Homeostasis is an essential part for our health.  But, in order to promote a body in balance our mind needs to contribute. Choices we make in regards to stress reduction, healthy nutrition and regular exercise helps keep an imbalance at bay.

Focus on what makes you feel calm and in control. Managing stress is about taking charge of our thoughts, emotions, schedule, and the way we deal with problems. This isn’t as easy as it sounds.  Identifying our true sources of stress, we have to look closely at our habits, attitude, and excuses.

A regular diet rich in plant foods, fish, and lean protein boosts overall health and clearly helps protect against heart disease and diabetes. However when it comes to exercising inadequate nutrient intake deprives the body of the energy needed to perform, the carbohydrates necessary for glycogen replacement, the protein needed for tissue building and repair, and the micro-nutrients necessary for normal metabolism and maintenance of body homeostasis.

The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore and the benefits are ours for the taking, regardless of our age, sex or physical ability. Our body needs regular exercise, the right food, lifestyle and mental attitude to achieve its true health potential.

Now is a perfect time to get active!

Click here to view video on the ‘Murphy MET’s Programme’

Whenever I give my talks on exercise and nutrition I speak about the five leading biomarkers of cancer risk. More importantly they are the reason I designed the Murphy METs Programme   Research studies have shown that resistance training affects the same biomarkers as when you do aerobic training. Which means when you combine both cardiovascular and resistance training as part of your physical activity you get double the benefits?

A form of aerobic training would be walking, jogging, biking, swimming etc; working the largest muscle groups in a repetitive movement.  Resistance exercise is any form of exercise that forces your skeletal muscles (not the involuntary muscles of your heart, lungs, etc.) to contract. An example of resistance training is using free-weights, machine-weights, resistance bands or doing pilates and yoga.

There are a number of physiological benefits of aerobic and resistance training; 2 examples are improvements in muscular function and strength and improvement in the body’s ability to take in and use oxygen (maximal oxygen consumption or aerobic capacity). As one’s ability to transport and use oxygen improves, regular daily activities can be performed with less fatigue.

Here are the five leading biomarkers for lowering risk;

1. Cardiovascular function: Exercise promotes weight reduction and can help reduce blood pressure. Exercise also reduces “bad” cholesterol levels in the blood (the low-density lipoprotein [LDL] level), as well as total cholesterol, and can raise the “good” cholesterol (the high-density lipoprotein level [HDL]). By doing low to moderate physical activity and raising your metabolism 3-4 times your resting state helps lower your risk.  Example: walking at a pace of 20 minutes per mile (3 mph) or 13 minutes per kilometre.

2. Body Fat: Avoiding obesity because extra body fat around the mid-section is one of the greatest risks. Maintaining a healthy weight for your height can greatly reduce your risk of contracting conditions such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and cancer. A combined programme (aerobic & straight training) with good nutrition is a positive way in achieving a healthy composition.

3. Blood glucose level: Exercise reduces insulin levels. Muscles which are working use more glucose than those that are resting which means muscle movement leads to greater sugar uptake by muscle cells and lower blood sugar levels. High sugar levels slowly erode the ability of cells in your pancreas to make insulin. The organ overcompensates and insulin levels stay too high. Over time, the pancreas is permanently damaged. High levels of blood sugar can also cause changes that lead to a hardening of the blood vessels, known as atherosclerosis.

4. Inflammation: Research studies have shown that moderate exercise each week—about 20 minutes a day—lower inflammation by at least 12%. When we exercise, our adipose and muscle tissue release big bursts of cytokines (proteins) into our blood stream that causes inflammation to drop.  However, over exerting the body by doing too much exercise or lack of proper rest and/or recovery can have a counter effect.  Inflammation is also caused by an unhealthy diet; high intakes of processed foods, animal and animal products.

5. Immune function: Exercise can boost your immune system and help your body fight off harmful diseases and even something as simple as the common cold.  Exercise boosts your immune system by providing a boost to the cells in your body that are assigned to attack bacteria. These cells appear to work more slowly in people who don’t exercise than in those that do.  Eating a healthy nutrition that is high in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, fish, low in fat and high in fibre will help keep your immune system strong.

Murphy METs Programme Designed for Prevention/Recurrence of Disease

For those who would like to get started on my programme the next training course will take place at the elbowroom DUBLIN’S FAVOURITE WELLBEING HUB

I’m delighted to be joining The elbowroom team where I’ll be bringing my 12 week METs programme in September. I’ve heard wonderful things about the centre and I feel my programme is a perfect fit with the ethos of The elbowroom community.

For more information please call 01 677 9859 or email  marie@mariemurphyhealthftness.com

I am delighted to inform you that East Galway & Midlands Cancer Support are now offering my program the ‘Murphy (METs) Programme’ a low to moderate intensity physical activity program to their members.  The Murphy (METs) Programme is specifically designed to be safe for people with chronic diseases including cancer, osteoporosis and diabetes.

The Murphy (METs) Programme involves conditioning, strengthening, and endurance phases. Patients are encouraged to exercise at a level that has been determined on an individual basis. The focus of the program is to improve flexibility, balance, co-ordination, mobility, strength, musculoskeletal function, bone density and confidence, in addition to having an impact on cardiovascular fitness, weight management and psychosocial well-being. My program was acknowledged by the American Institute of Cancer Research (AICR) 2012.  East Galway & Midlands Cancer Support holds a license to deliver classes in the Murphy (METs) Programme.

“I have worked towards this moment for many years, to finally teach others to teach my program safely and effectively and it is my goal for the ‘Murphy (METs) Programme’ to expand to other centres across the country so that a greater number of cancer survivors can reap its benefits, Physically, Metabolically and Psychologically”.

Please see Ballinasloe Life magazine (page 21). To hear inter­view on the Keith Finnegan Show clink link and fast for­ward 63 min­utes.

For further information on the Murphy (METs) Programme please click link or contact me at mobile 085 196 5468 or email marie@mariemurphyhealthfitness.com

To become a certified Murphy (METs) Programme Trainer please see Trainers Short Course. For information on course location, date and cost please contact me at mobile 085 1965468 or email marie@mariemurphyhealthfitness.com.

Exciting new project is taking place for cancer survivors and their families in Ballinasloe, Co. Galway.   Jacqueline Daly Director of East Galway & Midlands Cancer Support Centre envisioned how to further enhance survivor’s recovery in none other than building a gym on site to improve health and fitness easily and conveniently for all members.

This is a state of the arts project and the first of its kind in Ireland. The centre has licenced the ‘Murphy (METs) Prograemme’ which will allow classes to be thought by qualified personal. “I have worked towards this moment for many years; to finally teach others to teach my programme safely and effectively and it is my goal for the ‘Murphy (METs) Programme’ to expand to other centres across the country so that a greater number of cancer survivors can reap its benefits”.

This week we met with the Minister of Health ‘Leo Varadkar’ and discussed the plans for the centre. I had the opportunity to share with him a little about the ‘Murphy (METs) Programme’ and my goal to increase awareness to the health benefits associated with daily physical activity and draw attention to the amount and intensity of physical activity for cancer survivors to achieve these benefits; physiologic, metabolic and psychological.

I will keep you posted on our progress in Ballinasloe, Co Galway.