Yeah, exercise is good for you! There’s no denying that, and if you haven’t exercised in a while, maybe it’s time to start, but take it easy. It’s easy to overdo it and hurt yourself in the process. As long as you use common sense and exercise based on a good understanding of your abilities, you should be fine. The real bonus – it’s just as good for your mind as your body. Who wouldn’t enjoy a little more peace of mind. I have to say that the primary reason I exercise is for the stress relief I get from a good workout. What’s the right amount? You’ll have to decide what works best for you. My goal is to work out 6 days a week, split between strength training and stretching with cardio. Whatever you decide to do, please have realistic expectations for yourself.

If you’re carrying some extra weight around, exercise should probably not be your main focus if your goal is to lose it. It’s important to know that the consensus is that diet, or what we eat, is more important than exercise for health and trimming down, especially if your goal is to lose weight. Think about it. For most of us, it’s easier to cut 300 calories from our diet than it is to burn 300 calories exercising. For example, vigorously riding a bike for about an hour will burn about 600 calories. Having a smoothy after that ride would diminish that calorie burn by 200-300 calories, or almost half. If my goal is to drop pounds by burning more calories than I eat, I’ll really need to be careful what and how much I eat.