most Americans and have spent the winter months indoors and inactive, probably not. You’ve likely put on a few extra pounds in all the wrong places.

Wondering how to get them off before you have to make that first appearance at the pool? Most doctors would offer this advice: combine a reduced-calorie diet with increased physical activity.

You can start by eliminating all those comfort foods you’ve been enjoying during the long, winter months. Such foods as fried chicken, casseroles, mashed potatoes with gravy and pumpkin pie are laden with fat and calories, and aren’t doing your body much good. Instead, choose healthier dishes like broiled fish, grilled chicken, salads and fruit for dessert.

Improving your diet is only half the equation. You also need to get up off the couch. Most adults should get at least 30 minutes of moderate activity per day, but according to “The Surgeon General's Call To Action To Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity” fewer than one in three U.S. adults gets the recommended amount of physical activity.

“Nothing else you can do for yourself has more benefit than getting up and getting moving,” says certified trainer Chad Baldwin of Snap Fitness, a fast-growing franchisor of compact, state-of-the-art 24/7 fitness centers in Canada and the United States. “Not only does exercise make you feel better, it has a lot of health benefits.”

In addition to helping to control weight, physical activity decreases your risk of dying of coronary heart disease and also reduces your risk of developing diabetes, hypertension, and colon cancer. Baldwin points out exercise does not have to be strenuous to be beneficial. “Some studies show that short sessions of exercise several times a day are just as effective at burning calories and improving health as one long session,” he says.

Here are some ideas on how to get more active:

* Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator whenever possible. You’ll burn a lot more calories. You can even try using restrooms, copy machines, getting supplies, etc. on a different floor just to get more exercise.

* Be less efficient! If you have stairs in your home, take as many trips up and down them as you can every day instead of saving things to go up or down. At the office, take a walk to see your co-workers instead of always using e-mail.

* If your company has a gym, use it during your lunch break. If not, join one that is close to work and home so you’re more likely to use it. Many reputable chains will have locations sprinkled throughout the community, and most have expanded their hours in response to members’ demands.

Snap Fitness, for example, has more than 600 clubs, with hundreds more on the way over the next few months. And because they are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you can get your workout in whenever it is most convenient for you.

Once you join, be sure to take advantage of your gym’s extras. Exercising on state-of-the-art equipment is a start. But nowadays, health clubs offer many value-added services to help you achieve the long-lasting results you want. These include personal training and nutrition counseling, for example. Ask what comes standard with your membership.

Many clubs are striving to give you more for your money. Snap Fitness, for example, allows you to create a Personal Web Page with access to a suite of free services. These include the ability to create a Personal Wellness Plan with specific action steps based on a confidential health risk assessment, plus the ability to develop and track your own workout program online or choose from pre-defined workouts designed by personal trainers. You can even download your daily plan to your PDA and bring it with you to the gym!

Maybe you want to lose 10 pounds by September, or fit into a smaller dress size in time for a friend’s summer wedding. No matter what type of plan you have created for yourself, the only way you’re going to see results is if you stay consistent, says Baldwin. “Make an effort to visit the gym every day to get some weight lifting and cardio in. On the days when you can’t make it to the gym, walk around the office complex where you work a couple of times during the day, or ride bikes with your family in the evening.”

To find the Snap Fitness gym near you, log on to www.SnapFitness.com and click on the link that says “Club Locator.”

Courtesy of ARAcontent