Health, Wellbeing & Nutrition - Pat Henry

For more details about Pat's work, check out his website at http://www.pathenrywellness.com/articles.htm or ring his fitness studio on 01 661 6195

Saturday 9th May 2009
Pat had some tips on how to get in shape for the summer and how to get Hollywood legs. His advice was:

- get a medical check-up if you're not feeling 100% or are planning a serious excerise routine

- don't try anything strenuous until you can comfortably walk 4 miles in one hour. You can then slowly up the pace to whatever you find comfortable. If you're in pain, STOP.

- running on the beach is a great workout and the best way of doing it is in your bare feet - the most natural state for your feet

For full details of how to get those Hollywood legs, check out the details on http://www.pathenrywellness.com/legs2.html

Saturday 4th April 2009
If you have problems with a bad back, Pat Henry was in studio today with some tips on how to look after it. His suggestions were

- aqua aerobics: energetic but gentle on the joints
- encourage good, straight posture in children from a young age
- yoga or pilates is a great way to encourage flexibility, gently
- if you sit at a computer, put a phone book under your feet to keep the strain off your hamstrings and your lower back
- use a back support in the car seat
- try to walk 15 mins at the end of each day to loosen out tight and tired muscles
- strong abdominal muscles help support spine and the back
- sometimes shoes can be too flat, you need a little support
- weights & stretches like Kaiser Weight Training Programme

For specialist products, two good sources in Dublin are:

The Back Shop, 32 Exchequer Street, Dublin 2 (01 671 4215/www.back-shop.com)
and
Foot Solutions, 61 South Great Georges Street, Dublin 2 (01 475 5100)

Always consult your doctor if you are having acute back pain (sciatica can be particularly painful and needs professional advice)

Saturday 31st January 2009
how to improve your digestion and, in the process, maybe shed some of the Christmas weight that hasn't yet budged -

* chew your food slowly to get saliva & digestion juices going
* plan meals in advance & stick to it, don't grab takeaways
* don't drink fluids with your meals, wait 20 mins
* eat regularly but leave 4/5 hours between meals
* eat each item on your plate seperately, don't load your fork
* read labels, avoid hidden sugars & buy organic if you can
* pay attention to what you eat, respect your food & enjoy it

Saturday 21st June 2008
ways of losing between 8-14lbs in four weeks.

1. Set a realistic goal for the weight you want to lose
If you weigh 8 stone at the moment you obviously shouldn't be trying to lose another stone, but equally if you are overweight at the moment you can't healthily lose, say, 2 stone in a month. Pick an item of clothing you want to fit into & use that as your goal.

2. Exercise at the time of day that suits you best
Mon, Weds & Fri - 45 mins doing light weights/cardio (e.g. lunges, overhead lifts, bicep curls etc, 20 repetitions per set)
Tues & Thurs - walking approx 4 miles in an hour
Saturday & Sunday - rest
Use the stairs instead of taking escalators, lifts etc

3. What to eat on this regime?
Clear out all junk/ready-made food from the kitchen presses.
Eat only a little bread and the odd potato.
Cut down on tea, coffee, alcohol, sugar and junk food
One day a week eat nothing but pears, grapes and water or lukewarm water with drop of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar (to cleanse your system and give it a rest)
Eat up to 4-5 small meals a day & eat until you feel satisfied
Vary your food, relax at meals, chew properly & enjoy your food

Breakfast
1 cup of porridge with 2 tablspoons of raisins
Fruit - 1 orange, 1 banana & 1 apple
2 slices of toast with 1 spoonful of marmalade or honey
No more than 2 shredded wheats with skimmed milk

Lunch
Sandwich - 2 slices of bread with chicken breast or edam/cottage cheese

Dinner
Don't overload on vegetables
Trim all fat off meat
Pasta or rice should be brown
Don't use sugar-based sauces

Dessert
Mixture of up to 3 fruits with plain yoghurt
Frozen berries can be added to give flavour

4. Foods that will hinder, not help, the fat-burning process
White rice, pasta & bread, bananas, concentrated fruit juices, diet foods, sweetcorn, popcorn, microwave foods, energy drinks & bars, rice & corn-based breakfast cereals. Avoid these if you can

Saturday 24th May 2008
Pat's tips for ways of staving off the physical signs of ageing:

* Mind your mind - stop thinking negatively, try positive thoughts. "Bring Out The Magic Of Your Mind" by Al Koran offers great advice for positive affirmation

* Physical activity - gentle & regular weight training & aerobic exercise keeps the body in trim and stops the spread of fat that comes naturally with age

* Food & diet - go easy on bread, pasta, rice & potatoes and up your intake of wholewheat foods like porridge, brown bread and also grains, oily fish, meat, chicken, liver. "Eat Yourself Slim" by Michel Montignac is a good guide.

