June 2006  Time to Get Outside!

Do you spend most of your day indoors (at home, in an office, or your car), longing to spend time in the beautiful warm weather? Let's get creative and find ways to enjoy the outdoors while still getting everything done.

Consider conducting meetings outside. A formal board meeting is held in the board room, but many of us hold informal meetings with clients and colleagues in coffee shops and restaurants. Consider meeting at a park. Going a step further, try walking and talking (no chewing gum required) to fit in a little exercise. It can be more stimulating and everyone will benefit.

Eat alfresco. In the morning, take breakfast to your patio. If it is especially hot where you live, this may be the best time for you to enjoy the outdoors. If you work outside the home, is there a nearby place you can walk to for lunch? Can you bring lunch and eat outside?

Being outdoors provides health benefits such as Vitamin D (which our body manufactures when exposed to the sun). It also offers a quick respite from your daily routine. Catch a few rays and enjoy!

While you are outside, grab your phone and join me June 28th at 7:30 pm EST for "The 5 Steps to Breaking Out of Diet Prison". I will be presenting this teleclass to the Virtual DiVAs group. Please be sure to check out this month's Entrepreneur Corner for more information. I hope you can join us!

1. Honor set limits: When it is crowded and people are lined up for treadmills, elliptical trainers, and all of the various pieces of cardiovascular equipment, most gyms have a time limit, say 20 or 30 minutes. While you may have planned a longer workout, be polite and follow the time limit. If you did plan a longer cardio workout, search for another type of equipment that does not have a wait – this is a good way to cross train. If you can predict ahead of time that your workout will be limited, you can exercise more intensely, say with longer intervals. I know that not everyone follows this rule, and it is irritating. Let's set a good example in hope others will follow.

2. Offer to work in: Crowds also affect the availability of weight equipment. The gym term "work in" means that you work in sets with another person. If you see someone waiting for the equipment you are using, offer to let them work in. Others will often do the same for you. If someone doesn't notice you waiting, don't be shy – ask to work in yourself.

3. Keep it dry: Use a towel to wipe down the equipment that you use. If your club does not provide them, bring one from home. Exercising on equipment dripping in someone else's perspiration is no treat.

4. Pick up: When using free weights, put them back in their place, even if that is not where you found them (and often, it isn't). Others will appreciate easily finding the weights they need and it will reduce the risk of someone tripping over weights on the floor.

5. If you can lift it, please set it down: I often see someone performing an exercise with heavy weights and rather than setting them back on the floor, the person drops them to the ground. Not only is there a risk of injury to the person dropping the weight(s) (or potentially someone walking by), it can be annoying to others nearby. If the weight is so heavy that you feel the need to drop it, you likely need a spotter, someone to make sure you perform the exercise safely and can help set down the weights.

6. Use a locker: It seems easier to carry around your "stuff" with you, but gym etiquette says to use a locker. While your bag may seem small or your pile of a sweatshirt, book, and car keys do not seem to take up that much room, everyone's "stuff" all together takes up a lot a space and gets in the way. Invest a few dollars in a lock and experience the freedom of not lugging your "stuff" around the gym from one exercise to the next.

This month I am excited to introduce you to Virtual DiVAs and its founder, Roxanne Ravenel. She has invited me to speak to the group this month and I am looking forward to it (See details in our Teleclass section of this newsletter)! I fully subscribe to the mission of this group and I am happy to see virtual professionals getting together to take care of themselves, which will in turn support their businesses. Please check out the website, sign up for the teleclass, and consider joining an incredible group!

I once overheard an aerobic instructor comment to her class that "…shoulders are the cleavage of the 90's." That comment stayed with me because it placed the emphasis on improving an area of a woman's body that she could control. What a concept!

For men and women, the most important reason to exercise the shoulder (deltoid) muscles is to protect the shoulder joint. This joint is very mobile and susceptible to injury, so strengthening it is a top priority. The side benefit is that of a toned or muscular look (depending on your goals). Let's explore a couple of exercises to help you reach these goals:

Rear Deltoid Fly – This exercise works the rear (posterior) deltoids and muscles of the upper back (I like exercises that serve double duty). You can sit on a chair, weight bench, or for extra challenge, on a balance ball. Keep your abdominal muscles contracted and your neck in a neutral position (not looking down at the ground or straining to look up). Your elbows should maintain a slight bend.

