Health and fitness tips

Fitness is not about restricting what you eat, it's about adding wonderful foods and activity to your life.

- Eat nutritious meals spaced out evenly throughout the day (i.e. every 3-4 hours) to maintain a high metabolism and provide energy for exercise.

- Get moving: It's easy to fit physical activities (i.e. walking, biking, weight training, jogging, etc.) into your daily schedule. Take a 10-15 minute activity break while you are working, reading, doing homework or watching TV. Try to do these activities for a total of 30-40 minutes a day.

- Weight train 2-3 times a week to raise your metabolism.

- Eat a diet rich in whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, lean meats, fish and low-fat dairy products. Keep your portion sizes reasonable.

- Reduce dietary fat, namely saturated fat found in red meat, butter, cheese and whole-dairy products.

- Walk away from the 90 per cent of people who do not exercise. Don't use their excuses. Take charge of your own life and start to exercise.

- Stop using vegetable oils such as sunflower, safflower and corn. These supermarket oils are refined and oxidise easily when heated, contributing to arterial plaque. Use olive oil instead.

- Attempt to reduce your late-evening food intake.

Information provided by Sa'ad Ebrahim, Sports Complex Manager, American University of Sharjah