For many people, summer provides a seemingly unlimited opportunity to realize the active, healthy lifestyle so many people aspire to. While winter months offer good excuses to stay indoors (too cold, too slippery, too snowy), summer offers just as many reasons to be outside and active. Extra hours of daylight during the summer give you even more time each day to get out and get moving.
Exercising outdoors can be exhilarating, especially after being cooped up inside for months on end. In case you need any motivation over and above the glorious warm weather, here are some tips for making the most of your summer and staying fit and active in the process.
Diversify: Take advantage of the outdoors by swimming, bicycling, walking, jogging, and playing golf and tennis. This variety of activities helps strengthen and condition all muscle groups. Putting the fun back into your workout also reduces boredom, the number one killer of good health and fitness regimens. Before you know it, you will have a well-rounded fitness and nutritional regimen in place -- the one that seemed so difficult to establish not long ago!
Make it social: One of the great things about exercise is that it doesn't need to be done alone. Call that long-lost friend that you don't see nearly enough and arrange to meet over a brisk walk or a dip in your local pool when the weather turns steamy. Find someone with a similar fitness level and try a variety of activities -- you can help to motivate each other.
Stretch: The more you become active during the summer, the more important it becomes to implement a regular stretching routine. Remember that your muscles may not be ready for the type of activity you're engaging in, so warm up and stretch to help increase flexibility, reduce the risk of injury and improve blood flow.
Summer workouts combine sun, fun and fitness. Just remember to dress appropriately, apply sunscreen and drink lots of water.
Don't stop using the gym: It takes 30 days to make fitness a habit, and supplementing outdoor exercise with regular visits to the gym will ensure that you remain active during those rainy days, and especially when the temperatures begin to drop in September. Remember, too, that your resistance training is a critical component of a balanced fitness program, so keep hitting the gym.
Maintain a balanced diet: Summer is a great time to feast on fresh seasonal fruit and vegetables, making it easy to ensure that you get your four to five servings of these important foods every day.
Summer is here - and that means longer days and more time in the sun. With the kids out of school, you're probably doing a lot more outdoors. But as you enjoy this time of year, don't forget to protect yourself and your family from the sun's harmful effects.
Blending a few basic sun safety habits into your daily routine can save your skin not only from short-term damage like sunburn and tanning, but also long-term damage like wrinkles and cancer. Take just a few simple steps, and you can look forward to a healthy, happy summer.
Before you head outside for the day, protect your skin from the harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays of the sun with Slip! Slop! Slap!®
Slip on a shirt made of tightly woven material that you can't see through when held up to the light.
Slop on sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. And reapply after swimming, sweating, or toweling off.
Slap
on a hat with a wide brim to protect your face, neck, and ears; add sunglasses to protect your eyes and the surrounding skin. (If you choose a baseball cap, don't forget to put sunscreen on your exposed skin.)
Watch the clock also. During the middle of the day, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., the sun's rays are the strongest. Try to plan activities in the shade or indoors during those hours.
Sun safety doesn't have to be time consuming, but it can be lifesaving. Research suggests severe sunburns in childhood increase the risk for skin cancer in adulthood. So make sure children, in particular, are protected from the sun.
Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers. Most cases are highly curable; however, the most serious form - melanoma - can be deadly. Individuals with light skin, a personal or family history of melanoma, moles and freckles, or a history of severe sunburn early in life are at the highest risk. That's why it's so important to take just a few extra minutes to protect your skin before you go outside.
Don't let a careless day in the sun drain the fun out of your summer. Protect your skin every day, now and year-round.
