To live fit with hemophilia means regular cardiovascular exercise paired with strength training and eating healthy, balanced meals. This not only reduces body weight, taking stress off your joints, but it may also increase self-esteem and improve overall well-being. It may also help reduce stress.

Remember, before starting any physical activity programs, be sure to talk with your healthcare provider.

Cardiovascular Exercise is a great way to burn calories and control body weight. It also provides other benefits, like strengthening your heart, lungs and muscles. Cardiovascular exercises should be performed continuously for 10 to 30 minutes while keeping your heart rate in its training zone. Your goal should be 60 minutes of activity each day, which should include at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise. This can be done in multiple 10 minute increments of activity or all at once.

Cardiovascular activities include:

• Walking or jogging
• Swimming
• Recreational activities like canoeing, tennis or roller-blading

Learn more about Cardiovascular Exercise by viewing the Living Fit! Fitness Guidelines

Strengthening Exercise includes resistance or weight training activities that use some type of resistance to make your muscles work harder. These exercises are important for people with hemophilia because they help strengthen your muscles and bones. Strong muscles support your joints and may help reduce the likelihood of injury. Some data even suggests that resistance training may help to reduce the frequency of bleeds.

Strengthening exercises include both isometric and isotonic exercises:

• Isometric exercises work the muscle without any visible movement, e.g., pushing against a wall or stationary object without movement
• Isotonic exercises resist your joint and muscle as you move through a motion, e.g., push-ups

Learn more about Strengthening Exercise by viewing the Living Fit! Fitness Guidelines

Nutrition
Good nutrition and regular physical activity go together. Nutrition is how we fuel our body and it's important to make sure we're putting lots of nutrients and energy-providing food in our body when we're active.

Healthy eating includes eating a variety of foods that give you the nutrients you need to maintain your health, feel good, and have energy. Make sure your diet includes these elements:

• Balance – include foods from all the food groups in every meal
• Portion control – eat the recommended amount of food from each food group
• Healthier choices – choose lower calorie, lower fat options that provide vitamins and nutrients needed to be strong and healthy

It is never too early to start learning healthy eating habits. Bad eating behaviors and cravings can develop as early as age three, so make eating healthy a family affair from the beginning!

For more information on good nutrition and healthy eating habits, view Living Fit! in action.

General Wellness is a term that refers to your overall physical and emotional health. It includes eating healthy, staying physically active, keeping your brain active and engaged, and maintaining a balanced stress level. Good nutrition and physical activity may help increase self-esteem and improve overall well-being. Keeping your brain active and engaged also helps increase self-esteem and minimizes the focus on having hemophilia, both of which may help reduce stress levels.