With the new year, many of us are trying to live healthier lifestyles whether it's better eating habits or working out more.Â
Jill Lewis, HUB Fitness Instructor and , says it's important for people to not only get to the gym but change up their exercise routine.Â
That includes switching it up between strength training and high-intensity interval circuits, especially for women.
Those circuits alternate between short bursts of intense exercise and short periods of less intense exercise or rest.
She says many women are afraid to incorporate weights into their workout but is encouraging them to do so.
"I think it's really important for women to realize the more lean muscle you put onto your body, the more you're going to burn fat," Lewis explains.
The fitness instructor, who teaches Bootcamp and Spin classes at the HUB, says there are few small, free changes that men and women can make to improve their health.
One of those is drinking enough water each day. She suggests half of your body weight in ounces or more if you workout or are an athlete.
For example, if you weight 120 lbs. to drink 60 oz. of water in a day.
Lewis says many times people mistake thirst for hunger, and drinking enough water helps to prevent that.
Lastly, she recommends intermittent fasting and practices it herself.
Intermittent fasting is eating your daily intake of food in a 8 or 10 hour window instead of eating all day long, Lewis says, this allows your body to get into digestive rest.
"You want to give your body digestive rest, so that it can repair the body at a cellular level," she explains. "That's going to help prevent disease, aid in fat loss and increase your energy."
Lewis says it's also important that people eat fruits, vegetables, protein and unprocessed carbs during that 8 to 10 hour window.
