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This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive
Exercise and Fitness Tips to Improve Your Health
Are you getting started with an exercise program? Hoping to improve your existing routines or find new workout options? Did you know that a complete plan consists of three basic elements: aerobic fitness, muscle strength/endurance and flexibility? How do you assess your current fitness level before you begin? How do you know how much exercise you should do, or whether you should see a doctor before you start?
Our Healthy Living channel provides in-depth answers to these questions, along with guidelines to help you develop a fitness program that's right for you. With these exercise and fitness tips, you can learn to gauge how hard and how often you should exercise, and get yourself started on the road to better fitness today.
Q. Why do you use the BMI, and is it useful for weight lifters?
The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple way for men and women to estimate body fat based on their height and weight. From the BMI, it is possible to determine your healthy weight range.
One of the limitations of BMI is that it can overpredict overweight or obesity in people who are lean and muscular. For instance, someone who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 220 pounds, with 12% body fat, would be considered obese based on BMI standards. Obviously, someone with 12% body fat is not obese.
The scientists who developed the BMI guidelines readily admit to this limitation. But their rationale is that most Americans are not lean and muscular and so for most people, the BMI is an accurate assessment of body fat and increased health risk.
It is important to know that people who are classified as overweight or obese can still be healthy as long as they are fit. In one well-known study, fit people with BMIs that classified them as overweight or obese were healthier and lived longer than unfit people who were at normal weight.
The BMI, for the majority of Americans, is the most up-to-date and scientifically sound method available for determining healthy weight.
Q. Does aerobic exercise interfere with muscle gains from weightlifting?
If you're training for an endurance event like a marathon, when you might run 60 miles or more per week, you'll almost always see a decrease in your muscle mass. For most of us, who do more moderate amounts of physical activity, there will be minimal, if any, loss in muscle mass -- so there's nothing to worry about.
If you do plan on lots of aerobic exercise and are concerned about losing muscle, try starting with 20-30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise (at 50% to 70% of your maximum heart rate) two to three days per week, and see how it goes.
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Health & Fitness Guide
- Learn about Treatment for Moderate to Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)
- Is This RA Treatment Right For You?
- Some Fast Facts
Important Safety Information you should know about HUMIRA® (adalimumab).
Serious infections have happened in patients receiving HUMIRA. These infections include TB (tuberculosis) and infections caused by viruses, fungi, or bacteria that have spread throughout the body. Some patients have died from these infections.
Before starting HUMIRA:
Tell your doctor if you think you have an infection, are being treated for an infection, have signs of an infection (such as a fever, cough, or flu-like symptoms), have any open sores on your body, have warm, red, or painful skin, get a lot of infections or have infections that keep coming back, have or had hepatitis B infection, take the medicine Kineret (anakinra), have TB or have been in close contact with someone who has TB, have lived in an area where TB or histoplasmosis is common, or were born in, lived in or traveled where there is more risk for getting TB. Your doctor should test you for TB before starting HUMIRA. If your doctor prescribes any medicine for the treatment of TB, you should start taking it before starting HUMIRA and take the full course of TB medicine prescribed.
Tell your doctor if you have any numbness or tingling, or have a disease that affects your nervous system such as multiple sclerosis or Guillain-Barré syndrome, have heart failure or other heart conditions, are scheduled for major surgery, are pregnant, become pregnant, plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding. Tell your doctor if you are allergic to HUMIRA or any of its ingredients or are allergic to rubber or latex. The needle cover of the prefilled syringe and the pen contain dry natural rubber.
Also, tell your doctor if you have recently received or are scheduled for any vaccines. Except for live vaccines, patients may still receive vaccines while on HUMIRA. It is recommended that children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis be brought up to date with all immunizations prior to starting HUMIRA.
After starting HUMIRA:
Call your doctor right away if you get an infection, or any sign of an infection including a fever, feeling very tired, cough, flu-like symptoms, warm, red or painful skin or if you have any open sores on your body. HUMIRA can make you more likely to get infections or make any infection that you may have worse.
Possible side effects of HUMIRA:
Serious side effects, which sometimes lead to death, have happened in patients taking HUMIRA.
- Serious infections. These infections include TB (tuberculosis) and infections caused by viruses, fungi, or bacteria. Your doctor will examine you for TB and perform a test to see if you have TB. If your doctor feels that you are at risk for TB, you may be treated with medicine for TB before you begin treatment with HUMIRA and during treatment with HUMIRA. Even if your TB test is negative your doctor should carefully monitor you for TB infections while you are taking HUMIRA. Patients who had a negative TB skin test before receiving HUMIRA have developed active TB. Tell your doctor if you have any of the following symptoms while taking or after taking HUMIRA: cough, low-grade fever, weight loss, or loss of body fat and muscle.
- Certain types of cancer. There have been cases of certain kinds of cancer in patients taking HUMIRA or other TNF blockers. Patients with RA, especially more serious RA, may have a higher chance for getting a kind of cancer called lymphoma. Some patients receiving HUMIRA have developed types of cancer called non-melanoma skin cancer (basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer of the skin), which are generally not life threatening if treated. Tell your doctor if you have a bump or open sore that doesn't heal.
- Allergic reactions. Signs of a serious allergic reaction include skin rash, a swollen face, or trouble breathing.
- Hepatitis B virus reactivation in patients that carry the virus in their blood. Tell your doctor if you have any of the following symptoms: feel unwell, poor appetite, fatigue, fever, rash or joint pain.
- Nervous system problems. Signs and symptoms include: numbness or tingling, problems with your vision, weakness in your arms or legs, and dizziness.
- Blood problems. Symptoms include a fever that does not go away, bruising or bleeding very easily, or looking very pale.
- New heart failure or worsening heart failure you already have. Symptoms include shortness of breath or swelling of your ankles or feet, or sudden weight gain.
- Immune reactions including a lupus-like syndrome. Symptoms include chest discomfort or pain that does not go away, shortness of breath, joint pain, or rash on your cheeks or arms that gets worse in the sun.
Call your doctor or get medical care right away if you develop any of the above symptoms. Your treatment with HUMIRA may be stopped.
Common side effects of HUMIRA are: injection site reactions (redness, rash, swelling, itching or bruising), upper respiratory infections (sinus infections), headaches, rash and nausea.
These are not all the side effects with HUMIRA. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.
Information You Should Know About HUMIRA® (adalimumab).
HUMIRA is used to reduce the signs and symptoms of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis in adults, may prevent further damage to your bones and joints, and may help your ability to perform daily activities. HUMIRA can be used alone or with methotrexate or with certain other medicines. HUMIRA is used to reduce the signs and symptoms of moderate to severe polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis in children 4 years of age and older. HUMIRA can be used alone or with methotrexate or with certain other medicines. HUMIRA is used to reduce the signs and symptoms of psoriatic arthritis in adults, may prevent further damage to your bones and joints, and may help your ability to perform daily activities. HUMIRA can be used alone or with certain other medicines. HUMIRA is used to reduce the signs and symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis in adults. HUMIRA is used to reduce the signs and symptoms of moderate to severe Crohn's disease in adults who have not responded well to conventional treatments. HUMIRA is also for these adults with moderate to severe Crohn's disease who have lost response or are unable to tolerate infliximab. HUMIRA is used to treat moderate to severe chronic (lasting a long time) plaque psoriasis in adults who are under the ongoing care of a physician, have the condition in many areas of their body and who may benefit from taking injections or pills (systemic therapy) or phototherapy (treatment using ultraviolet light alone or with pills).
HUMIRA is taken by injection.
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