I'm dizzy, light-headed, over-heated and just plain worn out after my workout this morning. Why? Because I overdid it.

I've been so focused on running from cancer by eating right and strenuously exercising -- research says it take five hours of vigorous exercise per week to keep breast cancer away -- that I drove myself to depletion this morning. It hit me when a wave of dizziness came over me in the midst of my outdoor workout. My body felt heavy, my strength disappeared, and it took every ounce of energy I could muster to put one foot in front of the other so I could get home. I suspect it was a combination of dehydration -- I didn't take water with me -- and heat -- it's really hot here in Florida -- and pushing myself too hard. The fact that I feel a bit under the weather didn't help either, I'm sure.

My body spoke to me today. And it's got my attention.

It's my boys who distract me most from exercise. That's just the way it is. They're kids. They have needs and wishes and demands that keep me busy from sun-up to sun-down. It's hard to find time for fitness. I don't go to a gym. I prefer to use my own treadmill, walk the seven hills in my neighborhood, run outdoors, and conduct my scrunching, pushing, lunging, squatting, and resisting in the privacy of my own home. I don't have a gym membership with free childcare offerings or a list of babysitters who will come to my rescue when I need to huff and puff. I have me, my kids, and the hours in the day, though. And I am trying desperately at fitting fitness in.

Today, after enduring what seemed like endless little-boy fighting and tormenting, I determined my guys needed a workout just as much as I did. I threw them in the car. I threw their scooters, a big wheel, and a football in the car too. We drove to a nearby community college track, unloaded ourselves and our gear, and got to work. I ran two miles. And six-year-old Joey and four-year-old Danny scooted, pedaled, walked, ran, climbed a pile of dirt, and threw their football until their faces were splotchy from the heat, their little bodies zapped with fatigue.

Our whole fitness feat took no more than one hour and ended as we guzzled water and poured our sweaty selves back into the car. Back home, I felt so much better about my day. And I was better equipped for the fighting that continued as soon as we walked in the door.

I write a lot about exercise. That's because it's clear the practice prevents all sorts of illness and disease, including cancer, and I think you should know all about it. I also write so much about the topic so the health lessons pertaining to physical fitness sink deep into my brain because I, like everyone else, need a reminder now and then about how importance it is to stay fit. So, here I am, back with another morsel about this noble endeavor we call exercise.

Think about this:

Making a habit out of exercise may help you stick with a routine you find hard to keep. It can be hard -- to create a ritual in an already-hectic schedule -- but it's possible. Experts suggest piggybacking any desired behavior, like exercise, with already firmly-established tasks. Perhaps you can forgo a shower until you have exercised for the day or watch TV only after you've mastered some endurance training on the treadmill. How about turning a nightly stroll with your dog into a brisk power walk -- this workout will benefit not only yourself, but your pet too. Maybe huff and puff a bit every evening before dinner. Reward yourself with a refreshing fruit salad after every strenuous workout. You get the drill. Now get those tennis shoes on and give it a go!

Source: Canyon Ranch Connection, Spring 2007

The experts at Canyon Ranch resort and spa know what they're talking about when it comes to health and happiness. They make a living off their expertise, in fact. But they're not stingy when it comes to sharing their know-how, and on the Canyon Ranch website, they offer us all a chance to better our lives.

I promised in an earlier post to share more of what the Canyon Ranchers have to say -- so here are seven more healthy habits you just might want to embrace.

To Carb or Not to Carb

Canyon Ranch has watched "fad" diets come and go, never falling for their quick, easy-fix mentality and consistently advocating for balance, moderation and basic good nutrition. In recent years, some diets have forsaken whole grains for foods rich in protein and essentially free of carbohydrates. Whole grains, which are carbs, have always been a vital part of good nutrition. And while removing high-carbohydrate foods from your diet may initially help you lose weight faster, over time their absence can negatively influence your health.