* Mind your skin - wildly expensive creams aren't the answer. Your diet will tell on your skin so watch out for junk food, quit smoking and wear a good SPF cream in the sun

Saturday 23rd February 2008
Tips on ways to lose a pot belly:

how to stop fat collecting around your midriff
* cut down on dietary fat
* do aerobic exercise to burn fat (e.g. jogging, cycling)
* lift weights to increase your resting metabolism (the rate at which your body burns energy while you are inactive)
* consume 60% of your daily calories before the evening
* avoid cigarettes - they do nothing to help shift 'ab flab'

how to exercise your weakened abdomen muscles
* avoid big meals - eating earlier & more frequent smaller meals
* hold your stomach in as often as possible
* 'crunch & reach' & 'seated leg tuck' works out your ab muscles

how to improve your posture
* lie on your stomach, raise your torso & arch your back
* barbell raises, arm-to-ear level
* stand with back against a wall, pull up-and-in stomach muscles
* hamstring streches 3/4 times a week - they support the body

other useful tips
* the more sit ups you do, the more you add to your waist size - don't overdo it
* as we age gravity pulls us downwards - we have to fight it
* avoid people who bring you down emotionally

Saturday 26th January 2008
As part of his occasional series on health and fitness, today Pat spoke about teenagers, weight and detoxing. His suggestion for a 5-day detox diet is as follows:

Diet
* Breakfast - lukewarm water with lemon juice
* Mid-morning - fruit (pears, grapes or berries)
* Lunch - a large green salad with anything you like (no potatoes, cheese, meat or fish, suggested salad dressing: lemon juice + virgin olive oil)
* Mid afternoon - fruit (but no oranges, bananas or acidic fruit)
* Dinner - a selection of steamed vegetables (no potatoes, no sauces and use ALL coloured vegetables: carrots, yellow, green + red peppers, courgettes, parsley, garlic, unsweetened beetroot, any other raw vegetable)

On the 6th and 7th day
* Breakfast - toast or porridge with berries
* Lunch - small piece of chicken or fish with vegetables
* Dinner - salad with fish or chicken and yoghurt for dessert

Drinks
The occasional tea or coffee during the day is fine. Only drink water if you are thirsty, you don't NEED to drink gallons during the day. Only drink home-made juices or smoothies, not the ready-to-drink types from the supermarket fridge.

You can repeat this detox 5 days every month if required but if ANY medical problems arise, please consult your doctor before continuing with the programme.

Saturday 24th November 2007
The first in a new occasional series in which fitness guru Pat Henry offers advice on health, fitness & diet Pat's tips were:

- short term diets don't work. Allow 1 year to attain goal weight
- don't starve yourself (you'll just lose water and muscle mass). A
healthy target is 1lb-1.5lb per week
- don't overdo weight machines at the gym. A brisk walk averaging 4 miles an hour burns calories very healthily
- eat a varied, naturally low-fat diet
- cut down on alcohol, processed food and read 'low fat' labels carefully (many of them are high in sugar)

Pat also mentioned a nutrition book called "The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study Of Nutrition Ever Conducted" by T Colin Campbell / Publisher BenBella Books, June 2006

Pat's general fitness tips -

Squat using a towel
Making a towel into a rope get your partner to hold one end and you hold the other. With legs shoulder width apart squat down into a sitting position and slowly come back up to standing position. Do 10 to 15 repetitions.

Stair climb
Run up and down the stairs - taking two steps at a time if possible to firm up legs and bottom.

Sumo squats
With feet shoulder width apart squat down to sitting position then lift one knee in sumo style as high as you can in a circular movement and repeat with each leg. Do 10 to 15 repititions on each leg.

Pelvic lifts
Lie on the floor with heels resting on a chair and making sure your back is supported on the floor. Gently lift your pelvic area and squeeze upwards. Do 20 repititions.

Bent-over rowing using a towel
With your partner holding the towel that has been wound into a rope, bend over with tummy muscles pulled in to protect your lower back. With feet shoulder width apart pull on the towel with both hands using a rowing motion while your partner pulls the and creates resistance to work the back.

Calf raises
Place your feet on a phone book and leave your heels free to lift up on to your toes and return back down with the heels lowering below the phone book. Do 30 repititions.

Side leg raises
Lying on the floor with you body in line with the legs and feet, keeping the foot flexed with the toe pointing towards your face lift the leg up and down to shoulder height as you lie. For the second phase of this lift bring the leg forward slightly and lift up and down. Then for the third phase of the lift bring the leg behind slightly to get different parts of the leg.

Tummy
Lie on the floor and push your tummy out as far as you can for 10 seconds then pull it back in for 20 seconds.

Standing knee tension
To tone the legs, stand with feet shoulder width apart and from that stance press the knees tightly together which will work both inner and outer thighs. Do 15 repititions.

Facial Exercises - forehead raises
Tense the forehead upwards, opening the eyes wide and hold for 20 seconds. Then bring the movement down by frowning for another 20 seconds.

Facial Exercises - chin
Press the tongue into the roof of the mouth and hold for 20 seconds.