The Key to a Strong Immune System

I'm not a couch potato, but I've not been a great one for exercise either.  I've kind of gone at it in fits and starts throughoutt my life.  I know I need it to be healthy, but I never knew what to do.  I've tried going to the gym, but by the time I drive there and have a 1 hours class and drive home, 2 hours of the precious time I have in my day have been used up.  Maybe you can relate.  I also got "post-exercise fatigue" when I had untreated hypothyroidism.  I don't have that anymore, so now I have no excuse.

What's haunted me though is what I read Dr. Michael Colgan say in his book The New Nutrition: Medicine for the Millenium:  "If you don't have time to exercise, you'd better reserve a lot of time for disease!"


I decided to pick the book up again.  It's simple to read and I highly recommend it.  In his chapter on exercise he states that most of the programs popular in gyms are wrong.  He goes on to say that the strength of your immune system, and therefore your body's ability to resist disease is based on the availability of the amino acid glutamine.  Only muscle cells can produce glutamine.  It therefore follows that muscle is essential to a healthy immune system.

Muscle is also the furnace where bodyfat and sugar are burned.  Muscle is essential to maintaining strong bones and, as already stated, you have to have muscle to maintain a strong immune system.  Weight-bearing exercise is the key.  Colgan goes on to say that "without it, without the stimulus for your body to grow, nutritional supplements cannot work properly."  So if you're spending money on quality nutritional supplements, but not exercising, you're not getting all the benefit you could from your supplements.

He also states that weight-bearing exercise has been shown in studies to be far superior to aerobic exercise for the health of the cardiovascular system, for cancer prevention, weight-loss and prevention of virtually every disease

So, back to my delimma.  What kind of exercise and how long?  I now knew that weight-bearing is the key, but what to do without spending time and money going to the gym?   Well, I was happy to read in his book that "to be successful, exercise must be incorporated into your normal daily routine.  Fifteen minutes a day when you rise in the morning, is far better for your health than three hours at a gym on Saturdays."  He also says that "you don't need complicated machines or fancy gadgets.  You can exercise anywhere.  Your own body weight and gravity provide ample resistance."

Get the o.k. from your doctor before you begin.  Then "your exercise program hs three goals.  First and most important is to maintain and increase your muscle mass.  Second is to maintin your cardiovascular system.  Third is to maintain your flexibility."

I use free weights.  I was pretty out of shape, so I started with 2 pound weights for the first set, 5 pound weights for the second, and 3 pound weights for the endurance set.  I do a little cardio warm-up for about 5 minutes to limber up the muscle group I'm going to work and after I use the weights, I stretch.  The whole thing takes about 30 minutes and I do that 4 days a week.  Let me tell you, it's very effective.  Here's what I do:

Monday:  Chest & Back and Abs
Tuesday: Legs & Abs
Wednesday:  (I get a break, but I walk every day or my dog gets mad at me!)
Thursday:  Shoulders & Abs
Friday:  Arms & Abs

On the other 3 days of the week, I walk more or in the summer, ride my bike.  And don't forget that yard work or house work counts as exercise too!

I recommend that you get a good book or video to guide you.  You can order Colgan's Power Program online. I would also recommend one of Kathy Koehler's DVD's like this one.