Women’s Wellness: Working Toward Health and Fitness
Ready to start a fitness program? You probably have some idea of how fit you are, but knowing the specifics can help you set realistic fitness goals, monitor your progress and maintain your motivation. Measure your fitness level with a few simple tests. Once you know your starting point, you can plan where you want to go. Get started with the simple assessment below.
Assessing Your Fitness Level
Generally, fitness is assessed in four key areas: aerobic fitness, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition. To do your assessment, you'll need the following items:
- A watch that can measure seconds or a stopwatch
- A cloth measuring tape
- A yardstick and heavy-duty tape
- A scale
- Someone to help you record your scores and count repetitions
- A pencil or pen and paper to record your scores
You can record your scores in a notebook or journal, or save them in a spreadsheet or another electronic format. Use the results to set fitness goals and track your progress.
Elements of a Well-Rounded Routine
Whether you're a novice taking the first steps toward fitness or an exercise fanatic hoping to optimize your results, a well-rounded fitness training program is essential. Fitness training balances five elements of good health. Make sure your routine includes these core components:
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
| Aerobic fitness | Improves cardiovascular health |
| Strength training | Maintains muscle mass and strength |
| Core exercises | Strengthens muscles around the trunk | Improves stability and reflexes |
| Flexibility and stretching | Enhances range of motion |
Include these five elements to create a balanced routine.
Stay Fit at Any Age
Getting older is inevitable, but it's possible to slow down the aging process through regular exercise. As you age, your body starts to slow down and tasks that used to be easy now require a bit more effort to accomplish. Your metabolism slows down, causing you to gain weight; you lose muscle mass, your cardiovascular fitness declines, and your reflexes aren't as sharp as they once were.
While this might sound like a doomsday diagnosis, there is some good news: It's possible to slow down the aging process through regular exercise. Activities such as strength training and high-intensity interval training, as well as regularly changing up your exercise routine can help maintain muscle mass, prevent cardiovascular decline and improve balance. All three of these components are essential to living a long, healthy and independent life.
Fitness Tips for Menopause
Regular physical activity is crucial for women facing menopause. Menopause is an important transition in a woman's life; use it as a reminder to take good care of yourself. Exercise during and after menopause offers many benefits, including:
- Preventing weight gain: Women tend to lose muscle mass and gain abdominal fat around menopause. Regular physical activity can help prevent weight gain.
- Reducing the risk of cancer: Exercise can help you maintain a healthy weight, which might offer protection from various types of cancer, including breast, colon and endometrial cancer.
- Strengthening your bones: Exercise can slow bone loss after menopause, which lowers the risk of fractures and osteoporosis.
- Reducing the risk of other diseases: Excess weight increases the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Regular exercise can counter these risks.
- Boosting your mood: Physically active adults have a lower risk of depression and cognitive decline.