Handle your health with care

We often follow conventional methods of losing weight and improving our bodies. Eating leafy greens, working out rigorously and taking in supplements are few of the conventional ways. But it may not always work for all of us. Here's a shot to make you feel special .

  Your Fitness Routine 

Regular advice: Vigorous workouts do more for you than moderate ones odify it if you lead a sedentary life and your main goal is weight loss. If you work too hard and tire too quickly you may not burn enough calories to make a real dent in your weight. Women assigned to long sessions of moderate exercise lose about the same amount as women who worked harder for shorter bursts. To drop weight, exercise most days of the week at a pace that you can sustain for 30 to 40 minutes. You should be able to talk without gasping for air.

Regular advice: Walking is the simplest form of exercise - all you need are sneakers and a sidewalk.
Modify it if you have heart ailment. Studies show that the tiny particles in the air during a high-smog day can increase the risk of heart attack. Move your workout indoors on smoggy days and flick on the air conditioner - it can cut indoor pollutant levels by up to 50 per cent.

Regular advice: Every little bit of exercise like housework or gardening gets you fitter
Modify it if you're trying to prevent or treat heart disease. Any activity is better than none but sweeping or pulling weeds won't work your heart hard or long enough to significantly reduce the odds of clogged arteries, heart attack, or stroke. Instead, do 30 minutes of moderately vigorous exercise four or five times a week to dramatically lower your heart risk.

Regular advice: Swimming is an ideal low-impact aerobic exercise.
Modify it if you have asthma. The chlorine in a pool - even if it's outdoors - can trigger an attack. To be on the safe side, find a different form of exercise if you have asthma that flares up by poolside. And if you're trying to slim down, here's another argument for a land-based workout: Most swimmers don't burn enough calories to shed many pounds.

  Your Food and Drink 

Regular advice: Eat plenty of leafy green vegetables.
Modify it if you take the blood thinner warfarin (Coumadin). This drug prevents dangerous blood clots by blocking the action of vitamin K, which is needed to make clot-building compounds in the blood - but too much K in your diet can overwhelm your protection. The nutrient is especially abundant in dark green, leafy vegetables such as spinach, so don't have more than one serving of any of these in a day.

Regular advice: Drink at least eight glasses of water every day.
Modify it if you have bladder control problems. You might be able to avoid leaks by cutting back a bit on fluids. Ask your doctor how much you should drink each day-and don't worry if it doesn't come close to the magical "eight glass" rule. Nearly 20 per cent of your water intake comes from food anyway. If you're peeing at least every 8 hours and your urine is light coloured, you're likely drinking enough.

  Your Medications 

Regular advice: When it comes to blood pressure, lower is better.
Modify it if you have coronary artery disease (CAD). Getting your blood pressure down - to about 120/80 - can help you avoid a heart attack or stroke, but don't go much lower. You need a little extra pressure to push blood through your narrowed vessels. Low blood pressure didn't seem risky for CAD sufferers who'd had angioplasty to clear obstructed vessels or bypass surgery to reroute blood through a healthy new vessel.

Regular advice: Get your nutrients from whole foods, not pills.
Modify it if you're a strict vegetarian. If you don't eat eggs or drink milk, you may need supplements to get enough vitamins B12 and D. The current recommendation for vitamin D is 200 to 600 IU, depending on your age, but researchers say that needs an update: 1,000 to 2,000 IU is optimal and safe to take. And although you can get plenty of iron through a vegetarian diet, it takes planning. Get a blood test to check your iron levels if you fatigue easily.