Shoulder Press – Once again, you can achieve double duty with this exercise, working both the deltoids and the triceps (the muscles of the back of your arm). You can also sit on a balance ball for this exercise, or stand up. For a greater challenge (once you've thoroughly mastered the basics), perform this exercise standing while lifting one foot a few inches off the ground. You will likely need to reduce the amount of weight you are pressing to compensate for the use of new muscles while needing to balance.

As with all strength training exercises, use a slow, controlled motion and be sure to breathe. If you need support in designing a safe and effective workout, please call our office.

Did you know that aerobic exercise can raise your HDL ("good") cholesterol, but weight training will not? Researchers at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale found overweight subjects who worked out aerobically for ten weeks had a 29 – 34% increase in HDL cholesterol. Ten weeks of weight training had no effect. In addition to aerobic exercise, you can raise your HDL cholesterol (and lower your heart disease risk as a result) by quitting smoking, eating monounsaturated fats, and losing weight.

Did you know that eating at night does not make you gain weight? Despite what you have heard for years, researchers have shown that night eating does not cause any more weight gain than eating most of your food during the day. But, weight gain will happen if you eat more calories than you burn in a day, no matter when you eat them. Many people come home from work and snack before dinner, then eat dinner, and then snack in front of the television before going to bed. Avoiding mindless eating in the evening, by eating throughout the day when you are hungry, is the key to keeping the weight off.

Did you know that women often experience different symptoms of a heart attack than men? Until recently, most heart disease research has been conducted on men. Because of this, many emergency room doctors do not immediately recognize when a woman is having a heart attack. Women may feel out of breath, very tired, nauseated, or they may even be vomiting. Pain in the chest may feel like squeezing, as opposed to crushing for men. Pain will sometimes radiate down the right arm and women are more likely to have neck and jaw pain with a heart attack. For more information, check out http://familydoctor.org/287.xml.

Event schedule:  http://www.virtualdivas.org/deventsschedule.html
 
Registration:  http://www.virtualdivas.org/EventRegistration.html

Virtual DiVAs Help Online Professionals Get a Real Life
by Roxanne Ravenel

There has been an explosion of professionals working virtually in the last decade. Current economic trends make it likely that these numbers will continue to grow - with the majority of these professionals being women. Working as a virtual business owner, or an off-site professional can be an incredible experience when carefully balanced by proper diet, exercise and ... a real life! Yet, many virtual professionals have adopted unhealthy work habits that can have negative repercussions on their physical and emotional well-being.

Dedication to their craft and to the success of their clients often leads these professionals to spend long hours seated, peering at the computer screen. While many women choose to start their own businesses or work from home to gain better control of their lives and spend more time with their families, the opposite is often true. Erratic hours, sleep deprivation, circulation problems and weight gain have plagued many women who work virtually. Have you fallen into some of these bad work habits?

Virtual DiVAs (www.VirtualDiVAs.org) was formed to help Virtual Assistants and other virtual professionals keep sight of the importance of getting up from their desks, out of the house, and enjoying their life. The group subscribes to the belief that great success in life can be achieved without sacrificing the things that really count…health, happiness and family. After all, a healthy, happy virtual professional is in a better position to create and maintain a successful enterprise and is far more capable of supporting others - spouse, children, friends, family and clients. Exciting events like their Virtual Group Walks and Group H.U.G.s (Help Us Grow) - an online or telephone event - and ongoing online and phone support have led to surprising success for many of its members.

If you are looking for the support and encouragement of like-minded women who want to help you achieve your goals, and are willing to be an active participant in the success of others, Virtual DiVAs can be the support system that you need to achieve balance in your life as your pursue business success. Whether you've been a virtual professional for several years, or are just starting out, Virtual DiVAs can help you to begin taking time out to smell the roses, kiss the kids and get moving.