Making Time for Time

People take classes to learn time management, they rely on the latest technologies to make the most of it and budget time as carefully as their money. Still, when it comes to health care, you may find yourself in a time crunch. Fortunately, Carl Pratt, managing director of the Canyon Ranch in Lenox, offers a timely solution: The 90-Minute Program. "It really only takes 90 minutes a week to stay focused on maintaining a healthy lifestyle. If you aren't willing to dedicate 90 minutes, you aren't willing to take care of yourself, and you need to accept that fact," says Carl. Carl breaks down the 90 minutes per week as follows:

• 15 minutes of planning for "mindful eating"
• 45 minutes of exercise (15 minutes, three days a week)
• 30 minutes of relaxation (five minutes, six days a week)
  

Commuting Bliss

When you change your mindset and treat commutes as a transition time for relaxation or education by listening to music or books on tape, your daily drive becomes a worthwhile experience. "We all see commutes as inconvenient, and we need to think of them as something valuable. Remember, the ultimate removal of commute time is not what people want. Otherwise, we would go directly from birth to death and skip everything in between. If you can't enjoy the commute -- and indeed, some are more difficult than others -- you are simply losing part of your life," says Robert Rhode, Ph.D., clinical psychologist at Canyon Ranch in Tucson.

Family Bonds Tied to Well-Being

Even painful family connections can be a significant part of personal growth. Learn to feel reverence toward yourself even as you feel pain. This connects you with your humanity and your ability to give and receive love. How to get comfortable with painful memories? Relax your body and allow yourself to feel emotions -- anger, pain, sadness -- while maintaining a positive attitude toward you.

An Attitude of Gratitude

Being thankful each day for the good things in your life and the ability to appreciate what you have rather than what you do not have is an important aspect of emotional health and well-being.

Think Big

One key to spiritual well-being is to get outside yourself with activities such as volunteering or contributing to worthy causes."Get involved with others and become committed to something greater than yourself. You start worrying about the greater good and you feel better about yourself," says Evan Kligman, M.D., at Canyon Ranch in Tucson.

Not a Morning Person? It's OK

Giving yourself a workout boost first thing is great for some, but an early morning workout may not be for everyone. Phil Eichling, M.D., sleep expert at Canyon Ranch in Tucson, encourages people with sleep problems to put off their workout for later. He says to enhance sleep, the best time to exercise is usually late afternoon. And people who have cardiovascular issues or certain other health concerns may also want to ease into the day before they strap on their running shoes or cross trainers.

I'm headed for a Saturday morning workout with my fitness trainer. For one hour, I will physically challenge my body and emotionally charge my spirits. I will sweat and pant and if I am required to do the inner thigh exercise, I will scream. I will also whine -- it's in my nature -- and I will push, pull, bounce, balance, lift, squat, lunge, and run until it's quitting time. I will fall short on some of my exercise expectations. And I will surprise myself and exceed others. In the end, I will feel accomplished, strong, motivated, and ready to tackle the day.

I'm making a comeback. I have come back from the depths of cancer and all of its accompanying treatment, and I have invited this powerhouse of a girl to transform me. She has accepted the challenge -- and she has helped me evolve from a weak, shaky, dizzy cancer patient to a semi-strong, 5K-running breast cancer survivor with biceps that are almost visible at a close distance.

This spunky fitness girl -- also an accomplished kick boxer, wife, and mom of two little ones -- has accepted another one of my challenges. I asked her to share some of her health and fitness expertise so that we all may reap the benefits. And so she kindly extracted some important tidbits from her vast library of knowledge and concisely crafted the responses that follow.

Take it from Fitz Koehler -- exercise and healthy eating habits are key for survival. For all of us. Cancer survivors included.

Why is fitness important for everyone?

100% of the population needs to exercise in some way. For the most part, if you're not working to get stronger, you're going to get weaker. Whether it's tummy time as an infant, gym class as a kid, weight training as an adult, or short walks as a senior, in order to live well and live long, we must eat well and exercise. Plus, a fit lifestyle prevents so many horrible ailments and diseases -- heart disease, some cancers, diabetes, GERD. Who wants any of that?

