Recommended Exercise: Healthrider, Nordic Track & Ever Young Hand Weights
On 12/17/92 at 4:15 p.m. a 47-year old diabetic woman was in my office talking to me about weight loss and toning up her stomach. The issue of exercise was essential for the control of her (and most everybody's) problems. Are you interested in avoiding high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, diabetes, gallstones, heart attack, osteoporosis, and even cancer? Exercise, like attitude/smoking/drinking and diet, is very important in the control of all of these conditions.
The exercise that we can all do most simply is called "The 5 5's." This walking program starts by walking 2 1/2 minutes out and 2 1/2 minutes back from your home once per day. This is walking 5 minutes per day, which you do 5 days per week. Every Monday add 5 minutes (add 2 1/2 minutes out and 2-1/2 minutes back so that at the end of the second week you are walking 10 minutes, the third week 15 minutes and so on) up to 50 minutes per day. 5 days per week. 50 weeks per year (holidays and vacations, are the days or weeks off). Buy the 1-pound "Ever Young" hand weights. Swing these gently front to rear in the cross-country ski action as you do your walking. After 1 month, apply the 2 pound "screw on" weights. Now carry the 2-pound weights for that month. If you can, at the beginning of the third month, increase these weights to 3 pounds and carry these 3-pound weights while walking 50 minutes per day, 5 days per week. This is an ideal outdoors exercise and can be done in the winter, summer, rain, snow, ice, if you have the determination, dress correctly and are careful about the ice in winter.
Excellent alternatives are the Nordic Track ("Achiever" or above models), "Super Slow" pushups, weight lifting, or less preferred is Nautilus/Cybex machines - which do force "perfect form" on you. Any consistent exercise will do, the key is to just get started, and that's why I say start with only 5 (or even two) minutes per day and build up slowly.
Of all of the push-pull exercise machine models. I find the Health (Aerobic) Rider to be the most quiet, smooth, and effective. Because of its size, price, and convenience, I recommend it as my first choice exercise machine over Nordic Track. The Nordic Track gives the best workout, but it is a little pricey and noisy.
Learn how to use 3, 5, and 10-pound one hand hexagonal-shaped weights as well as the 30 or 40-pound Olympic bar. "Perfect form, perfect muscles."
H. Robert Silverstein, MD
Hartford, CT