Health benefits you can't ignore:

If there was a drug that would decrease your risk of cancer, heart disease,hypertension, stroke, obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, insomnia, depression and also improved your libido - the manufacurer would likely have difficulty keeping up with the demand. There is something, and that is called exercise, that can do all these things without any side affects. Exercise also stimulates growth hormone which helps keep us biologically younger longer yet does not increase our risk of cancer like taking growth hormones can.

One of the impediments to exercise is modern machinery. These help us save time, yet many of us have to be sedentary in order to earn the money to pay for them. Try to build exercise into your daily life, perhaps by forgoing some of the modern conveniences.

Some ways are walking, gardening, carrying your groceries in a hand basket, using stairs, bicycling, using exercise equipment rather than a couch in front of the TV, and even mixing and chopping your food by hand.

Find a way to make it fun:

1. Dance if you like to. This can get your heart going and allow your mind to relax with music you enjoy. For those of you who would like to try, and want a work out of all your muscle groups with no equipment, try belly dancing. A great tape to get is "The Goddess Workout" with Dolphina. You can find this on the web. Encouraging and beautifully done.   Raises your energy, yet relaxing enough to do before bedtime.

2. Stretch - not only feels good but increases your flexibility, and if done properly, decreases your risk of injury.

3. Play a sport, even if you are no good. Even alone, you can practice basketball, hit a tennis ball against a wall, run (or better yet speed walk), use rebound shoes or a trampoline (the mini's are fine), bicycle, dance, swim, fly a kite.

4. Get a companion (human or pet) to walk or exercise with you. If you are a mom, most small children will love to join in on the action.

5. Take a course on tape, and listen to it while exercising with a walkman.

6. Listen to your favoite music with your favorite portable device.

7. Pretend the TV is powered by your exercise movements, for example, if you stop pedaling the stationary bike, you must turn the TV off.

8. Use a pedometer if walking to help you measure your progress.