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healthymusclesmatter-140303180830-phpapp01
healthymusclesmatter-140303180830-phpapp01
Strong muscles also help to keep your joints in good Contact sports like soccer, football, hockey, and
shape. If the muscles around your knee, for example, wrestling can often cause strains. Sports in which you
get weak, you may be more likely to injure that knee. grip something (like gymnastics or tennis) can lead to
Strong muscles also help you keep your balance, so strains in your hand or forearm.
you are less likely to slip or fall.
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How do I keep my muscles healthy? •• Is as low as possible in trans fats.
Physical Activity •• Balances calories taken in through food with
When you make your muscles work by being calories burned in physical activity to help
physically active, they respond by growing stronger. maintain a healthy weight.
They may even get As you grow and become an adult, iron is an important
bigger by adding nutrient, especially for girls. Not getting enough iron can
more muscle cause anemia (uh-NEE-me-uh), which can make you feel
tissue. This is how weak and tired, because your muscles don’t get enough
bodybuilders get oxygen. This can also keep you from getting enough
such big muscles, activity to keep your muscles healthy. You can get iron
but your muscles can from foods like lean beef, chicken, and turkey; beans
be healthy without and peas; spinach; and iron-enriched breads and cereals.
getting that big. You can also get iron from dietary supplements, but it’s
There are lots of activities you can do to for your always good to check with a doctor first.
muscles. Walking, jogging, lifting weights, playing Some people think that supplements will make their
tennis, climbing stairs, jumping, muscles bigger and stronger. However, supplements like
and dancing are all good ways to creatine can cause serious side effects, and protein and
Get at least
exercise your muscles. Swimming amino acid supplements are no better than getting protein
60 minutes
and biking will also give your from your food. Using steroids to increase your muscles
of physical muscles a good workout. It’s is illegal (unless a doctor has prescribed them for a
activity important to do different kinds of medical problem), and can
every day. activities to work all your muscles. have dangerous side effects.
And any activity that makes you No muscles-building
breathe harder and faster will help exercise that important supplement can take the
heart muscle as well! place of good nutrition
Get 60 minutes of physical activity every day. It doesn’t and proper training.
have to be all at once, but it does need to be in at least For more information
10-minute increments to count toward your 60 minutes on a healthy diet, see
of physical activity per day. www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups.
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•• Remember to drink lots of water while you’re Dehydration (dee-hahy-DREY-shun). A condition
playing or exercising, especially in warm weather. that occurs when you lose more fluids than you take
If your body’s water level gets too low (dehydration in. Your body is about two-thirds water. When you get
[dee-hahy-DREY-shun]), you could get dizzy or even dehydrated, it means the amount of water in your body
pass out. Dehydration can cause many medical problems. has dropped below the level needed for normal
•• Don’t try to “play through the pain.” If something body function.
starts to hurt, STOP exercising or playing. You might Involuntary muscle. Muscles that you cannot control.
need to see a doctor, or you might just need to rest
the injured part for a while. Ligament (LIG-uh-muhnt). Tough cords of tissue that
connect bones to other bones at a joint.
•• If you have been inactive,
“start low and go slow” by Skeletal (SKEL-i-tl) muscle. Muscles that attach
Don’t try to
gradually increasing how often to bones.
“play through
and how long activities are
the pain.” Sprain (spreyn). A stretched or torn ligament. Ankle
done. Increase physical activity
and wrist sprains are common. Symptoms include pain,
gradually over time.
swelling, bruising, and being unable to move the joint.
•• Be careful when you lift
heavy objects. Keep your back straight and bend Strain (streyn). A stretched or torn muscle or tendon.
your knees to lift the object. This will protect the Twisting or pulling these tissues can cause a strain.
muscles in your back and put most of the weight on Strains can happen suddenly or develop over time. Back
the strong muscles in your legs. Get someone to help and hamstring muscle strains are common. Many people
you lift something heavy. get strains playing sports.
Definitions
Anemia (uh-NEE-me-uh) is a condition in which your
blood has a lower than normal number of red blood cells.
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For more information: •• Healthfinder.gov: Physical Activity:
www.healthfinder.gov/prevention/ViewTopic.aspx?to
For more information on muscles, contact:
picID=22&areaID=5&TopicContentID=258
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal
and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) Information •• President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, &
Clearinghouse Nutrition: www.fitness.gov
National Institutes of Health •• Kids.gov: Health, Fitness, and Safety:
Toll free: 877–22–NIAMS (226–4267) www.kids.usa.gov
Email: NIAMSinfo@mail.nih.gov For information about a balanced diet, visit:
Website: www.niams.nih.gov •• ChooseMyPlate.gov: www.choosemyplate.gov/
food-groups
Check out these websites: •• Healthfinder.gov: Eat Healthy: www.healthfinder.
For information about sports injuries and sprains gov/prevention/ViewTopic.aspx?topicID=21&areaID
and strains, visit: =5&TopicContentID=106
•• Handout on Health: Sports Injuries: www.niams. This fact sheet was made for you by the National
nih.gov/Health_Info/Sports_Injuries/default.asp Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin
•• Questions and Answers about Sprains and Diseases (NIAMS), a part of the U.S. Department of
Strains: www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Sports_ Health and Human Services’ National Institutes of
Injuries/default.asp Health. For more information about the NIAMS, call
the information clearinghouse at 301–495–4484 or toll
•• MedlinePlus: Sprains and Strains:
free at 877–22–NIAMS (226–4267) or visit the NIAMS
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/sprainsandstrains.html
website at www.niams.nih.gov.
For information about physical activity, visit:
•• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
Physical Activity Guidelines: www.cdc.gov/
physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/children.html