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Before You Start Exercising…
For those of us who have done little exercise before and who would like to start, there is a lot of misleading information out there concerning what shoes we should wear and what liquid we should drink.
While it is true that some running shoes are better than others and drinking certain types of liquid during exercise can give you short energy bursts more than water can, these factors do not really come into play unless you are exercising at more than a beginner’s level.
Below is some useful information to consider when starting any exercise program.
Have you got appropriate footwear?
First of all, it is important for your feet to breathe through your shoes. Problems can arise when feet are not allowed to sweat properly or are constricted abnormally, affecting blood flow. Try and go for something that has breathable mesh material.
Remember also that there is no need to wear different shoes for different types of exercises, unless the exercises you are doing are performed at a more advanced level (e.g. road running or running fast on a treadmill). A good pair of all-rounder ‘cross-training’ shoes would be best.
Have you been drinking enough fluid?
There is a saying that if you feel thirsty during exercise, you have already started dehydrating. As a good guideline you should be drinking back what you have lost in sweat, and it’s quite amazing sometimes to see how much you can lose in sweat in one hour of moderate intensity exercise in room temperature (some people lose one whole litre of sweat).
Since we cannot practically weigh ourselves in every hour of exercise, making sure we carry water with us and drinking good 2 to 3 mouthfuls every half hour of exercise will ensure that we are continually hydrating ourselves. The key here is continual hydration and not rehydration after dehydration.
Article written by Kevin Su
Diabetes Australia Queensland
www.daq.org.au
