How can nurses lose weight? “Be Beyonce!”

Scrubs welcomes our latest contributor, Tracy Martins, who will give nurses pointers on getting in shape over the course of the Wellness Challenge. If you don’t know Tracy, maybe you’ve heard of the television show he works on…The Biggest Loser!

Nurses, I know many of you think you don’t have time to exercise, that the work you do is movement enough and that it’s too tough to get in a workout routine with your busy schedule. But you know as well as I do…that’s not enough to keep you healthy! So what’s a busy nurse to do?

Your first step should be to tell yourself, “I can do this,” and then move. That’s really all it takes–move!

People ask me all the time, “What’s the best way to lose weight?” or “What’s the best way to burn calories?” I think they expect me to respond with, “Ride a bike,” but that’s never the answer. Honestly, the best way is to move and do something you enjoy. I happen to really like riding a bike; I like the fresh air in my face; I like heading out and not knowing which way I’m gonna go…to the right, or to the left, or just straight ahead.

But this principle holds true with anything. Move….and “be Beyonce.”

By this I mean start moving, put on your iPod and play your favorite playlist. As you’re exercising, “be Beyonce” and sing along to your favorite songs. Not only will you have a wonderful time, your mind will be happy and you’ll find that you’re getting an amazing workout. Why? Because you will become breathless and your heart rate will elevate to a place that it should be while you work out.

This week, I’d like to challenge everyone to take some time out each day and walk the stairs at the hospital. My father was a doctor and I spent so much time in hospitals as a young boy that I know firsthand…there are long hallways and plenty stairs you can use to get yourself moving.

The only equipment you need this week is you, your MP3 player and a big smile. You have 1440 minutes in a day; I’m asking for 20.

Stand at the bottom of the stairs, put on your iPod and start walking up and down the stairwell. “Be Beyonce” and sing your favorite song while walking. Your goal should be to get up and down the stairs 10 times. But if you can only do it five times, then tomorrow you’re going to shoot for six times, the following day seven times and keep building from there. Do it with a friend; it’s always more fun when you exercise with someone, and it also keeps you moving.

Remember, this isn’t a competition. All that matters is that YOU are better than you were yesterday. Don’t have time? Then for the next week, any time you are at work, the elevators are off limits….use the stairs on a daily basis to get around your work environment.

Whatever your 100 percent looks like, just give it!