I have tried to exercise most of my adult life -- at times because I felt obligated to participate in what I knew was good for me and at times to justify eating my favorite foods while maintaining an appropriate weight and at times because I wanted to actually have a toned, healthy body.

At this exact time in my life, I exercise with all of these motivations in mind -- plus a few more. I like to sweat and know I am accomplishing a physical feat. I like the mental release I get when I push my body to perform. I like the time to myself, the loud music I hear on my MP3 player, and the results I see from a little bit of hard work. And lately -- as a result of a new weight training program -- I know I am benefiting my body more than ever before.

The following are just seven of the many gifts that come from weight training. Gifts that will make me a happier, healthier cancer survivor.

Noticeable physical results -- Mostly, walking and occasional jogging have been my methods of exercise. And I've seen results from this type of workout -- leaner legs, more defined calf muscles, and the knowledge that I am increasing my cardiovascular health, as confirmed by the technician who performed an ultrasound on my heart in preparation for my Herceptin treatment for breast cancer. He told me he could tell I exercised regularly because of my low resting heart rate. But until I started weight training a few months ago, I never witnessed quick results. Yet after a few weeks of resistance exercise -- lifting 20-pound weights for my arms, shoulders, back, and chest -- I could see definition and tone that clearly would not have resulted from my purely cardio workouts.

Improved strength and endurance -- Lunges and squats and jumping with resistance bands have strengthened my legs. Lifting weights has strengthened my arms -- and I can now lift heavier weights than when I first started my new routine. I can do more push-ups now too -- not girl push-ups on my knees but real push-ups -- than I ever could have imagined doing when I could barely lower my own body weight and would crash to the floor on my stomach. My strength has improved. My endurance has improved. I feel more powerful.

Increased energy -- Fatigue (or maybe it's laziness) sometimes prevents me from happily jumping up to begin exercising. But when I push myself and exert myself and get lost in my exercise routine, my energy returns -- and not just during my workout but for some time afterwards too. Some say energy increases from strength training because it contributes to loss of fat which means we have less to lug around each day.

Burning of more calories -- Weight training raises basal metabolism which causes more calorie burning over a 24-hour period of time. Calories even burn during sleep as a result of weight training.  For every additional pound of muscle you gain, your body burns 50 extra calories every day -- 50 more calories than the few hundred that might burn from aerobic exercise. Research shows that regular resistance training can increase your Basal Metabolic Rate by 15%. So for someone who burns 2000 calories per day, that's upwards of 300 extra calories burned every single day. 

Decreased onset of illness -- Weight training can reduce the risk of adult onset diabetes and the risk for developing colon cancer and can improve the functioning of the immune system and the efficiency of the heart. It decreases the risk of low-back injuries, decreases resting blood pressure, increases good cholesterol (HDL), and improves posture. The list goes on -- and so does healthy living if weight training becomes a way of life. As a young person already having experienced a life-threatening illness, this comforts me.

Prevention of osteoporosis -- My recent bone density test revealed that I am not at this moment at risk for developing osteoporosis. I don't want this to change. Strength training can help me maintain this status because it can significantly increase bone mineral density -- which is important because we naturally lose bone density as we age. Strength training helps protect against osteoporosis. And age should not be a deterrent. Individuals who begin training late in life -- at age 65, for example -- can restore bone loss.

Improved outlook on life -- As a result of toning and shaping my body, burning calories, enjoying greater strength and energy, and working toward a disease-free future, weight training gives me an improved outlook on life. And weight training has recently been reported to significantly improve the quality of life of women recently treated for breast cancer. A May 2006 study indicates six months of twice weekly exercise was enough to improve the overall physical and emotional condition of patients.

Twice weekly is my weight training goal. I will continue to walk and run -- and bike on occasion too -- but strength training will be my priority. Because health is a priority.