Just Do It

The excuses pile up. There's no time. I'm too old. It is too hard.

For most people, exercise just seems to

be a drag. Well, the tough news is that the path to a longer, fuller, healthier life takes work.

"I bicycle 500 miles a month," said Fort Myers resident Dale Van Netta, 73, and a member of Caloosa Riders bicycle club. "I sleep better, eat better and feel better all over."

The good news is that it doesn't take 500 miles a month of bicycling to become fit and healthy at any age.

"The American Heart Association guidelines recommend 30 to 60 minutes of exercise six days a week," said Sal Lacagnina, medical director of the Lee Memorial Health System Wellness Center.

"There are 1,440 minutes in a day, so people can't say they don't have enough time."

It needn't be the kind of training Van Netta does, but aerobic exercise, walking, jogging and yes bicycling, at a moderate rate will improve every bit of the body.

Studies cited by Lacagnina show that the heart, the system of veins and arteries attached to the heart, the lungs and the kidneys and other body organs all improve with exercise.

FLORIDA WEEKLY PHOTO Gold's Gym is one of dozens of exercise facilities in the area you can go to get fit and healthy. "The heart is a muscle, it benefits from being exercised," Lacagnina said. "Other organs benefit from increased blood flow and oxygen."

That includes the mind.

"Studies show that exercise keeps the risk of Alzheimer's disease down," Lacagnina said. "Exercise also contributes to weight loss and fights diabetes."

Weight loss seems to be the number one reason people begin exercise programs, said Scott Wills, the fitness program supervisor at The Wellness Center of Cape Coral.

"A lot of people come in just to look better," Wills said. "They have the misconception that if their waist is fat all they have to do is exercise the abs and they'll get a washboard. That's not true."

Unfortunately, the body doesn't always choose the places we want it to take the fat from. The body will take fat from the most convenient place that could be where it last deposited the stuff. That could be an arm, not the waist.

No matter where it comes from, to lose fat a person must burn more calories than he or she takes in.

"I recommend an eating plan that a person can live with for the rest of their life," said Jeanne P. Struve, Registered Dietician with Southwest Florida Regional Medical Center.

"Eating breakfast is very important. So is not eating after dinner. Moderation and balance promotes a long healthy life."

Along with the American Heart Association, Struve recommends a daily multivitamin. Fruits and vegetables remain important as do whole grains. Avoid processed flour.

"Bagels are not as healthy as people think," Struve said. "Then people put cream cheese on them, that's all fat that has to be burned."

There are plenty of places to burn calories in Lee County. Health clubs, gyms and bike trails abound in Fort Myers, Bonita Springs and Cape Coral. The benefits from exercise are not lost on local residents no matter their age.

"I'm an athlete, I play basketball, but I do this for my mental health too," said Gold's Gym member Heidi Hyche, 35. "I take a break before I have to pick up the girls from school. Exercise relieves stress and I feel relaxed, not tense."

FLORIDA WEEKLY PHOTO PETE SKIBA Gold's Gym in Fort Myers offers weight training and aerobic workouts such as racketball. As an athlete, Hyche appreciates that walking and climbing stairs are considered load bearing exercises. It is just the type of exercise recommended by the National Osteoporosis Foundation.

Women and men are vulnerable to osteoporosis, which depletes bone tissue, Lacagnina said. It pays for both to do aerobic and weight training exercises for their legs and arms.

The bones have similar properties to the muscles - use them or lose them. If your bones and muscles are not put to work they lose mass as people age.

Knowing this, Hyche puts in 45 minutes on the treadmill, more time on the stair climber and lifts weights a few times a week.

Lifting weights is also a good calorie burner. The lifting can be done in a circuit, moving from one lifting machine to another with a very brief rest between stations.

The circuit enhances the cardiopulmonary system as it strengthens muscles. Building muscle mass by lifting weights also helps in fat loss. The bigger the muscle the more calories it burns.

Burning calories through joining other bicyclists in a club such as the Caloosa Riders becomes a social outlet as well as a good way to exercise.

"We get together after races for dinner and plan other rides," said club member Dick Bennett, 62. "It is a good way to have fun and meet people."

A group of weight lifters from Fort Myers do the same thing at the Omni Club. They get together at the club as a group to encourage themselves in their lifting.

"We like to lift together to meet our goals of gaining muscle mass," said Chris McDaniel, 26. "I enjoy staying fit at this club."

Almost all health clubs in the area offer group aerobics classes. Those classes are another social opportunity.

There are a few clubs with racquetball courts. Steam rooms and saunas are available. All sorts of weight lifting, abdominal and cardiovascular equipment abound along with free weights.

Anyone who finds the equipment or the thought of a health club intimidating shouldn't, club managers all agreed.

"No one should feel intimidated coming into our club," said Matt Pell, Gold's Gym regional manager. "Everyone is here to get fit. We'll show them whatever they need to reach their goals. You change your body, you change your life."

People in the clubs, whether health club or bicycle club, all said their lives improved with exercise.

"I've been exercising for two years steady," said Fort Myers resident Allysa Shaftman, 20. "It gives me energy. If I don't exercise, I get tired. It takes away my stress."

Cape Coral resident Hood Little, 72, has been exercising since 1992. He doesn't look like he has an ounce of fat on his muscular-looking body.

"This gives me stamina, strength. I feel really fit," Little said. "I watch what I eat, don't want to clog the arteries up."

Like most, Jeff Burcenski, 50, said he wanted to lose weight and get in shape. He also added yoga to his routine.

FLORIDA WEEKLY PHOTO PETE SKIBA Experts say women and men are vulnerable to osteoporosis, which depletes bone tissue. It pays for both to do aerobic and weight training exercises for their legs and arms. "Thirty years ago, I was an aerobics instructor. I thought it was time to get back in shape," Burcenski said. "The yoga is really great too."