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Benefits of activity and exercise

Dancing can be a great stress release and exercise

Being active helps you to stay healthy. There are many different ways you can get active and finding a way that suits you is important. You may enjoy walking, running, dancing, surfing, going to the gym, playing a team sport or swimming.

Whatever it is you do, you may get many benefits from it, including:

• Improving your strength, fitness, and confidence which helps you to achieve what you want in life.
• Allowing you to do heaps of cool stuff like play sport well, go bushwalking etc.
• Having more energy.
• Increasing your flexibility and mobility.
• Helping you enjoy your body for what it can do, not just what it looks like.
• Helping you to manage stress.
• Helping you to feel better about yourself.
• Helping you get a better night's sleep.
• Improving metabolic rate which helps prevent weight gain.
• Helping to manage anger.

Suggestions for becoming active

Everyone has a different level of fitness, and exercising at a pace that is right for you is important. Exercise shouldn't cause you pain, it can be fun and doesn't have to be organised or cost money. If you have medical difficulties or are feeling pain when you exercise it is a good idea to talk with your local doctor. Check out the Who can help you section for more information about your local doctor.

Here are some suggestions that may help if you are starting to exercise:

Start Gradually

Try not to do too much too fast. As a general guide, you should be able to hold a conversation, but not be able to sing while you are exercising. Try to remember any amount of exercise is beneficial. You may want to start by using the stairs instead of the escalator or going for a 5 or 10 minute walk. As being active becomes easier you may increase the time and intensity of what you are doing.

Exercise with a Friend

It may be helpful and more fun if you exercise with a friend. You may like to walk together, go for a run or a swim. Having someone else may help to motivate you. It may also be a way to catch up.

If Possible Make it Part of your Routine

Sometimes with all the stuff we do it is easy to miss out on doing something active. It may be helpful to set aside a time in the day for exercising. Before or after dinner or before school or work may be a good time. Walking to school or work instead of catching the bus may be a good way to make it part of your day.

Try to Make it Fun

Being active shouldn't be a chore and choosing something you enjoy may make exercising fun. You may want to kick a football with friends, have a hit of tennis, go for a walk while listening to music or take the dog for a walk. Playing a team sport may mean you meet new people while also being active.

More information

Your local doctor or fitness centre should be able to provide you with information about exercise.

Eating Well and Feeling Good

Eating well and staying active helps us to stay fit and healthy. Along with giving us the vitamins, minerals, and energy for everyday life, food can also taste good and be enjoyable.

Eating well to feel good

Body weight is influenced by height, muscle mass, bone structure, and body fat, and so judging your body image by how much you weigh may be unsafe. Instead it may be better to focus on eating well and being active. The national dietary guidelines suggest eating well means eating more breads, cereals, fruits and vegetables and less of the high fat and sugary foods. Check out the Nutrition Australia site for more information.

Eating a balanced diet and being active will usually put you in your healthy weight range. And yes the odd cake is included!

Eating a balanced diet and being active will usually put you in your healthy weight range. You can work out your healthy weight range by caluclating your Body Mass Index or BMI. If you are finding it hard to eat well and be active it may be a good idea to talk to your local doctor or a nutritionist. These people should be able to help you develop a plan. Check out the 'talking to someone' section below for information on how to find these people.

Changing your eating habits

Eating well may mean making changes to your eating habits and lifestyle. This may take time as habits are often things we have been doing for ages without even thinking about doing them. Some suggestions which may help you make changes include:

Make small changes

Not doing everything at once may make it easier to stick with the changes. You may want to start by swapping a chocolate for a piece of fruit.

Take an interest in what you eat

Being part of planning what you eat and helping to cook may help you make changes. Having a say in what you eat allows you to have an idea of what is in your food, leading to better eating habits. It may also be fun and allow you to experiment with different foods.

Eat lower fat foods or foods with lower 'bad' fats (like saturated fats)

Foods that are high in fat have more energy and increase the likelihood of you gaining weight. Low fat foods have the vitamins and nutrients you need without the fat. If you are cooking you may also want to substitute certain ingredients for a low fat version. Nutrition Australia's site has a range of recipes you may find interesting.

It's not always straight forward though - some fats are 'good fats'. Omega-3 fats, found in oily fish, some plants and plant oils (eg. canola, linseed, soy and walnut), has been shown to have beneficial in several areas of human health, including heart disease and inflammatory disease. Check out the Nutrition Australia website for more info.

Talk to Someone

If you are finding it hard to make changes you may find it useful to talk to your local doctor or a dietitian. By working together, you can develop a realistic plan for eating well.;

The Yellow Pages or Just Ask (1300 13 11 14 - Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm) may help you find these services in your local area. Check out beyondblue Directory of Medical and Allied Health Practitioners You may also want to ask friends or a doctor if they can recommend anyone.;

Diets + weight loss

There are a lot of diets claiming if you follow them you will lose weight. Permanent weight loss usually results from eating a well-balanced diet and being active rather than following a special diet that claims fast weight loss. If you are considering a diet it is a good idea to check them out to see if they have any scientific basis. Nutrition Australia, your local doctor, or a dietitian should be able to help you with this information. Check out the 'talking to someone' section above for how to find these services.

Dieting may be dangerous because it can stop you from getting the nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. Dieting may cause you to lose weight in the short term, but often the weight returns. This is because when you diet your body slows down its metabolism to compensate for the reduced food intake.

Doctors + weight loss centres

Doctors and weight loss centres may help you make the changes necessary to what you are eating and your lifestyle. If you do choose to see a health practitioner or use a weight loss agency it is a good idea to talk to them about their products or programs. Remember that you are entitled to choose your health practitioner. Good health practitioners should be concentrating on mapping out a healthy eating plan and not measuring success according to kilograms lost.

If you have a complaint about a program or product, address your complaint directly to the company involved, so they have an opportunity to fix the problem. If you feel you have been misled by the claims of any weight loss products or programs, contact the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Ph: 1300 302 502.

Before parting with any money, become fully informed and check out the safety and credibility of the program or product you're considering. It may be helpful to talk to Nutrition Australia , community health centres or a nutritionist for information about the products.