Exercise & Fitness Guidelines - Nautilus EV9.16 Owner's Manual

C H A N G I N G T H E G A M E I N H E A LT H A N D F I T N E S S
EXERCISE & FITNESS GUIDELINES
No single fitness
program is suitable
for all. All fitness
programs should be
designed by fitness
professionals who
are trained to tailor
the program to the
individual goals and
fitness levels of each
client. The following information on exercise intensity,
duration, and frequency is based on averages and is
included here only as a guideline for use by fitness
professionals. Programs should be altered for
comfort and safety when necessary.
Exercise and Health
It is not a secret that lack of exercise is increasingly
becoming a major health issue. Obesity is on the rise,
and being overweight can contribute to an increased
risk in heart attack, diabetes, high blood pressure and
other life threatening illnesses.
Most people do not get enough activity during the
day to make up for the time they spend at their desks,
driving their cars or sitting in front of their televisions.
We have learned that exercising is not simply
something we must do to look good and have a great
body. Exercise is a requirement for health, and overall
wellness, not to mention it can help you feel great!
The good news is that we are seeing more and more
research that indicates we don't have to work out
intensely to see the benefits. Sure, it is great if you
can workout for 30-40 minutes at a time, five days
a week. But it is not essential. Shorter bouts of
exercise can have a great effect (especially if you are
just starting out), and a little bit of exercise at a time
is much better than none at all.
And what is really exciting is that research indicates
that whether you are young or old, people who
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workout at light to moderate intensities may have an
easier time sticking to their exercise programs than
those people who work out harder and more often.
So, you do not need to be an athlete or a fitness "die-
hard" to benefit from exercise—You just need to get
started, work out at levels that are comfortable and
enjoyable to you and stick with it!
Steps to Getting Started
Once you have made the commitment to start an
exercise program, here are some suggestions that
may help you stay motivated.
The first step is the most difficult. Any new habit is
difficult to establish at first, but it can be done. Be
patient, and plan to start slow and easy. Less is more
when you are first starting out... don't overdo it!
Get a physical exam. If you have been inactive for
several years or new to an exercise program, be sure
to ask your doctor before beginning any exercise
program. Especially if you are over 30, have health
problems or have a history of heart disease in your
family.
Find an exercise buddy. Research has shown that
starting an exercise program with someone can
increase your chances of sticking to it. If you have
a buddy that is also starting a program, you can
encourage, motivate and challenge each other.
Make fitness a part of your schedule. Include it
in your daily planner just as you would any other
appointment. Plan ahead for the week so that you
can be sure to fit it in. Even if you are pressed for time
one day, a little exercise is better than none at all. Do
what you can to fit it in, even if you have less time
than you hoped for.
Use positive affirmations. Affirmations will help you
program your subconscious to accept new beliefs.
Saying to yourself a couple of times a day,
EXERCISE & FITNESS GUIDELINES
"I am living a healthier lifestyle by exercising several
times per week at home," can help you stay on track.
Set goals. Setting goals can be helpful in keeping
you motivated, but remember to keep them realistic.
Short-term and long-term goals can make this easier.
How many days do you want to exercise this week?
How many workouts would you like to have done in 90
days or a year?
Components of Fitness
Over the past 25 years, many people have focused on
walking, running, cycling, swimming and other types
of aerobic activity as their only means of exercise.
However, we have learned that two other
components of fitness are just as important. These
other two components are muscle strength and
flexibility. So in addition to having a strong heart
and lungs, we also need to be able to pick up a full
bag of groceries and tie our shoes without having
to sit down.
When developing your home fitness program, it
is only appropriate that you develop all three
components in order to achieve balanced overall
fitness. Let's take a look at all three components:
Cardiovascular Fitness is training the heart and lungs
to be stronger and deliver more oxygen throughout
your body with less effort. It can help reduce the risk
of heart disease, and help you manage your weight.
It is the cornerstone of fitness, and can be achieved
in many ways such as using a Nautilus elliptical,
®
walking or running on the treadmill or outdoors,
climbing stairs, cycling, using a StairMaster stepper
®
or swimming in the pool or ocean.
For many years, it was suggested that moderate
level cardiovascular activity (activities that make you
sweat and breathe and a moderate pace) should be
done 3 – 4 days a week for 15 – 45 minutes at a time. It
is now recommended
that you attempt to do
some cardiovascular
activity EVERY day, if
possible.
The good news is that
the cardiovascular
activity does not need
to be moderately
intensive everyday,
nor does it need to be sustained for 15 – 45 minutes
at a time.
So while it is ideal to challenge your heart and lungs
by doing something like a strong power walk every
other day for 15 — 45 minutes, it is more important to
make sure you do at least a little bit of cardiovascular
activity every day, even if you don't do it for very long
or very intensely.
For example, you might try using a Nautilus elliptical
®
for a scheduled, moderate level workout for 20 – 30
minutes on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday
(see the intensity monitoring section for further
details on how hard to workout). On the other days,
you might try going for a leisurely stroll 10 minutes in
the morning and in the evening (or whenever you can
fit it in).
Whatever you do, just make sure you get your body
moving, and your heart and lungs pumping for some
period of time every day.
Muscular Strength is training your muscles to
remain strong using resistance such as Nautilus
®
strength machines, dumbbells, elastic tubing or your
body weight. In the past decade, we have learned
that building or maintaining muscular strength is
extremely important for a balanced fitness program.
And it is especially important as we get older.
We have learned through a variety of studies that
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