The Hindu Business Line : Exercise benefits

I exercised vigorously in my school and college days, as I was an athlete. Today, I'm 35, work in a bank and don't exercise at all. Would my exercising in my teens act as an insurance against heart problems now? I feel pretty healthy though I occasionally have a slight — almost negligible — stiffness in my lower back.

Gautam Sinha

Exercise benefits cannot be stored to act as insurance for your middle years. In fact, exercise benefits do not last more than four days. The cardio-protective effect exists only in people who are currently exercising regularly. I advise you to walk half hour daily and increase it to a brisk 42 minutes as you become more conditioned. Or, do stationary cycling for 20 minutes at 80 pedals to a minute to get the cardio-benefit.

Please note the stiffness in your back, however slight or negligible, implies that the physical harmony and equilibrium in your body has been disrupted. Obviously, your muscles are lax, thus causing you discomfort. Please strengthen them with these two exercises:

Crunches: Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on floor, and hands cupping the back of your head. Now, raise your shoulders off the ground, keeping head and neck straight. Then, lower. Repeat 20 times and build it to a 100 over the next five weeks. This exercise strengthens your abdominal muscles, which are connected to your back muscles.

Single leg-raise: Lie on your back, legs straight out on the floor. Raise left leg to 70 degrees, keeping knee straight. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat with right leg. This exercise strengthens your back muscles. You must have been proud of your athleticism in your university days. Rediscover that pride. Get fit!

Obesity and heart problems run in my family. I want to gradually improve our diet. Could you explain the difference between saturated and unsaturated fat? Should I opt for the latter?

Padmini Hebbar

Improving your family's diet is a commendable decision. Saturated fat is derived from animal products. It is found in buffalo milk, ghee, butter, egg and meat. It gets deposited on the walls of our blood vessels. The blood vessels become narrow and disallow enough blood to flow through them. This causes high blood pressure and heart problems.

Unsaturated fat is derived from plant products. It is found in some vegetable oils such as sunflower, soya bean and rice bran oil. Many people assume it is safer. However, researchers have found it gets deposited on the kidneys and liver. Also, though it is not supposed to cause heart diseases, Japanese studies show that it could cause strokes.

A Norwegian study has concluded that the best way to minimise the risk of heart diseases is to cut out all fats — saturated or unsaturated. My wife and I did it effortlessly and painlessly 15 years ago. There is no difference in taste between food cooked in oil and oil-free food.

The `difference' is only in the closed mind. The important thing is to have self-confidence and become comfortable with the concept of oil-free cooking. When you have made a few of your family's favourite dishes without oil and discovered that they look as good, smell as flavoursome and taste as delicious, you won't even want to buy cooking oil anymore!

I'm on airport duty and am on my feet right through my shift. Isn't that enough to burn fat? Yet I've put on 3 kg in a year. Ever since I realised I've put on weight, I feel tired. Is this tiredness psychological?

N. Sanzgiri

Yes, your tiredness could be psychological. The fact that you move around all day long makes you healthier than if you were at a sedentary desk-job. Your heart is probably more efficient, your bones stronger. However, you would be moving around in fits and starts rather than in one continuous rhythm. This means you are not getting sufficient cardio-activity to burn your fat and this would explain your weight-gain. Start a minimum 20-minute stationary cycling stint daily. This will get your body-weight off your hardworking feet, while at the same time burn your body-fat and improve your stamina thus banishing your tiredness. Also, watch your diet. Chances are, you are eating indiscriminately. Go back to what you were eating before you gained weight. All you need is a slight course correction.

(The writer is co-author of the book Fitness for Life.)

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