How Regular Exercise Benefits Teens

 

( WebMed) You keep your skin clean. You condition your hair. You're eating right. You're doing all you can to look and feel great. But are you missing out on an important part of a healthier lifestyle?

 

No matter what your age or shape, you should exercise daily. Not only does exercise tone your body so you can wear your favorite jeans, it strengthens your muscles, keeps your bones strong, and improves your skin.  Click here to read whole story from WebMed 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exercise and Your Weight

( WebMed) Because exercise helps use up oxygen, it causes your body to burn stored fat and helps you maintain a normal weight. For instance, if you walk 4 miles a day four times a week, you can burn about 1,600 calories or nearly half a pound a week. If you don't change your diet at all and keep walking the same distance over six months, you'll lose 12 pounds. Walk the same distance for a year and you'll drop 24 pounds.

 

The neat thing about exercise is you don't have to do it all at one time. After all, not many teens have time to walk 4 miles after school. But you can do 4 miles in short bursts throughout your day. 

 

 

 

Exercise and Your Muscles

( WebMed)Most people know that exercise keeps muscles strong. But did you know that strong muscles burn more calories? Muscle mass is metabolically active tissue. In other words, the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn even when you're not working out.

 

Studies estimate that for each pound of muscle you add to your body, you will burn an additional 35-50 calories per day. So an extra 5 pounds of muscle will burn about 175-250 calories a day -- or an extra pound of fat every 14-20 days.

 

Because guys have more muscle mass, they burn calories faster and lose weight more easily than girls. So girls need to work out daily to stay strong and in shape. Click here to read more from WebMed

 

 

Only One in Four U.S. Teens Is Fit

 

( Associated Press) CHICAGO –  Young teens aren't exactly embracing the government's Let's Move mantra, the latest fitness data suggest.

 

Only 1 in 4 U.S. kids aged 12 to 15 meet the recommendations -- an hour or more of moderate to vigorous activity every day.

 

The results are based on about 800 kids who self-reported their activity levels and had physical exams as part of the 2012 National Youth Fitness Survey.  (Click here to read more of the article from Associated Press and see the video from Fox News)

 

 

Is Your Workout Intense Enough?

 

The New York Times tells us that moderate exercise is good for us but that " few of us know what moderate exercise means, research shows."  Federal guideline reccomend 150 minutes of exercise a week but don't tell us how the intensity should be. Is walking the dog enough, or padding along in the mall while sipping a slurpy?

 

Probably not. In an article by Gretchen Reynolds titled " An Exercise in Overestimation " we learn that some of us sometimes "underestimate how hard we should be working out while others overestimate how vigorously we are actualy working out. Light seems " moderate" and moderate feels "vigorous" top thers. 

 

If you're unsure how hard you are working out, take yur pulse frequently during a workout. If it stays below aboiut 65% of your maximum heart rate, raise your pace. 

 

Click here to read the complete NYTimes story