Staying Healthy & Active

Every year, there’s talk about getting ready for summer by preparing your “summer body.” Generally, this talk revolves around diet and exercise so you’ll turn heads at the beach, and while health professionals constantly urge everyone to be healthier, it’s not necessary to join a gym or go on a fad diet to be healthy and active for the summer.

Probably the easiest thing you can do to stay healthy and active in the summer, and also the cheapest: you don’t need a gym membership, fancy shoes, or even a yoga mat to stretch.

Stretching provides a variety of health benefits: it helps promote circulation and movement, it keeps you from developing posture issues, and allow you better overall control of your body, all of which can be greatly beneficial even if you don’t have any plans to run a marathon or bench press a truck.

Bonus: the warmer weather gives your body a running start in improving flexibility since you don’t have to spend as much time warming up before stretching.

It’s aerobic exercise, it’s very low-impact, and you don’t have to speed walk to enjoy the benefits. Any type of cardiovascular activity can be a huge benefit to your personal health, and since you’ve probably got to walk somewhere anyway, why not take full advantage of the situation?

Doesn’t matter if it’s 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or two hours; any time spent walking counts.

For those of you that read the last suggestion and thought, “Nah, I want to get somewhere faster,” consider the joys of running.

The real trick of running for health will be in finding the time of day and location that works best for you. Some people go running outdoors before the sun gets up, some do it on a treadmill in the afternoon, and some do it when everybody else has been asleep for several hours.

While this should be done on a constant basis regardless of the season, drinking water becomes especially vital during the hot summer months when the sun seems to be at full power and the days last forever. You can look up the exact amount of water that professionals recommend you consume based on your age, weight, height, and hair color, but the best plan would be to drink water as often as you can.

It’s hot outside, yes, but the summer sun and heat combined can be deadly if you don’t take some basic precautions. Namely, don’t stay out in the sun too long, wear sunscreen and a hat, and remember to find ways to stay cool if you’ve been outside for a while.

And don’t think that jumping into a pool will solve the problem, either. Sun protection means shade and shelter. And speaking of the pool…

Doesn’t matter if it’s a hike, a visit to a pool or beach, or just running an errand: get outside and get moving. People who move around tend to be healthier than people who remain still and inactive for most of the day.

No matter what you choose to do while being healthy and active, remember to always be safe. Don’t try super-hard stretches on your first day, don’t spend too much time in the heat, and don’t try to lift too much weight without the proper form or a spotter.

Simply drink plenty of water and just keep it moving.