Weaver’s tips for fitness, nutrition and weight loss EXERCISE • Start out small, even walking or running for 30 minutes three to five times a week. • Make sure you are walking with purpose. Do not be lazy. If you are not uncomfortable, you are not working hard enough. Kaidee Weaver, left, leads a kickboxing class at Body Fitness & Dance in John Day. NUTRITION • Nutrition is huge, equaling 70 percent of weight loss. • Start out with small changes, such as controlling portion sizes. • Rather than eating a whole sandwich, choose to eat half and drink a big glass of water with your meal, which will fill you up quicker. Recognize when you are full, and give yourself time to digest. • Eat breakfast, a healthy snack and lunch, followed by a healthy snack, then dinner, and try to be done eating by 6 p.m. • Remember, you will never be perfect at this, but do your best to make as many good choices as you can and get right back on track if you have a rough day. All those good choices will add up. • The recipe for weight loss is to burn off more calories through exercise than you eat, which is why nutrition is such a huge percentage of weight loss. SLEEP • Sleeping eight hours a night is important. • Your body burns the most calories in the rapid eye move- ment cycle. If you sleep fewer hours, you will miss the prime calorie-burning window by cutting off the tail end of the REM (the longest period of REM, where you could burn the most calories). An exercise group starts their morning with a kickboxing routine in John Day. WATER • Water is the most vital source of energy in the body, and the average human body is 60-75 percent water. • Water is one of the best tools for weight loss because it has no fat, no calories, no carbohydrates and no sugar. • Water helps suppress your appetite, aids in digestion, fights bloating, hydrates muscles, flushes toxins, helps reduce choles- terol and improves liver function. • Did you know how weight actually leaves our bodies? Through sweat and urine. So drink up! Family Health Guide 2017 || 9