Marci Bowman: Almost effortless fitness

One of my favorite songs is "All or Nothing At All" - the Frank Sinatra version. It swings romantically, full of confidence and swagger. I love dancing to it, and singing along makes me smile.

The trouble is it's a bad fitness philosophy.

Think about what fitness really means. Fit for what? If you plan to run a marathon, you definitely have tough training ahead. But most of us aren't even considering that. Instead, we simply want to have enough energy to meet our daily demands, with some left over for fun. Remember fun? Pleasure? Enjoying yourself? There's more to life than work or television - or even (gasp) the gym.

And you probably want to feel comfortable in your clothes.

Fitness involves four main components: cardiovascular, strength, flexibility and balance. None of these requires a great deal of time, or equipment, to develop. In fact, starting small is wise. Good habits require time to take hold, changes that are too dramatic often stump you before they can become routine.

Being in good cardiovascular shape means that your heart and blood vessels circulate blood efficiently throughout your body, delivering oxygen and nutrients while removing carbon dioxide and waste. Walking is an easy way to do this. The American Heart Association recommends as little as 30 minutes of walking daily for cardiovascular health. Even better, you don't have to do it all at once to reap the benefits.

Studies have shown that three 10-minute sessions lowered blood pressure and had the benefit of keeping metabolism slightly elevated throughout the day, which burns more calories. Burning more calories (provided you don't eat more to compensate) results in weight loss, another boon to your health. All of that for the price of some comfortable shoes. Walk with a friend and make it even more enjoyable.

Strength and flexibility are flip sides of a coin; as one muscle flexes, another one extends.

In a study published by the "Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine," people who stretched their hamstrings (back of the leg) five times a week for a month and a half not only increased their range of motion (good for injury prevention), they also significantly strengthened their thighs. Think of strength-training as working your muscles against resistance (such as gravity or your own body weight push-ups?) and flexibility as lengthening those muscles (stand and bend forward Ð you're using the same elements now to stretch). It should take only 30 minutes a day to strengthen and stretch your major muscle groups.

Balance is the most overlooked aspect of fitness.

As we age, our natural ability declines and the likelihood of falling increases. Even a minor tumble can result in a sprain, if not a broken bone. Adding exercises like standing on one leg retrains your body to keep itself upright (and if that's too easy, try it with your eyes closed - away from sharp objects, please). Tai Chi, developed in China more than 2,000 years ago as a form of self-defense, teaches inner stability as its flowing poses transition from one leg to the other.

So make a commitment to yourself. Now. Keep it simple: I will be as active as I can each day.

Begin following those guidelines that you've heard a hundred times before, but dismissed as not "real" exercise. Park farther away than necessary. Walk to the next bus stop. Use the stairs whenever you have access to them. Stroll with a friend instead of just sitting with them. If you have a dog, run around with it in the park. If you have children, play follow-the-leader. Turn up your favorite song and dance wildly - "All or Nothing At All" can get you moving, but don't believe the lyrics: It's actually the little things that make a difference.

Marci Bowman is a certified personal trainer who lives and works in the Inner Richmond District. Her Web site is at form-and-function.net and e-mail is marcibowman@sbcglobal.net.